Managers have long known that employee incentive programs can boost employee morale and increase group cohesion. The benefit of these programs need not end there. Employee incentive programs can also have a measurable effect on a credit union’s bottom line.
Tyndall Federal Credit Union ($844M in Panama City, FL) implemented their performance-based culture in 2005. Tyndall was hoping that the implementation of this employee incentive program would help increase employee efficiency, throughput, and member satisfaction. They strove to develop an incentive program with clear goals that reward employees who exceeded performance benchmarks.
The results of Tyndall’s incentive program became evident quite quickly. By rewarding tellers using individual and group measures, Tyndall was able to increase their number of transactions per hour. This increase led Tyndall to become one of the top ranked credit unions based on their cost per transaction, which currently averages 69 cents.
In its first full year, 2006, Tyndall’s incentive program resulted in:
- A $46 million increase in loans (an 8.9% growth)
- Higher efficiency, requiring 30 less full-time employees
- A $1 million reduction in total personnel cost
By setting clear, fair, and consistent goals for the employee incentive program, Tyndall employees provided higher throughput and maintained customer service levels. From a manager’s viewpoint Tyndall was able to use the service comparisons to see where employee training needed to be strengthened and to allocate employees based on volume at specific branches and during specific time periods.
How have the tellers responded to this program? In the past tellers shied away from working in the busier branches or during heavily trafficked lunch hours. Now, according to HR manager Philippe Asselin, those are the most highly sought after positions.
