Say the words “motivation” and “incentive” in the same sentence and what jumps into most people’s minds are: pay, bonuses, incentives, or commissions. As if cash was the only—or even the best—way to motivate people and create employee engagement.

A recent report by McKinsey & company argues otherwise. They reveal that three non-cash motivators are as important—if not more important—than financial employee incentives. These are: 1) praise from immediate managers, 2) leadership attention, and 3) a chance to lead projects or task forces.

Those three non-cash motivators don’t require deep pockets. What they do require are high performing leadership development practices at the front line. If you are wondering how you can develop the kind of leaders at every level in the organization who generate employee engagement, and who give people an opportunity to grow,  you would be interested in Beyond Morale.