To be motivational, reward and recognition must be appropriate in the
eye of the receiver. Tickets for the big game are fine if you enjoy sport.
If you don't enjoy sport but you would like the value of the tickets to
spend on something else instead, your reward just turned into another
task; selling the tickets. Although they may be easy to sell on to someone
else, the motivational edge has been diminished slightly.
The following is a bit like the health warning on a pack of cigarettes.
This short compilation of religious issues highlights what could arise
if you target an inappropriate reward on a person with certain strong
beliefs. That's not to say this will be the case for everyone in that
sub-group of humanity but nevertheless a little care and attention to
detail can go a long way.
Most religions are becoming more flexible and tolerant in their outlook
on what their followers may or may not do in their day-to-day lives; however
there are still a few taboos that it would be worth reminding yourself
about.
Jewish
The favorite taboos always cited for those of the Jewish persuasion are
food derived from the humble pig and any reference to the holocaust, Nazi
Germany or World War 2. Apparently pork and bacon are not the issue they
used to be however, it pays to ask. The use of the Nazi swastika emblem
is actually illegal in some countries but the atrocities of the World War
2 live on in the minds of the Jewish people and should not be raised,
even in fun.
References to non-Jewish festivals such as Christmas and Easter are also
mildly insulting to some, but not all, Jews.
Muslim
Pork meat can also be a problem for followers of Islam. It falls under
a set of rules called Halal, laid down by the Islamic faith. Strictly
speaking, any foodstuff that contains fats or byproducts of pig meat will
be forbidden. In addition many of them will not drink alcohol, so that
free bottle of wine will just sit on a shelf. Interestingly vanilla essence,
which is extracted using alcohol is also considered Halal; so no vanilla
ice-cream either.
Christian
Although many people consider themselves to be Christians, it is only
the devout Christians who may be offended by inappropriate gestures. Issues
like sex, nudity, homosexuality and profanity may be acceptable to the
majority of adults but a practicing Christian will be not only embarrassed
but perhaps insulted much more than the average person.
Hindu
Hinduism has a tradition of not eating beef as they see it as the unnecessary
killing of a useful beast. Many Hindus eat a predominantly vegetarian
diet and will also avoid pork, veal, lamb, fish, chicken and dairy products.
Nudity and profanity are heavily censored in Hindu culture. They are less
tolerant than the average western community.
In general, it seems, food can be a bit of a hot potato which makes an
impromptu company barbeque a little complicated.
Chris Herrmann -Published by http://www.BoomerangAwards.com.
Empowering business using technology and an ancient primeval technique
to create a new employee recognition and reward program. Obtain your free
report "20 Tips to Running Successful Recognition and Reward Systems"
at http://www.BoomerangAwards.com
