WHITE PAPER

Ten Incentive Essentials:A survival guide for employee rewards and recognition planners.

Here’s what your program needsto last for the long haul. (And where to find it.)

Common sense tells us that incentive programs are valuable to employ-ees. Who would turn down the chance to get praised in a public way, sit down for a free lunch, or go on an unexpected shopping spree? Perks like these are things to look forward to and work towards. Just knowing they’re available, even if you don’t happen to earn them, is a positive.

Research supports this idea, too: 99% of employees surveyed highly value incentive programs. However, 98% also have complaints about how their incentive program is implemented.*

Clearly, there is a discrepancy between the idea of an incentive and the reality. The idea is inspirational, moves people to action, and makes seemingly impossible goals attainable. But in reality, there are ever-changing mar-ket conditions, budget threats, and other unforeseen obstacles that must be overcome if you’re to reach the pinnacle of motivational success.

Fortunately, you now have this guide in your hands. It’s packed with useful tips and advice that will help you prepare wisely for your journey into the land of employee rewards and recognition. Whether you’re green behind the ears or a seasoned veteran of employee engagement, it can help make your incentives adventure exciting, in a good way. Instead of in a facing-down-a-grizzly-bear-while-dressed-in-a-suit-of-raw-bacon way. Nobody wants that.

Finding a better way to inspire employees.

*White Paper: Incentives, Motivation and Workplace Performance: Research and Best Practices: research sponsored by the International Society for Performance Improvement and funded by the SITE Foundation; Spring 2002

Empowered ManagersIgnite a passion for good work.

Meaningful RewardsDiscover what their hearts desire.

Managers have a remarkable amount of influence on the culture of a workplace. When they’re trained and supported in their efforts to acknowledge a job well done, they greatly enhance your organization’s ability to attract, engage and retain.

But often, it’s not clear to managers that day-to-day positive reinforce-ment is their responsibility, and they don’t have the tools or knowl-edge to do it well. Provide training that informs managers about how to identify opportunities for real-time recognition, along with the right tools to do it, within the framework of an incentive program. When you do, you’ll transform them into advocates for goals able to ignite a passion for good work.

You wouldn’t give an avid fisherman a certificate for a mud wrap at a spa, or take a vegetarian out to dinner at a steakhouse. Don’t make this same mistake when you choose rewards for your employee incentive or recognition program, or you’ll wind up with a program as effective as, well, no program at all.

Do some homework to make sure you know what types of incentives will engage your employee population. Surveys, interviews and sug-gestion boxes are great ways to gather information about what your employees are excited about as a group, and what gives them personal satisfaction as well. Whether it’s verbal praise or gift cards or extra days off, map the rewards you choose to true wants and desires.

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Measurement of SuccessWithout data, you’ll be lost.

Commitment from the TopKeep an eye on executives.

You wouldn’t buy a mutual fund without access to information about performance. The same attitude must apply to investments in employ-ee incentives. Otherwise, they’ll be seen by the C-suite as unnecessary expenses that can be eliminated with no adverse effect. It’s critical that you’re able to prove program success. Without this, your program actu-ally could be unnecessary.

Establish criteria for measuring the success of your program, and then track it. Depending on your program type and goals, you might need to collaborate with other departments to gather data they’re currently measuring, or implement an online employee engagement survey. Just make sure you keep sight of your program’s ultimate objectives, and have data that helps you make improvements and demonstrate success.

When incentive and recognition programs fail, it’s often because they don’t have the backing they should from executives. It’s rare that an executive will take an openly anti-program stance, interfering with crucial budgets and approvals. What’s more common is a subtle undermining of program value, due to lack of public endorsement of your program, participation in it, and its ultimate objectives.

To avoid both obvious and subversive threats to program success, be sure to spend the time necessary to educate executives about bottom-line im-pact, keep them informed throughout the life of your program, and find at least one executive-level champion for your cause.

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Consolidated EffortsCooperate to climb higher.

Decentralized OwnershipMore advocates means less static.

You may be in charge of your company’s incentive or recognition program, but this doesn’t mean you should try to do it all alone. Even forest rangers and pediatric surgeons, professionals who are happy to carry a heavy load of work responsibility all on their own, have sup-port. This is because there are huge benefits to sharing work respon-sibility: increased visibility within the organization, administrative efficiency, tighter alignment and much more.

Make sure your program, its framework, and the tools that will be used to implement it are relevant enterprise-wide. Document your plan for participation throughout your company. And be sure to enlist support from people out in the field and in other departments. This is how you can keep incentives meaningful and alive, and make them work their best.

Delegation can be difficult when you’re passionate about something, but it’s essential to the success of corporate incentive programs. Why? Because corporate incentive programs have to compete for employees’ attention: deadlines, weather, promotions, emails, meeting schedules, health issues, lunch breaks. You name it: it’s a distraction from your program and your objectives.

The solution for this problem is simple: have enough flexibility in your pro-gram to allow individual work groups to own and implement in the way that works best for them. This will create advocates with true ownership, provide day-to-day support for program initiatives, and result in a more meaningful experience for everyone.

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Alignment with CorporateValues and GoalsShine some light on what’s important.

Consistent ApplicationPlay favorites, and you’ll get burned.

Alignment gets discussed at the enterprise level, but only happens at the individual level. In reality, it’s the everyday actions of every single employee that contribute to and create the ideal state we refer to as “alignment.”

So how do you get all your employee participants and all their everyday choices to line up and make positive change occur, on a corporate level? Sounds impossible, but it’s not. The key is to show individuals what’s important to the company, encourage it, and then not stifle individual creativity in making it happen.

While decentralized program ownership and individual freedom in contrib-uting to corporate goals are important, it’s just as important to ensure that incentives are distributed equally. Otherwise, you’re looking at a large-scale, grownup version of the teacher’s pet problem. There will be resentment of those who give incentives, and suspicion about whether rewards or recogni-tion have been legitimately earned. This is particularly dangerous for recog-nition programs, where goals are often less quantifiable, but it can unravel reward programs with a discretionary element as well.

So please, give people guidelines! Online help guides, weighted “What Award Should I Give” wizards, value/behavior tracking tools, and embedded ap-proval structures can all ensure that initiatives are implemented fairly and equitably.

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Real-Time PerformanceRecognitionSignal instantly to get noticed.

Continuous ImprovementEven healthy programs need attention.

As memory fades, so does the power of incentives. It’s just how our minds work. For the most powerful connection between positive reinforcement and the action that was required to earn it, make it possible to reward and recognize quickly. The more responsive your program, the stronger its impact will be on employee behavior.

Most employee complaints about reward and recognition programs are focused on lack of freshness. Stale communications and tired incentives just aren’t attention-getting, exciting or motivating.

To take control of this all-too-common problem, take the pulse of your program throughout the year instead of waiting for your annual refresher initiative. It will help you heal those little nicks and aches before they become full-blown, and potentially debilitating. Plus, you’ll get better information for making improvements. That's because when learning and observations are more recent, you get more details.

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Any survivalist worth the jerky in their pocket will tell you that preparation is the difference between failure and success. That’s great news for you. Because you’ve read this guide top to bottom, you have the right knowledge to take on any incentive-related challenge. You’re informed, ready and destined to deliver inspiration to every employee your program touches.

Know this, and you’re ready for anything.

Even healthy programsneed attention.

Ignite a passionfor good work.

Discover what theirhearts desire.

Signal instantlyto get noticed.

Without data,you'll be lost.

Play favorites,and you'llget burned.

Keep an eyeon executives.

Shine some lighton what's important.

Cooperate toclimb higher.

More advocatesmean less static.