White Paper

Motivating Employees on a Budget
Keeping employees motivated and engaged is more important than ever during tough economic times. This white paper takes you through the dos and don‟ts of incentivising on a budget - how to maintain morale and maximise the return on your investment.
During difficult economic conditions, the competition for custom intensifies; customers become far more discretionary in their spending and focus on getting the most out of their money. So it„s essential that employees are motivated to provide the highest levels of service that will set the company apart. Whilst it may be tempting for employers to make a quick saving by cutting the incentives budget, it‟s also a false economy. It‟s important to remember that organisations with effective incentive schemes and high employee engagement consistently and significantly outperform their competitors. Unfortunately over two-thirds of employers report that low staff morale is currently an issue and almost three-quarters realise that they face the problem of re-engaging staff in the organisation.1 Going forward, employers are recognising that employee commitment will be vital if a company‟s performance is to be sustained. A recent survey found that 64% of employers intend to increase their focus on the motivational value of reward programmes over the next 2-3 years.2 It‟s commonly agreed that incentives have a positive and lasting effect on behaviour. One study reported that 75% of employers accept that incentives raise morale,3 whilst another found that 75% consider rewards for individual performance to be important to their staff. 4 So although employers see incentives as being desirable, they may be fearful that adopting an incentive scheme will be expensive. This is a common misconception; in reality even a minimal budget can produce a significant return on investment when the