We work for various reasons – to find fulfilment, develop new skills, or establish connections. And no, I didn’t forget the most important motivation: receiving a paycheck.
Most people rely on wages to survive the daily grind. After all, we need the money to live comfortably. Finding a job that makes it possible has always been the goal.
It’s common to assume that compensation is all about monthly salary, but there’s a lot more to it. In fact, people are paid differently depending on their skills, locations, and performance. Some are paid by the hour, others by the day, and there are those who receive commissions depending on their contributions to the company.
Generally, direct and indirect compensations are both financial in nature. This means that employees can receive bonuses, wages, and salaries in cash. On the other hand, non-financial compensation refers to perks like flexible time off, development training, performance recognition, and other non-monetary benefits.
Obviously, there are different types of compensation packages to choose from. If you own a business, identifying the best one for your staff can go a long way towards attracting and retaining top talent.
Let’s take a look.
Salary Compensation
This is the most common pay structure as well as the most straightforward. Here, the annual salary is already determined from the beginning. The working hours are fixed and overtime pay doesn’t apply most of the time. Employees don’t have to keep track of their working hours because they already have a fixed monthly salary.
Hence, this is a great option for remote workers who aren’t on your sales team. Most employees are happy to have a steady source of income, and they’re generally happy with a fixed salary for carrying out routine operational tasks.
However, if you have remote workers who have the potential to help you grow your company’s sales, the next sort of compensation might be better for them.
Salary and Commission
A fixed income is a great base, but the chance to earn additional commissions can be a great incentive, especially for remote workers in direct sales roles. Thus, an annual salary package with commissions is perfect for your remote workers tasked with sales quotas.
Commissions can be a percentage of personal sales, bonuses, or additional overtime pay. With the right figures, commissions can push your sales teams to achieve more. It might take a bit of trial and error to arrive at the right percentages, but arriving at these would be rewarding.
Despite the earning potential of this pay structure, it’s not for everyone. Some employees still prefer the security of fixed pay. Also, performance-based pay might not be ideal for people in operational roles, where an exemplary performance might not directly translate to more profits for your company.
Hourly Compensation
Every employee has different needs and motivations. While commission-based compensations attract competitive and entrepreneurial employees, those seeking flexible schedules gravitate towards hourly compensation schemes. Take students, freelancers, and working parents, for instance.
Most remote workers fall under this category, and with good reason. This compensation package allows employers to track their remote workers’ hours and pay them accordingly. If there’s a need to extend working hours due to deadlines, remote workers can do so without worrying about overtime pay.
The lack of fixed working hours also allows your staff to cut their work day short and attend to urgent personal matters as needed. They can always make up the hours on another day. Conversely, you can ask your remote workers to extend their working hours as needed.
Conclusion
It’s impossible to overestimate the role that compensation plays in facilitating a harmonious working relationship with your remote team. Happy, well-compensated teams will always work more effectively and efficiently. This, in turn, can translate into lower costs and higher profits for your business.
Your job is to determine what motivates your people and if possible, to present them with choices on how they would like to be compensated. After all, you can never go wrong looking after your key people.
Fortunately, you don’t have to do it alone. Remote Staff has been facilitating harmonious working relationships between Filipino remote workers and AU entrepreneurs and SMEs for the past decade. Thus, we have the knowledge and expertise to advise you on which compensation packages would suit your needs and budget.
Call us today or schedule a call back and let’s get started.
Serena has been working remotely and writing content for the better part of the last decade. To date, she's written for Pepper.ph and Mabuhay Magazine, among others, and has churned out more than a thousand articles on everything from The Basics of Stock Market Investing to How to Make Milk Tea-Flavored Taho at home. Hermits, aspiring hermits, and non-hermits with interesting project propositions may email her at serena.estrella10@gmail.com.
