$50,000 to Do WHAT?

$50,000 to stay for 5 years. Not a bad retention incentive.

Dan Schneider, founder and CEO of SIB Development and Consulting, decided he'd rather pay for experienced employees than repeatedly pay for training new ones. He's recognized that an investment in institutional knowledge has a pretty high rate of return, and he's put some cold hard cash on the table to show just how important he thinks retention is.

There's more to it than that, of course. Simply putting that offer out there has the ability to change the whole tenor of the organization. His employees see his level of commitment and are more inclined to make a commitment of their own. Rather than focusing on their next job or spending time updating their resumes, the folks who aim for that bonus can instead focus on their work. Even those who aren't necessarily planning to stay around will benefit from working in a culture of loyalty that's full of experienced employees.

A recent interview in the New York Times suggests that Schneider may employ a number of less-than-conventional techniques (his ice cream parties really stand out). His willingness to consider new ways to reach people more effectively -- especially compared to the way he operated before -- has led to some methods that might seem unusual by large corporations' standards but which may be particularly useful in smaller settings (and there's nothing to say they can't be useful in big companies, too, but good luck getting them approved by HR). The retention bonus is one part of his overall strategy for building and maintaining a strong workforce, so be careful about looking at it in isolation and trying to use it, and only it, as a retention tool. Consider how your company's culture can be used to effectively retain your best Creatives and find methods for creating that culture.

Dan may not have the typical CEO background, and the differences between he and you might make you question whether his methods would be right for you. He dropped out of school after the 9th grade and, following a business success, he took off from work for over two years. You may think that he and you are so dissimilar that what comes out of his mind could never be right for you. If you're disturbed by the path he took to get here, though, then just put aside the source and consider the methods and their results.

Employee retention is challenging for Creatives; the talented ones are always in demand, and the untalented ones...well, do you really want untalented Creatives working for you? As the job market improves -- and it will -- you'll find it harder and harder to hang onto your talented folks. Be thinking about what it takes to keep your good people and make them be their most productive while they're with you. At the end of the day, a simple financial reward for longevity might be the best, as well as the easiest, thing to do.