GiftCard Partners Blog

Employee rewards have evolved far beyond the old “Employee of the Month” plaque. Today’s workforce expects recognition that feels personal, flexible, and connected to their goals. According to a Gallup study, employees who receive frequent, meaningful recognition are 4x more likely to be engaged and 5x more likely to feel connected to company culture.

We all know it’s a little tough to focus in the office when kids are out of school and the weather is nice. Workplace productivity drops 20% during June, July and August, so to ensure your employees stay focused, happy and productive in the office, make sure they spend some of their time out of the office. Employers often use summertime to offer special perks like the 41% who indicated they offer flexible schedules, and the 28% who offer "summer Fridays." Ensuring that your employees take some time away from their desk for a vacation and "digital detox" is a great way to increase workplace productivity. For those workaholics who you can't seem to squeeze in a week at the beach other incentives such as gift cards are a great way to acknowledge hard work. Small denomination gift cards to popular retailers like 
The Limited, 
Boston Market, or 
AutoZone allows employees to treat themselves during the summer, and feel appreciated by their employer. Encouraging a work/life balance and rewarding hard work, especially when temptation to slack off is at its height, will keep your workforce engaged and workplace productivity going long after Labor Day. For more ideas on keeping your organization's summer productive check out this infographic from American Express Open Forum.

Gamification is a trend that continues to gain traction in the workplace. It can be applied to health and wellness initiatives, employee motivation programs, and even training programs. New research from the University of Colorado indicates that new employees who participated in online gaming and interactive modules as part of the training process showed higher overall retention rates, a greater knowledge of the organization and their particular role, and a higher level skill set. Gamificationtraining engages employees in the process of on-boarding, rather than having new employees sit through hours of static training sessions where they listen to so much information it is more difficult to retain and later apply. Gamification alsoallows employees to learn and apply simultaneously, making information more digestible and creating mechanisms to help employees remember important points. Gamifying employee training is an innovative way to invest in employees right from the start. Employees will appreciate the engaging training sessions and feel supported by the organization from the outset of their time. Using gamification for ongoing employee training, for employees who have been with the organization for a period of time, can go one step further byusing incentives for game winners and goal reachers. Using small incentives such as a gift card to a popular retailer such as 
CVS/Pharmacy or 
The Cheesecake Factory for those who achieve or meet their goals from the training will not only ensure that employees absorb the desired material but that all employees are motivated to complete the training and work towards its goals.

Headlines about the “end of hybrid work” keep coming, but the latest Gallup research paints a different picture: hybrid isn’t going anywhere. Since 2022, the percentage of U.S. employees in hybrid arrangements has held steady at around half of the remote-capable workforce — a clear sign that flexibility is here to stay.

Career development isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s a must-have. In today’s competitive job market, employees want more than a paycheck: they want growth, purpose, and a future. For HR leaders, this presents both a challenge and an opportunity. Get career development right, and you don’t just retain employees—you build a motivated, high-performing workforce.