Best Employee Reward Ideas For Your Business

Employee reward program ideas

Employee recognition and staff incentives are now a $46 billion global market, according to research by Bersin & Associates. Companies generally spend between 1-2% of payroll on employee rewards. And for good reason: companies with employees who feel appreciated perform better and have a 31% lower voluntary turnover rate.

This means that choosing the right employee recognition rewards is now a vital strategic business decision. Elements of a good employee recognition reward program include:

1. Direct and fast rewards
2. Based on specific, repeatable actions or behaviours: make it crystal clear why the reward is given, so others can emulate
3. Contained to a specified time period: while recognition programs should be long term, the rewards need to be confined to behaviours during a particular time, eg “Q1”
4. Aligned with a bigger “why”: make sure employees understand why these achievements or behaviour are being rewarded

The best employee reward to give is the one that people want. It depends on your employees’ demographics and the culture of your organisation. The best way to find out what rewards will inspire your employees is to ask them. Make sure you ask a truly diverse group of employees, including a wide range of ages, locations, levels and job types.

Employee appreciation gift ideas

Appreciation tends to be more personal and private than recognition. It could be a sincere “thanks”, or a thank you note to show gratitude. Our RedBalloon for Business employee recognition and reward platforms are a great place to start if you want to start applying best practice recognition at work.

Here’s a list of great employee reward ideas to get you started:

1. Gift cards
2. Team lunch
3. Massage (onsite or voucher for local place)
4. Outdoor experiences such as Hot Air Balloon

Opinion is often deeply divided over the best employee recognition rewards and staff incentives. What have you found works best in your organisation?