4 Reasons Why You Should Have an Employee Loyalty Program

When I was asked to put together an Employee Loyalty Program (Employee Rewards and Recognition Program) my first thought was “not another tag to weigh down my already overloaded key ring.” It didn’t take me long to change my tune. I quickly learned the effectiveness of Employee Loyalty Programs as cost-efficient vehicles for improving employee engagement, aligning the workforce behind corporate priorities and increasing productivity is well-documented. According to the latest SHRM/Globoforce survey results, companies who follow key recognition practices are seeing better metrics across the board. Bersin by Deloitte reports that organizations with the most sophisticated recognition programs are 12 times more likely to have strong business outcomes.

There are many reasons to have an Employee Rewards and Recognition Program which may also be referred to as Loyalty, Rewards, Recognition, Total Rewards, or Employee Engagement Programs. Although these terms are often used interchangeably, reward and recognition systems should be considered separately. Employee reward systems refer to programs set up by a company to reward performance and motivate employees on individual and/or group levels. Employee loyalty programs are intended to provide a psychological reward as in a financial benefit. An employee loyalty program is often combined with a reward program since many elements of designing and maintaining the two are the same.

Let’s look at 4 of these many reasons why you should have Employee Rewards and Recognition Program.

1.  Drive measurable business results

Successful programs recognize that the performance and motivation of employees is one the most significant factors influencing a company’s revenue and profitability. A good program should motivate and engage employees but must also improve your bottom line by boosting employee retention, increasing referrals, reducing accidents, reducing healthcare costs, and encouraging performance improvement.

2.  Manage and retain top Talent

The number-one reason most Americans leave their jobs is that they don’t feel appreciated. Employees that feel recognized and appreciated stay longer which makes sense. Bersin by Deloitte reports that organizations with effective recognition/high engagement programs had 31% lower voluntary turnover than organizations with ineffective recognition programs. Rewards Program provider Globoforce reports that their client Quintiles reduced turnover by 50% within a year of implementing their recognition program. Those are some certainly some compelling numbers to consider.

3.  Inspire employee engagement.

An effective employee loyalty program should promote a team environment, create positive behaviors, and stimulate the interest of the employees. High employee engagement is the key to increasing your business results across the board on metrics like productivity, profitability, customer satisfaction, and safety. In 2012 Gallup conducted a study that confirmed that a well-established connection between employee engagement and nine performance outcomes: customer ratings, profitability, turnover, safety incidents, shrinkage/theft, absenteeism, patient safety incidents, and quality (defects)

4.  Communicate corporate values

It’s not enough to have great corporate values if your employees aren’t aware of them. To fully integrate your core values into your culture, you must align them with employee behavior. Your values are at the core of your business, your mission, and your success. By integrating them into recognition, you can put them front and center and encourage your employees to absorb and respect them. Your values then become part of your employer brand.

Should you decide to move forward consider a few things. An Employee loyalty program should be designed to communicate and recognize that employees are your most valuable asset. Your program should have the ability to provide a full range of total recognition initiatives that include peer-to-peer recognition, length of service awards, on the spot awards, above and beyond, sales and recruiting incentives, wellness, safety, customer/distributor loyalty.

You want your program designed to maximize employee motivation, increase referrals, and increase engagement and retention, while moving your organization toward its business objectives. I should also note that because U.S. turnover rates increased as much as 45 percent last year, now might be the opportune time to consider an Employee Loyalty Plan. Let me know your thoughts if you have a Rewards Program or you are considering one.

Other helpful sites for Employee Rewards and Recognition:

https://intelispend.com/employee-rewards-recognition/

https://www.globoforce.com

https://www.loyaltyworks.com/

Tricia Lucas has over 25 years of demonstrated success in recruiting, marketing communications, and social media and helps technology companies recruit more efficiently by focusing on Recruiting Efficiencies, Employer Branding, and Social Media.

At Lucas Select, based in Raleigh, NC, we are passionate about technology startups and about sales and marketing as professions and have built extensive national networks of top-performing executives and managers. Unlike typical staffing agencies and headhunters, our recruiting services ensure that your company maintains a sustained growth model that is supported by strong sales management, talent recruitment at scale balanced by on-going people development while aligning with your Company’s core values.