GiftCard Partners Blog

Another study out this week, by the Incentive Research Foundation shows again, what the GCP team has known for years, cash incentives are not always the most effective.  According to this new research non-cash incentives such as merchandise, travel, and gift cards prove more effective than cash rewards.  Employees find them to be more valuable.  They drive more competition in today's tough economy, and are viewed as a special treat, rather than cash that could be spent on bills, or groceries.  Non-cash incentives must be used for a special occasion, whether it is a trip, or "free" merchandise purchased through a gift card. The trophy value of gift cards and other non-cash incentives is also important in today's economy.  No one wants to lose their job, or feel as though their job is in danger, these kinds of incentives serve as better reinforcement of behavior than cash.  Employees take more notice of other employees receiving non-cash incentives, rather than a check that is often included in an employees regular paycheck.   So when beginning to think about end of quarter, or end of year bonuses and rewards, think outside the "cash box."  
For more information on the Incentive Research Foundation study click here.

The Prepaid Press recently published
Employers Find Ways to Say ‘Thank You’ to Employees; Prepaid cards Increasing as Incentive of Choice which highlighted Young America’s recent research regarding prepaid cards (such as gift cards) gaining even more popularity amongst corporate HR incentive programs. With company-wide salary freezes and abandoned bonuses, employers are struggling more than ever to retain their best employees. “…employers who want to retain their best employees admit they have fewer resources to do so, and many are turning to structured incentive programs, which cost less than salary increases and often result in high levels of employee productivity, positive feedback and loyalty," said Joe Custer, president of Young America. A few highlights of the survey findings:

Telecommuting; the term was coined in back in 1973, but it took recent cloud computing technologies for many employers to jump on board telecommuting wagon.
GiftCard Partners (GCP) has an entirely remote workforce, so we understand the benefits to our employer, to ourselves as the employees and the Earth. Companies like
GCP are making a difference in society with a very small carbon footprint and in work life balance by offering telecommuting as an option. But with a remote workforce, how can you be sure that recognition and motivation for your telecommuting workforce isn’t lost?

Employees' satisfaction with their recognition is not truly measured by the company, but by the employee.  And, although it is easy for companies to simply give employees recognition by giving a raise, employees are not satisfied with this outcome.  Employees want more; they want to feel as though their employer cares about what they want for their efforts, not what the company is willing to give.  The top five reward satisfaction points based on a recent poll were:

We all see businesses tightening their belts.  They are cutting back on staff gatherings, even scaling back the services offered within the office (such as fancy coffee machines and extraneous office supplies), but through these tough and uncertain times do not cut your employee recognition program! The formal recognition of positive employee behavior is essential to the success of your business and the satisfaction of your employees.  According to research done by HospitalityNet employee job satisfaction decreases significantly as recognition programs are scaled back or eliminated.  If you do not recognize your employees hard work, they will not recognize the positive parts of their participation in your company.  Check out the staggering numbers in the table below, another fantastic piece of research from HospitalityNet:

This proves that you must recognize your employees, because during these uncertain economic times you want to be able to rely on your employees.  Without them, your business cannot run and be successful, but with a happy, grateful workforce your company can grow and flourish, regardless of the economic climate.  Recognition can be as big as a seasonal staff gathering, and as small as offering a gift card to a retailer an employee shops at frequently.  Whatever it is, make sure your recognition programs do not get cut, it may put your business at significant risk.  
For more information on the importance of employee recognition and the research from HospitalityNet click here.