Steve Moon, owner of King’s Services in Headingley, Manitoba, Canada, knows working in the portable restroom and septic service industries isn’t the most glamorous job in the world.

He has high standards for his 35 employees, but also tries to make it an enjoyable place to work. About every three months, he tries to do fun things with the staff — a summer pig roast, pizza days, playing at the go-kart track and batting cages across the street, and an annual Christmas party. He also feels it’s very important to acknowledge good effort when he sees it or when it’s brought to his attention.

“We have both a culture of accountability and a culture where, when you do something good, we’re going to let you know you did something good,” he says. “We reward people and recognize them in front of the staff.”

One popular reward program is the company’s Good to Great store. The store has anything in it from a set of tools to a massage to getting your nails done, Moon says. Employees must earn the right to “shop” at the store and the currency they use is company-issued rubber bands.

“We have these rubber bands with our yearly theme on it and a little message,” he says. “Employees earn rubber bands for exceptional behavior. For example, if a customer phones in and says someone did a great job, that person gets a band awarded to them.” There are three levels of recognition, resulting in the awarding of two, four or six bands.

“We set key performance indicators for people and targets because they want to understand where they need to be,” Moon says. “So we do hold people accountable, but we’re really trying to recognize good work, not bad.”

Read more about King’s Services in this month’s issue of Pumper magazine.