Now more than ever, employees want a purpose-filled career. They want to feel connected to their team, engaged in their work, and valued by their leaders. In the workplace, employee reward and recognition are used to identify and boost morale and performance. Employee recognition can lead to increased feelings of satisfaction and loyalty. Employee reward and recognition programs are human-centered and strategy-driven. They blend the tangible benefits of rewards with the heartfelt benefits of employee recognition to create a tailored program. At Ovation Incentives, we’re experts at helping organizations introduce tailored recognition programs for their employees, and here are our tips for a seamless implementation process in developing a reward and recognition policy.
Define Your Vision
It is important for any business to first define their visions before implementing a reward and recognition policy, therefore it is critical to revisit the following the business goals, benefits, costs,
Build a team
For the employee rewards and recognition program to be efficiently implemented, the first step is to form a team comprising of a few people who will be responsible for the implementation, managing, and establishment of reward programs. The team must be invested in the program, show a keen interest in the program and most of all believe in the company values themselves.
Define the criteria
The key to meaningful recognition is to set the criteria for getting rewarded and appreciated. Recognition should be attainable, easy, and convenient for all the employees hence to make rewards and recognition meaningful, you need to decide what form of good work is recognized
Ensure Successful Implementation
Once you get the necessities out of the way, it's time to make the implementation of the program successful by ensuring in getting your employees onboard with the program, management advocacy of the program and ensuring the objectives of the program finally align with the company values.
Measure And Revisit
Once the rewards and recognition program has been successfully implemented, it is important to measure whether the programs are positively impacting the company as a whole, i.e., productivity, business results, and brand value. This can be achieved by adopting simple employee satisfaction surveys to gather input from employees themselves about whether their engagement level has improved or not so you can evolve and adapt accordingly to meet the requirements of purpose of the reward and recognition program.
What is a Rewards and Recognition Policy
An employee reward and recognition program is a special program developed by companies to recognize employees for their contributions to the success of a business. Effective employee recognition programs help to attract and retain top talent, and ensure that employees feel valued, appreciated, and motivated to achieve company goals. A major part of performance management involves managing employees and managers, as their performance will have a major effect on the performance of the organisation as a whole.
Benefits of an Employees Rewards and Recognition Policy
Recognition is a key ingredient to success. If you fail to show your employees that you notice their hard work, and how much you appreciate it, then they will never give you their best. Employee reward and recognition programs are invaluable means of getting the most out of your workforce and they can generate a host of different benefits for both the business and employees, improve the overall productivity and profitability while also reducing costly employee turnover.
Let’s take a look at the benefits of implementing a strong employee reward and recognition program.
Promote teamwork and collaboration
Reward schemes with recognition programs can be extremely effective in driving collaboration between team members by assuring employees that their contributions to the team’s accomplishments are appreciated and celebrated by all.
Enhance employe engagement and give them a sense of belonging
Company culture is a huge part of your brand identity. Your company culture is key where a company can promise its mission statement it makes to its customers.
Employee recognition programs can ensure that employees feel valued both by management and their peers and show them that their accomplishments are recognised and valued.
Boost employee retention
The good news is that recognition programs not only help employees work harder and take more pride in the task at hand. Companies that implement employee recognition programs enjoy reduction in voluntary turnover. Employees who stay with a company are more likely to contribute positively and grow, therefore helping companies reach new heights of operational excellence and customer satisfaction.
Types of Employee Rewards and Recognition Program
There are plenty of great employee recognition ideas that we have seen over the years, and so we thought we’d put together a comprehensive list of the best ones we’ve seen. We’ve put together a few ideas on different types of employee reward programs
Employee Of The Month
This type of program recognizes workers who outperformed co-workers during a given month. It offers every employee a chance to shine since they are working to boost identifiable goals, such as increasing sales numbers or providing friendly and helpful customer service.
Employee Anniversary Recognition
Employees today want their managers to remember and acknowledge their hire date, especially if it is a notable year, such as the five-year mark anniversary or if the employee has worked for the company for a decade.Sending even a departmental email to the employee and their coworkers adds a little extra bit of appreciation and meaning to the award.
Perfect Attendance
Showing up each day, and showing up on time, is not something ingrained in every employee, but employers can foster this essential skill with friendly motivation.
Employee Rewards and Recognition Policy Template
Every company intending to start a reward and recognition program should have a policy which contains a set of guidelines on how to reward and recognize staff (and how often) who demonstrate best performance and show strong attitude for continuous Improvement. Some of these elements are:
Reward: It is important to have a combination of cash and non-cash awards for your staff.
Award: This can be a honor, or decoration prize to be given to the individual or team
Objectives : It is important that every company adopting a rewards and recognition program first define their objectives of the program. Do you want to reinforce company culture and values? Do you want to motivate and reward staff for best practices?
Scope: This is where the company must decide where the program will apply to that is which staff levels within the company i.e. individuals and work groups/ work teams; both permanent and contract staff.
Our team at Ovation Incentives can help you get started with the right fit of reward and recognition policies for your business.
Are rewards and recognition policies right for you?
To summarize, employee rewards and recognition policies affect the bottom line of any business. It encourages higher retention rates, improved productivity and boosts self-esteem among employees. Once you harness and implement a consistent program you will notice:
- Increased employee productivity
- Better collaboration and engagement between teams
- Improved relationship with business customers and stakeholders.
All of the above will result in a happier and more profitable workforce. Taking time to say ‘thank you’ to your employees will ensure you reap the benefits in the long run.
At Ovation Incentives we can help you with tailored reward and recognition solutions to meet your business goals. Contact us today to find out more.