We're all in this together, and some companies are rewarding non-sales employees for their efforts, according to a new study by the Incentive Research Foundation (IRF).  The full study can be found here.

How do you motivate high achieving employees who are key to your organization’s success? According to the Incentive Research Foundation’s (IRF) latest white paper, Critical Findings for Recognition Travel Programs, it might just be by creating an all-employee recognition travel program.

The new white paper summarizes the most significant findings of the IRF’s latest case study of a company with an established recognition travel program for employees who are not sales people responsible for meeting quotas. Based on stakeholder interviews and survey responses, the IRF’s effort resulted in six critical findings in the areas of employee alignment, nominations, executive support, evaluations and measurement.

“One of the most interesting discoveries was the power of the nomination process itself,” said Jeff Broudy, chairman of the IRF board of trustees. “Even though the program was designed to reward only 2-3 percent of the employees, nearly half of the potential winners indicated that they were motivated by it.”

Broudy explained that success is also clearly tied to the degree of executive buy-in, demonstrated by their involvement in establishing award categories, reviewing the nominations, selecting winners and viewing the activity as more than just another HR process. 

IRF President Melissa Van Dyke noted that aligning a program’s parameters to the organization’s mission and culture is as critical as making it possible for all eligible employees to participate.

“Moreover, we found that this company provides a good working model for other organizations that might be considering a nomination-based incentive travel program,” said Van Dyke.

While acknowledging the positive aspects of using an incentive travel program to motivate non-sales employees, both Broudy and Van Dyke stressed it should only be one part of an organization’s overall recognition strategy. They encourage incentive professionals and human resource leaders to view the paper at Critical Findings for Recognition Travel Programs.