One of the truly fantastic things about our employee program is the motivation that it has provided our employees - raising morale and inspiring them to work together in pursuit of common goals. We had relied upon our employee recognition program for many years for these benefits and had certainly seen a return on our investment time after time. Now, we had begun to use the employee program situationally - to help us achieve very specific goals that we set forth throughout the year.

For instance, while we had originally implemented a rewards program and let it run throughout the year - as blanket motivation with set prize incentives - now we were using it a case by case basis. That way we could set specific goals throughout the year - month to month or in response to something specific that were trying to achieve. Then we could tailor our prize incentives to the goals at hand. We were finding that this could be a very effective means to not only meeting our goals but keeping motivation alive throughout the course of the year.

We began doing this with a big project that was coming our way. This was a new client and our first project that we were doing for this client. We needed to come in on time and on budget, and deliver in a way that meant total satisfaction for our client. This was important to say the least and we decided to use our employee program to help inspire our employees to work hard and efficiently.

We set particular goals that were in line with our project and matched prize incentives to those goals; prizes that were in keeping with the scope of the project, the hours that our employees would be putting in and the personalities of those working on the project.

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In the last post, I talked about how we were finally ready to make some changes to our employee recognition program. The prize incentive that we offered had only changed minimally since we began the program but now, five years after we started, we were ready to make some big changes. After all, our cash was vastly improved and now seemed like as good a time as any - with the holidays and the new year upon us - to introduce something more to inspire our employees.

As we talked about previously, we were introducing vacations and some higher ticket electronics - including televisions - into the prize incentive mix. Some of the other prizes we were considering included:

Jewelry. This was especially enticing with the fast approaching holidays. We knew our employees would appreciate the opportunity to win high quality jewelry pieces that they could give as a gift to someone they love - or even to themselves.

Gift cards. Never underestimate the power of a gift card; a way to put the power of the purchase directly in the recipient’s hand. We had always included gift cards in our prize incentives as they were affordable ways to motivate employees. This time, however we were upping the ante on the gift cards - offering higher amounts to everything from high end restaurants and clothing stores to grocery stores and department stores.

Our employee rewards program had always done well by us. From its inception it had afforded us a greater level of communication with our employees, much greater production from a motivated staff and a way to not only set goals within the company but measure the achievement of those goals. Now, we were looking to our employee program - with our expanded prize incentives - to see us through to the next year and the many years to follow - providing the many benefits that had given us up until this point.

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When we first considered establishing an employee rewards program, one of the things that sold us on doing it was the flexibility of the program. We were a start-up company at the time and, as such, our budget was very limited. However, after doing a lot of research on incentive programs we found that we could successfully initiate - and manage - a program regardless of our budget. We had only to choose prize incentives that were within our budget; which is exactly what we did. We were able to motivate employees and optimize production with limited investment and it was a huge success right from the start. During our research we also learned that we could change the program as we saw fit and as our budget allowed. This was when we were going to put it to the test.

Here we are, five years after we first implemented our employee program and we’re finally ready to change up the program. While we certainly don’t have an unlimited budget we definitely have more economic flexibility. As the company’s owners, we decided that this was the perfect time to change the program with the holidays and new year approaching.

So we went back to our prize incentives to see how we could spice up our employee recognition program for the holidays. We made some different choices that we are we happy to introduce for the holiday season including:

The ability to win vacations. We’re not talking week long getaways at five star resorts but we are talking long weekends at hot spots within driving distances. If there’s one thing that anyone could use right now it’s some time away.

Electronics. When we first set up our employee program, we steered clear of these prizes because they were higher ticket items. Now we were ready to offer up televisions and even iPods as prize incentives.

More in the next post…

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In the last post we talked about what features make a successful employee program. Companies put employee recognition programs into place everyday as a way to motivate their employees and reach particular goals as a company. Ideally such a program does its job to motivate staff and eventually the goals of the company are met. Then, going forward, as goals change, the program itself will be changed accordingly so that employees continue to be motivated and the company as a whole moves forward together towards the goals that they have set.

As we discussed earlier, some of the elements of a successful employee program include its structure - that it is organized and well thought out in terms of what it offers and what it asks of employees, its management - that there is a solid team put in place to monitor the success of the program and to recommend adjustments where/when necessary, and choice of prizes - that the incentives included are appropriate for the goals and the employees.

Some additional elements of a successful employee program include:

Communication. In order for a program to be successful the parameters of the program need to clearly communicated to those who are eligible to participate. The goals of the company and the prizes that employees are eligible to receive if they are able to meet particular goals need to be understood fully.

Focus. With such a tool at their disposal, most companies would want to use an employee program to help them achieve each and every goal they have. However, having a clear direction and focus - something specific to work towards - helps to make the program more effective.

Versatility. What works today may not be so effective tomorrow. Any company that implements an employee recognition program needs to be open to making changes when they are necessary and continually growing the program.

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