Years ago I read about Zappos and how they offered employees money to quit or leave. You can read about it here. And here. And here.
Would this work at camp? We do not offer a great sum. Our offer has ranged from $200 to $300 or about a weeks work of salary to most camp counsellors.
No one has taken us up on it yet. We make the offer after staff training has happened, just before the summer starts. Our staff culture is the biggest part of our success as a summer camp. Our staff need to be on the same team and pulling in the same direction. If you are not going to buy into what we do to provide the most amazing experience to our summer campers – then I am willing to pay you leave.
We have all had summer camp staff who didn’t quite get it. We have all had our challenges with staff who were new to the camp experience and may have adversly affected campers stays at camp.
Pay them to quit before the summer. It will pay you back by having a staff team who is dedicated to your mission, goals and objectives.
Campers deserve the most amazing staff. Give Campers what they deserve.