How to find the right reward and recognition ideas for your company.

Not all reward and recognition ideas are created equal. And not all reward and recognition ideas will suit your company and your employees. If you google ‘reward and recognition ideas’ you get over 22 million results so without sifting through them endlessly to find the ones that fit, follow these steps to makes sure the reward and recognition ideas you end up running with are the ones that will not only have the best impact, but are aligned with your organisation.

Set your goals.

There are so many reward and recognition ideas out there, that it is important to make sure any ideas align with your overall goal. If you are looking to promote health and wellbeing, having a ‘Fairy Floss Friday’ is not one of the best reward and recognition ideas for you. However, maybe a good list of reward and recognition ideas in this case would include free smoothies, three minute massages at your desk, inviting a food truck to deliver fresh salads, morning yoga sessions and a chill-out pass giving employees a few hours off. Whatever your goals are, make sure any reward and recognition ideas you consider will help you reach them.

Determine your budget.

There is not point putting together a great list of reward and recognition ideas only to have it rejected by the finance people because there is no budget available. Determining what you can realistically spend will make sure your list of reward and recognition ideas keeps the CFO and the rest of the team happy. There are lots of reward and recognition ideas that don’t cost anything, and many more that are very low cost. So, if budget is a challenge, look for reward and recognition ideas that don’t require funds and everyone will be onboard.

Be creative.

There are so many ways to recognise that coming up with reward and recognition ideas should be easy. Be creative and think outside the box. Consider your unique culture and who your employees are and then let the creativity flow. Just because one company does a VIP carpark for a week, does not mean it suits your people. Just because another company does a rooftop barbeque, does not mean it should be on your list of reward and recognition ideas. But if your employees are a fun-loving bunch that like to socialise with each other, look for fun and creative ideas that will allow them to do this. If they value personal time, build this into your reward and recognition ideas.

Ask for advice.

While you, your managers or the leadership team, may be able to come up with a great list of reward and recognition ideas, we think the best thing to do is ask your employees. By asking for their ideas, they will not only feel like they are contributing and being heard, you will end up with a list of ideas they actually want to receive. Giving them reward and recognition that they really want means any investment you do make, will be money well spent.

Filter your list.

By asking employees, you will likely get lots of reward and recognition ideas. And while you may not be able implement all of them immediately, consider which will have the biggest impact for your team. If feedback from employees is that they feel overworked, offering them time out of the office may be just the trick. If you have heard on the grapevine that employees want more face time with the CEO, ask him to set aside some time in his calendar to hear employee ideas. If employees aren’t feeling the fun, choose the reward and recognition ideas that will generate a bit of energy and excitement.

Change it up.

While the final reward and recognition ideas you implement may be the perfect fit right now, make sure you check in every quarter to ensure your reward and recognition ideas are still having the right impact. Just as your company changes and grows, so does recognition and having a list of reward and recognition ideas that you choose from means you will get the best results for your efforts.

And the best thing is, if you follow these steps you have already done the hard work to create a list of reward and recognition ideas you can choose from.

If you are looking for a list to get the creative ideas flowing, try our list of cost-effective and fun reward and recognition ideas.

Bring your reward and recognition ideas to life.