A study was done by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that points out the difference between what an employer perceives the needs of his employees to be and what the employees needs are.

Employer’s Rating of Most Important Needs:

1. Good Wages
2. Job Security
3. Promotion/Growth in company
4. Good working conditions
5. Interesting Work
6. Personal loyalty to workers
7. Tactful disciplining
8. Appreciation
9. Help with personal problems
10. Feeling “in” on things

Employee’s Rating of Most Important Needs:

1. Appreciation
2. Feeling “in” on things
3. Help with personal problems
4. Job Security
5. Good wages
6. Interesting work
7. Promotion/growth in company
8. Personal loyalty to workers
9. Good working conditions
10. Tactful disciplining

What it does require is a willingness among leaders to test their longstanding assumption that that performance is best measured by the number of hours employees puts in – and the more continuous the better — rather than by the value they generate, however they choose to do their work and the value they create from it.