Report: Incentive Programs Motivate Workers to Go Extra Mile (Oct. 29, 2013)
Workers are highly motivated by rewards and inventive programs provided by their employers, with nearly three-quarters of employees saying they would put in extra effort to earn rewards, according to a new study from U.K. payment provider Ixaris. The company’s 2013 Study of Rewards and Incentives polled 4,800 workers in the U.S., U.S., Canada, France and Germany about workplace motivation and what employers can do to maximize the effectiveness of their rewards programs.
Among the key findings of the study, 70 percent of respondents said they would put in extra work if they knew they could be rewarded for it, while 80 percent said a rewards program would communicate that their work is properly valued by their employer. Among incentive forms, cash was by far the most preferred option. However, most employees said they would treat cash just like regular pay, implying that a cash reward would not create a lasting behavioral change. Open-loop prepaid cards can therefore be a highly effective incentive because they provide the flexibility of cash, with the uniqueness of a reward, according to the study. And two-thirds of survey respondents said they would prefer an open-loop prepaid card to a closed-loop gift card for a single retailer.
Despite the popularity of rewards among employees, however, less than a quarter of survey respondents had actually received a reward from their employer within the last two years, the report found. U.S.-based incentive provider parago Inc. released results from a consumer incentive study earlier this month that found shoppers prefer prepaid cards as rewards. For example, twice as many car buyers prefer a $200 prepaid card than a $250 instant discount and one out of two consumers will pick a cable, Internet or utility provider that offers a prepaid card reward.
