Points Programs

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Economic Recession Provides Opportunities for Organizations For Employee Recognition

Facing the recession, reducing costs and boosting performance is a major concern for companies throughout the United States. Many organizations are taking this predicament as an opportunity to fine tune their compensation and benefits strategy to ensure both short term and long term goals are being reached during this crucial period. The recession is presenting organizations with a chance to focus on maximizing performance while reducing important costs by implementing or updating employee incentives.

According to a November 2008 survey, companies are looking to reduce costs but not at the expense of risking its future talent base. The Deloitte 2009 Top Five Total Rewards Priorities Survey shows the number one strategic challenge facing companies today is the immediate need to reduce healthcare costs. In fact, reducing hiring, operational and healthcare costs is a common set of short term goals given the lagging economy. In the long term, the survey revealed that attracting and retaining employees is the number one priority.

Especially in this dour economy, clients of mine are focusing on the short and long term goals that the Deloitte survey listed as top priorities for 2009. Depending on the goals of a given client, I work with program administrators to ensure the incentive program is successful at delivering bottom line results. By aligning the goals of the company with the incentive program objectives, you are ensuring it is designed to be successful.

In addition to aligning company and incentive goals, by implementing the components of a modern incentive program, a company can boost the performance of its workforce and the overall results of the award program. State of the art employee incentive programs feature lifestyle merchandise awards, multiple ways for participants to access the award program information and multimedia communication targeted towards each demographic represented in a given workplace.

Any contemporary employee incentive program in place today needs to appeal to all of the generations in the American workplace and relevancy of the types of gift merchandise offered should be a concern for any business or non-profit alike spending budget on an award program. Traditional employee awards tended to include pen sets and jewelry made of increasingly costly metals, making the program cost increase year over year and decreasing the flexibility and appeal of the incentive program. Modern award programs, on the other hand, include lifestyle merchandise rewards that are name brand and high quality. These corporate gifts are usually grouped together by price points, always ensuring an easy-to-budget employee award program with awards that appeal to every demographic.

By leveraging the features of a contemporary incentive program, organizations can achieve a competitive advantage during any economy, thus solidifying its future. Depending on the kinds of employees that a client has, I recommend different award components and multimedia to communicate the incentive program. Clients with employees who are familiar with computers and have access both at work and home tend to select an online incentive program solution with email and online newsletters as their primary communication devices. For clients who have employees less familiar with computers, printed catalogs, statements, postcards and other media are more useful and relevant.

The recession has impacted everyone and as Ann Bares, author of the blog Compensation Force reports, a sense of shared destiny between employers and workers has developed as a result. Employees and employers are realizing they each have a goal or mission in common, whether it be solidifying a competitive advantage or having a successful and significant career, and that collaboration is not only beneficial but can help to foster a winning corporate culture amid the 2009 recession and beyond.

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