This blog is about incentive program ideas
Rewarding creativity is imperative, yet often businesses and organizations overlook this fact and suffer accordingly. Taking the extra time and effort to dream up a novel venture or research an alternative process is real work. Usually creative individuals who come up with new ideas do some or all of the work on their own time, under their own initiative.
All this should be not only recognized but compensated. If it isn't, there's a risk of disillusionment from the very team members the organization should be nurturing and grooming for advancement. For instance, if an employee brings forth a terrific idea that generates sales or saves money but is not rewarded for it, he or she may become discouraged and decide not to bother in the future.
Your challenge is to find the right value for the idea and reward the creator appropriately, says, president of Executive Forums of North Los Angeles County, a networking and resource group for chief executives. "All too often the rewards are what the givers think the receiver might like, not what they know the receiver wants. Many organizations reward people with tickets to sporting events when the person being rewarded really wants a dinner out at a restaurant of his choosing," he says.
small business consultant with business information Web site agrees. "Consider what would be most meaningful to the people who would be submitting ideas," she says.
At your next business meeting, propose establishing a rewards program and get everyone's input. Survey everyone interested in creating new group-business ventures and have them specify what they would like for a reward. Cash might be first on everyone's list, but it may be difficult to determine up front how much a specific idea is worth. Plus, receiving a fee will also increase the awardee's tax liability.
Keeping the Pipeline Full of Ideas
Giving more traditional rewards—such as gift cards, baskets, coupons, or discounts—might work better, Keller says. Gift cards in $50 increments could be given out monthly for the best new idea, or the group could decide to give out the cards only for the truly outstanding ideas that come up occasionally. Just knowing there is a reward available will stimulate creativity and perhaps some competition.
"While it may seem like you're giving up a lot of money, keeping the pipeline full of ideas is the ultimate objective," Keller says. If an idea is a one-off, one gift card would be a fair reward. If an idea generates revenues over a longer period, you might consider giving the originator $50 gift cards every month over the first six months or year of the business venture. "What is $400 in gift cards for an idea that brings in $10,000?"
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