The Gift That Keeps On Giving

Tis the season to be jolly… and generous! Today we’re talking about the best gift you can give your employees – the gift that keeps on giving: Reward and Recognition (or R&R). Our gift to you is our actionable insights you can apply to your People Strategy to show your employees some love in 2024.?

A good R&R strategy can no longer be seen as a nice-to-have. It’s a vital part of the employee experience (EX), and a high-impact way to attract and retain your talent – and you’d be remiss without one. According to a report by Reward Gateway, 70% of employees say that having an R&R programme makes them more likely to stay with their employer.?

But how do you create an R&R strategy that works for both the company and your employees? How do you make sure the programme is aligned with company values and goals; and reflects the diverse and dynamic needs and preferences of your people? Start by considering 3 big trends that are defining the way companies are shaping their approach to R&R.??

We’ve consolidated these trends to compile Torque’s Top 3 Tips on how to rock your employee reward and recognition strategy in 2024.?

Trend #1: Offering personal benefit stacks at scale?

?Application: Create a flexible benefit programme that allows employees to choose from a variety of options like wellness initiatives, professional development opportunities, or even unconventional perks like pet insurance or lifestyle subsidies.?

Tip #1: Personalise and customise recognition?

One size does not fit all when it comes to recognition. Employees have different needs, preferences, and expectations when it comes to how they want to be acknowledged and rewarded. We cannot emphasise this enough: you need to understand the various personas in your company to be able to personalise and customise recognition to suit each employee’s needs and situation.??

Some ways to do this are:?

• Ask your employees how they like to be recognised and rewarded, and what matters most to them?
• Tailor R&R to their individual circumstances, goals, and interests?
• Use the employee’s name, pronouns, and preferred language when recognising them?

Trend #2: Blending R&R in real time and tying it back to your EVP?

Application: Enable your employees to receive instant feedback and rewards for their contributions. Companies that successfully weave their R&R programmes into their EVP not only attract top talent but also retain and inspire their current workforce.?

Tip #2: Use an EX or recognition platform?

A digital recognition or EX platform can help you streamline and automate your R&R initiatives, making it easy and accessible for everyone to give and receive acknowledgement.?

?Torque’s EX platform allows you to:?

• Send and receive recognition in real time, from any device and location?
• Align recognition with your company values and goals?
• Offer a variety of rewards, both monetary and non-monetary, that suit different employee preferences and motivations?
• Gamify and socialise recognition, using elements like points, badges, leaderboards, challenges, and peer-to-peer feedback?

Trend #3: Understanding which benefits make a difference to your people?

?Application: Collect and analyse employee sentiment through surveys, feedback sessions, and data analytics to tailor your rewards to what truly matters to your people.??

?Tip #3: Recognise the whole person?

It’s so important to see your employees as people with lives outside of work. Find out what makes a real difference in both their work and personal lives so that you can appreciate your people for who they are, not just what they do. This can help you build trust, rapport, and empathy with your employees, and help them to feel more connected and engaged.??

Some ways to recognise the whole person:?

• Celebrate your employees’ personal milestones and achievements, such as birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, or hobbies?
• Support your employees’ well-being, including their physical, mental, and financial health, by offering wellness programmes, and flexible work arrangements?
• Encourage your employees’ continuous learning and development, by offering opportunities to upskill, coach, mentor, and advance their careers?

• Empower your employees’ social impact, by offering ways to get involved in giving back to their communities and causes that they’re close to?

?As the year comes to an end, take the time to reflect on the achievements and challenges of your team. Have you been doing this consistently throughout the year? A well-designed R&R strategy can help you set the tone for the new year and inspire your employees, knowing that their efforts are seen and appreciated all year round..