Incentive & Motivation

Yes, it may only be an annual event, but the financial ramifications of Christmas can echo throughout the year. And it doesn’t help that it’s one of those periods when, despite these difficult economic times, it can be hard to cut back. In fact, there are households who willingly tighten their belts for the other 364 days of the year in order to enjoy a festive blowout.

Even carefully planned saving can prove difficult when the cost of living is on the up and pay rises are in short supply. Conscious of the latter yet keen to motivate employees, is there anything employers can do to assist their workforce with periods of high spend?

Flexible benefits can help, as Kuljit Kaur, head of business development at The Voucher Shop, explains: “Flexible benefits that can help staff make their salaries go further play an important role. They also play an important part in any employer’s make up. Offering a range of benefits to employees makes the employer attractive to new recruits and enhances the remuneration package of existing staff, which is important at a time when many are paying more tax and not receiving a salary increase.”

Christmas savings clubs remain popular with many consumers who prefer to save a little each month, and employers have been quick to see the value in offering similar programmes. Love2reward offers Flexesaver, a newly launched employer-branded online Christmas savings scheme.

Alex Speed, head of corporate sales, Love2reward, explains: “With Flexesaver the onus is on the individual to save money throughout the year and they receive gift cards and voucher before Christmas. There are great savings to be made.”

Although benefits schemes can be branded with a Christmas cost-saving theme, it’s unlikely that a reward programme would be. Steve Baker, head of recognition and incentives at Grass Roots, says: “Being prescriptive about rewards isn’t recommended as you never know what motivates an individual.

“That said, there’s no reason why people can’t make the most of their rewards at high-spend times of the year. Someone earning reward points or receiving vouchers may save them up and then redeem them prior to Christmas.”

Just because belts are being tightened as a necessity, it doesn’t stop an individual wanting to give generously to those they cherish. But can they still make that grand gesture?

Ilona Kogutiuk, head of Smartbox Business Solutions, believes they can: “We have seen a greater influx of orders during the run-up to Christmas when corporates ask if Smartbox incentives and rewards can be shared or passed on to someone else as a gift.

“This flexibility of use is at the heart of the Smartbox concept. The reward comes in the form of a presentation box, so it can easily be passed on as a Christmas gift without the ultimate recipient knowing it was originally a workplace incentive.”

This ethos can be applied to cinema vouchers. Dave Pearson, director of Filmology, adds: “The Christmas and New Year period is a popular time for visits to the cinema, particularly with the raft of new films launching. Many employers help their staff to save money by giving them the treat of a cinema voucher as part of a Christmas package, helping them to save money on an enjoyable experience.”

Christmas will always be one of those times when people wish they had a little bit extra, but the good news is that employers are acknowledging this fact and doing what they can to help.

Whatever would Scrooge say?

Asda Business Rewards
Asda Business Rewards has just launched a new dual shopping card, which has been designed for inclusion in flexible benefits schemes and as Joanne Taylor, corporate sales manager at Asda Business Rewards, says is perfect for Christmas.

“The employee can add value to their card via the scheme and benefit from the discount negotiated with Asda via their employer. It’s a great way to save money on weekly groceries and at Christmas.”

Two shopping cards are given to each employee who takes up the scheme so that one can be given to a nominated second cardholder. The value employees choose to add to their account, between £1 and £1,000, can be shared between the two cards, which can be activated remotely.

Reloadable high street giftcards are now available on FlexBank, the retail voucher-based online flexible benefits programme from flexible benefits specialist The Voucher Shop.

The cards, which include ASDA, Sainsbury’s, Marks & Spencer, New Look, Pizza Express and Zizzi, offer participants in FlexBank even more choice in addition to the 40 voucher types already available, and are a highly cost-effective option as no postage costs are incurred.

Through FlexBank employees save money by purchasing store cards or vouchers via their monthly salary. They simply agree to a set amount that is then deducted from their monthly salary and loaded into their online FlexBank account.  Employees can save their deductions over a 12 month period and can choose when and where to draw down on their account, enabling them to benefit from the discounts available at key retail partners, manage their monthly expenditure efficiently or save up for seasonal extras such as Christmas or holidays.

Kuljit Kaur, Head of Business Development at The Voucher Shop, said: “The reloadable high street cards are extremely convenient, secure and cost-effective and offer yet another redemption opportunity for participants in FlexBank.”

Adding extra value to its employee offering can single out a business as the employer to work for. If your company has not considered introducing an employee benefit scheme, then perhaps it’s high time it did…

With the economic climate still tough and the outlook still bleak, it’s more important than ever to value staff. In the light of 0% pay rises for many workers, job cuts and the rising cost of living, morale is not surprisingly subdued. Not knowing if your job will still be there next month, or in three months, is a depressing state of affairs that can spill over into the workplace and affect performance.

Introducing a range of employee benefits, however, could help improve the situation as well as attract new staff. Being proactive and letting employees know the company cares about their well-being, is a strong motivator; it could also supply a positive point of difference between an organisation and its competitors.

According to Nick Courtney from Edenred: “Research shows that an engaged employee is a productive one, therefore it is important for businesses to consider how to retain, develop and recruit the right talent, as well as what their reward strategy is.”

It’s not the non-existent pay rises that are going to keep people or attract new blood, so companies need to provide something else. “Offering a range of benefits to employees makes the employer attractive to new recruits and enhances the remuneration package of existing staff, which is particularly important at a time when many are paying more tax and not receiving a salary increase,” says Kuljit Kaur, head of business development at The Voucher Shop.

Glenn Elliott, managing director of Asperity Employee Benefits, adds:  “For many organisations, benefits and not salary will be the focus of reward discussions for the next couple of years while we ride out the current economic storm.

“Employers will increasingly look to motivate and engage their workforce as never before to harness productivity, ease workplace issues and survive and thrive in tough economic times.”

One size fits all?

People have various likes and dislikes, with numerous factors, including age, having an impact on taste, so when it comes to employee benefits this certainly needs to be taken into account.

“Employers should be aware that different employees will be motivated by different things. While older staff members might place childcare vouchers high on their wish lists, younger employees may well respond better to subsidised gym memberships, company nights out or retail vouchers,” says Iain McMath, managing director of Sodexo Motivation Solutions.

Demographics and lifestyle should also figure at the planning stage, and a variety of products offered. These don’t need to be expensive, for example, introducing an element of flexible or home working for staff with families, or taking part in a salary sacrifice scheme to buy a bicycle and encourage cycling to work. The key lies in the ability to target the audience effectively.

“Benefits which are relevant and valued by employees are a key part of the employee engagement strategy. Choice and flexibility are what make benefits relevant and valued,” comments Elliott.

Richard Davies, head of employee benefits at P&MM, agrees. He says: “Establishing the desires and needs of the workforce and then meeting them is the first way to motivate through employee benefits.”

Tell them about it

Once a scheme is implemented, whether it be discount vouchers, holiday trading, childcare vouchers or salary sacrifice, people have to know about it. “The key to engaging employees through a voluntary benefits programme lies in promoting and communicating it effectively in a way that is enticing and fits the employee profile,” explains Davies.

Courtney continues: “Businesses need to look at the communication processes behind their employee benefits and examine how they are delivered and explained to staff. Businesses have to make their benefits programme compelling enough for staff to want to be involved and implement new, creative methods to encourage staff to engage with it and understand it.”

In short, if the communication falls down, so will the scheme. Information should be clear and up to date so staff find it simple to take part. They should be encouraged to participate by regular updates on the programme and the benefits it offers, via internal magazines, leaflets, newsletters, video or the company intranet, for example. “Roadshows are also a good tool, providing a forum where individuals can ask questions,” says Kaur. “The number of employees signing up should also be monitored, and open days with competitions and prizes could be used to encourage more employees to take up the scheme.”

It shouldn’t take long for an employee benefits programme to bed in and become part of the corporate landscape among staff. For the company, the pay off should be a happier, more motivated workforce that really feels part of the business. It’s the ideal opportunity to gather support around company goals and vision, promoting a positive working environment. Indeed employers may ask themselves why they didn’t go down the employee benefits road sooner.

In the corporate arena, gift vouchers have grown into an all-encompassing answer for incentives and rewards, in many forms and reaching into all areas, both physical and virtual…

Long gone are the days when gift vouchers were the preserve of the consumer market, given at Christmas or birthdays, almost as an afterthought, by Great Aunt Flo who didn’t know what else to buy. Today gift vouchers and their more high-tech counterparts, gift cards, are stalwarts of the corporate market, used extensively for rewarding, motivating and incentivising employees.

In current market conditions, where salaries are squeezed, jobs cut and members of staff disillusioned, gift vouchers and cards offer an opportunity to savvy companies to cultivate loyalty and motivate the workforce.

According to Martin Cooper, head of national accounts and marketing at Love2reward: “Employers now appreciate the pivotal role that motivation has to play in the workplace. We’ve seen very impressive growth from this sector, as bonuses and pay rises have been removed from the reward agenda. Non-cash rewards have taken their place and gift cards and vouchers, in particular, are proving the most effective substitute.”

Rob Froome, head of New Look Business Solutions, adds: “Reward and recognition programmes have a huge part to play in a tough economic environment. When budgets are tight, employers need to get clever in the way they approach and resource. They must start by choosing a reward and brand that represents great value and provides the recipient with more for their money.”

In other words, a simple thank you will no longer cut it; for lasting appreciation you need a tangible reward, something that can be enjoyed for more than a fleeting moment. Gift vouchers are one way of providing this.

Tear it up?

The paper voucher has been standard for years but in this digital age, are its days numbered? It would appear not. “Paper gift vouchers continue to be the mechanic of choice,” says Mark Spicer, head of loyalty at Maximiles. “Especially for staff motivation programmes.” While according to John Dove, manager at House of Fraser Business Incentives they “present an immediate perceived value and they feel like cash, which everyone likes”.

Paper has another benefit over plastic, albeit perhaps an emotional one. It somehow feels better to be presented with vouchers than plastic – they’re worth the same but paper has a physical appeal that plastic lacks, it has a presence that works well when combined with presentation and ceremony. “It is vital not to forget the importance of trophy value,” explains John Sylvester, executive director at P&MM Motivation. “We cannot forget why incentives are offered in the first place; to make the emotional connection of personal reward so that the recipient feels appreciated and encouraged to continue to perform. The traditional paper voucher always worked well in this respect because it provided something tangible, a decorative reward that did more than just offer a cash alternative; it said ‘thank you and well done’. When making the switch to newer forms of reward vouchers, failing to capture this sentiment could mean that a great deal of the impact is lost.”

Furthermore, paper vouchers are uncomplicated, says Kuljit Kaur, head of business development at The Voucher Shop. “They do what they say on the tin; they are easily understood and are liked for their ease of use, as there is no need to go online or to ring a hotline to check the available balance.

“They are as close to cash as you can get but with added benefits. Whereas cash often simply gets swallowed up in the costs of everyday living, vouchers are more memorable and therefore have a greater impact in terms of being an effective tool to incentivise or motivate.”

Flexible benefit

Plastic gift cards, however, offer benefits to the issuer that paper vouchers cannot, namely an opportunity to gather information about spending habits and products bought, that can be used to influence the future operation of company schemes. They don’t have the associated costs of their paper counterparts, such as secure postage, handling and storage, and they can be used more than once, topped up as necessary. “A gift card can hold greater, more flexible values and as such is more ‘wallet-friendly’,” says Joanne Taylor, corporate sales manager, Asda Business Rewards. “Our gift cards are reloadable, therefore the cardholder simply keeps their card and has value added remotely through their employee benefit scheme.”

The challenge of enhancing the appeal of plastic as a rewards mechanism has been met with innovative measures, such as creating extra value for recipients and engaging with them. Fashion retailer New Look offers regular fashion updates and free music downloads to gift card holders, in addition to the face value of its card. “In using the card within their employee reward schemes, corporate clients are rewarding with a great fashion brand, and delivering added value, at no extra cost to themselves,” explains Froome.

This aspect is emphasised by Rachelle Smith, regional director for UK and Ireland at PrePay Solutions, who makes the point that personalising a gift card adds an emotional touch. “If I love Chanel and I’m given a Chanel gift card, then I’m going to appreciate the thought put into choosing that product.”

Changing times

Just as we become accustomed to cards, so the industry is on the move again with developments such as virtual online vouchers already widespread and more electronic wizardry just around the corner. “We are investing heavily in mobile for virtual gifting, SMS and email,” reveals Smith. “Tying in mobile with CRM, we are using both for cardholder self services, allowing cardholders to view their account and perform transactions via their mobile phones. We also use SMS and emails to communicate with cardholders.”

House of Fraser’s Dove says: “SMS and E-vouchers offer immediacy and traceability, which meet business and customer needs. They are an attractive proposition, giving businesses the means to simplify the processing of high volumes of gift cards or vouchers.

“Even though smart phones still only account for less than 15% of the market, we will see increased usage as companies discover the benefit of ‘instant gratification’ at the point of purchase.”

Whatever form taken, gift vouchers/ cards/ virtual vouchers are a vital part of the incentive and motivation market. As Dove comments: “They are a visible and effective way to deliver a reward. Choosing a premium brand retail gift card can add value and weight to that reward, being perceived as a real treat, and one which won’t simply be absorbed into everyday living expenditure.”

In focus

Sellafield Ltd

Nuclear waste management company Sellafield decided to implement a rewards scheme for its 10,000+ staff and 2,500 contractors across its three UK sites. The aim was to encourage behavioural safety at work, says Joe McCluskey, head of human performance. “We wanted to reward staff for sharing information relating to safety observations, which would be
used to influence and reinforce our safety strategies.”

Love2reward’s Virtual Incentive Points (VIP) programme was selected, with individuals earning points that could be saved and spent on more than 3,000 products including Love2shop high street gift vouchers, Love2travel and Love2play experience days.

When the ‘Peer to Peer Observation Programme’ was launched, 5,500 observations were recorded in its first five weeks. “Participation exceeded our expectations,” says McCluskey. “This is a major change in terms of engagement and we’re delighted.”