A mishandled employee recognition programme can tank productivity in employees who believe their hard work is unnoticed and unappreciated.
A mishandled employee recognition programme can tank productivity in employees who believe their hard work is unnoticed and unappreciated. You can avoid this unwanted side effect by developing and implementing a rewards programme that energises and motivates employees instead of distracting and demoralising them.
Recognising and rewarding employees on a personal level has increasingly become not an optional extra, but ground floor essential in keeping employees feeling motivated, loyal and proactive. If your employees aren't engaged and productive, it's time to take a hard look at your employee recognition and rewards programme to determine if it's actually having the intended effect.
Traditional employee recognition and rewards programmes often miss the mark
Traditionally, employee bonuses at Christmas were the accepted way to show appreciation and reward a job well done, but bonus amounts can vary widely by sector and many employees see their holiday bonus spent before the New Year turns a month old. Even the annual pay rise isn't necessarily much of a reason to rejoice when inflation easily keeps pace with - or even outstrips - the small increase in paycheques. A Christmas bonus may still be welcome, but it could also be regarded as outdated and impersonal. The temporary boost to employee morale will fade as quickly as the bonus is spent, leaving your employees' outlook in a nosedive.
Other common recognition programmes that similarly have only a short-term effect employee participation and feelings of being valued are Employee of the Month schemes or birthday presents in the form of a generic gift card. While these can be a nice way for a department to honor an employee, it's not sufficient from the corporate employer. In fact, employee-of-the-month schemes can end up being particularly divisive, with a few employees duking it out for top billing and the rest of the field decidedly unenthused about the whole affair. Finding more impressive and productive ways to reward and incentivise employees must be found that can be leveraged across the entire workforce all year round.
Is it time to rethink your employee recognition and rewards programme?
If you shift away from holiday bonus cheques, gift cards and parties, what does that leave you with? Quite a lot, as it turns out: There is an entire new world of employee incentive and rewards programmes out there that can be used to continually encourage, motivate, and recognise effort and achievements. The key is to find ways to deliver rewards that the employee finds to be valuable. Without the perception of value, motivation and employee participation can be a non-starter. Recognition doesn't have to be financial to make an impact, but it must be tied to value.
Simplicity is best when it comes to an employee recognition and rewards programme
You don't have to completely give up on immediate, short-term motivators like bonuses or birthday parties. However, consider finding ways to implement a more personal approach to employee recognition to see a rise in effectiveness for boosting productivity and increased employee participation across your workforce. Power2Motivate provides an easy, simplified and effective way to get employees engaged and motivated, by allowing them to earn points and redeem rewards of their choice. This cuts down on nonproductive, divisive competitiveness, and lets every employee gain the recognition and rewards they need to feel valued.
With gamification to keep employee engagement fun, a robust platform available in 17 languages to service international companies, and a vast online gallery of redeemable rewards, P2M brings your employee recognition and rewards programme into the modern age. You can award points to employees who have proven their loyalty, managers can reward those who hit sales goals, and employees can even nominate each other for rewards points in a peer to peer format.
For more information on P2M's platform, request a demo today.