Rewarding and recognising the people who work for you has been part of motivation strategies for years — more than that, in fact. You could even go back centuries. Even Napoleon famously said that a soldier would fight long and hard for a bit of coloured ribbon.
Now, Napolean's motivation tactics are an extreme example, but the point remains. People want to be appreciated. They want to feel like their work matters. And, HR departments across the globe know this, which is why it’s generally near the top of their agenda.
But this year, we reckon it’ll take on even more importance — here are a few reasons why.
A solid reward and recognition program can help you recognise and reward an international workforce — which is incredibly difficult when everyone is in different time zones and physical gifts are costly to post. This is why many organisations are turning to more innovative methods of rewarding their teams.
Points-based reward systems are becoming increasingly popular due to the choice they offer employees. With Perkbox, for example, managers can attach points to each recognition they send, which employees can save or redeem right away on thousands of rewards.
Not to mention the real-time recognition feed that employees can post to whenever and wherever they want. Perkbox really helps colleagues, managers, and leaders connect with their global teams so that everyone can be celebrated no matter where they are in the world.
Every employer is looking for ways to be more productive, especially with the tough economic backdrop we’re facing. One of the best ways is to look at what motivates people to go that extra mile.
Some of you may be familiar with the Two Factor Theory, put forward by a US psychologist called Frederick Herzberg. In a nutshell, Herzberg spoke about how things like salary and working environment were hygiene factors — they wouldn’t motivate people or promote job satisfaction, but a lack of them would cause dissatisfaction.
What businesses need to focus on are growth factors (or motivators). Examples include career advancement, achievements, and recognition.
By rewarding and recognising frequently, you can build a culture of appreciation that spreads throughout the company. This then motivates people to do more and to perform better.
It’s not just about completing projects or hitting sales targets either. For example, you may have employees that really live up to your values. Rewarding them for this doesn’t just boost their morale — it shows everybody else what behaviours you're looking for, meaning they’re more likely to replicate it.
We mentioned the tough economic times earlier, and people are of course looking for ways to get more money in their pocket.
Something we’ve noticed at Perkbox is how our clients use points to help their employees financially. These points can be spent on whatever someone wants and many are choosing to use them on essentials, such as a gift card that can be spent on grocery shopping.
This leads to a wider point about the cost of living crisis. While businesses want to help their people financially, it’s also important to empower them. In other words, let them take control of their personal situation. It can be tempting to give them a specific voucher to a specific grocery store — but what if they don’t shop there? What if they’re fine with groceries but actually need help getting cheaper Wi-Fi?
By giving employees choice, you can guarantee they’ll find the reward meaningful to their lifestyle. Plus, that feeling of empowerment is great for morale, and therefore great for employee retention.
Your employees will know roughly how much they’re getting paid at the end of the month. And that’s pretty much where the connection to you stops.
While we all need a healthy wage (like we said in the first point, it’s a hygiene factor) — this doesn’t create any memories for people that they can link to you.
Think of it this way. Employees won’t pay their mortgage or electricity bill and tell people their employer helped them do that.
Or let’s say they treat themselves to something like a holiday. They're probably unlikely to go on social media and post that their employer paid for it.
On the other hand, a reward allows them to create a memory that directly connects them to their employer. It might be a trophy or certificate that they’ll show off to family and friends.
Benefits and perks work in a similar way. Employees may tell their friends about their subsidised gym membership or the free coffee they are entitled to.
Whatever the reward, the employee will immediately associate it with you, which is a great way to increase loyalty.
Having a strong culture of appreciation isn’t just good for the bottom line — it’s also good for your employees’ wellbeing. You’ve probably read a ton of articles in recent years about how important this is, but remember that employee wellbeing isn’t just about being reactive. It’s about getting ahead of the game and finding ways to actively improve people’s health.
When it comes to mental health, rewarding and recognising people can have a really positive impact. There are also plenty of other ways to improve employe wellbeing, such as providing learning and development opportunities and introducing wellbeing benefits.
With teams working remotely, wellbeing solutions need to be flexible, and this is where digital solutions really shine. Perkbox includes a range of both physical and mental health resources employees can use whenever they want. From HIIT workouts to relaxing yoga flows there is something for everyone.
And guess what? This ends up having a positive impact on the bottom line as well. Did you know that the number of US Google searches for excuses to miss work increased by 630% from 2018 to 2022? Or that poor mental health costs the global economy over $1 trillion from absenteeism and reduced productivity?
So, clearly, what’s good for your people’s health is also good for you. Showing appreciation and giving them more than just a salary will do wonders for their state of mind and make them want to keep coming to work. Tying in rewards with annual leave is also another great idea. With Perkbox, you can create custom rewards, including additional annual leave, afternoon lunches, and more.
The last thing businesses want this year is for valuable people to leave. The cost of replacing them (which some studies say can be six to nine months of their salary) is something many won’t have budgeted for. You want your recruitment costs to be spent on bringing in more talented people, not replacing the ones you already have.
But by showing employees you value what they bring to the table, they’ll feel more passionate about what they do — increasing your chances of retaining them. Research suggests that 59% of employees prefer jobs with a rich recognition culture, compared with jobs with higher salaries that don’t give any recognition.
You can do many things to build this into your company. Many businesses have some sort of social recognition platform, but you can also simplify things —Friday shoutouts are a great option. Don't forget to include peers and senior leaders in these shoutouts, as feedback from both is essential.
With all the external pressures businesses and employees are facing this year, you need to focus on the most important tools in your employee engagement toolkit. Reward and recognition definitely fall into this category — get this part of your strategy right, and 2025 can be a roaring success for you.
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