Top Motivation Trends in 2014

February 10, 2014

The Incentive Research Foundation (IRF) has released its report “2014 Trends in Rewards and Recognition,” which reveals that businesses will emphasize social aspects, retention and measurable outcomes in their motivation programs this year. The findings revealed 10 key trends in addition to other 2014 indicators. Here are some highlights:

Talent Wars and Leadership Squeeze. Many companies are targeting their competitors’ key employees, which means it is more important than ever to recognize and reward top performers and bind them to your company over the long term. Likewise, a shrinking leadership pipeline has left organizations struggling to develop organizational leadership capacity. In response, many firms are using existing rewards and recognition platforms to align workforce skills and link behavior to the firm’s broader business mission, as well as turning to incentive travel to bring top performers together to learn from one another and help solve key business issues.
“Holistic” Motivation is Hot. The integration of social media technology into Rewards & Recognition programs is one of the most prevalent developments in recent years, with more than one-third of program owners incorporating gaming techniques or virtual elements. CSR also continues to be a hot topic for planners, with nearly half integrating it into their programs. More than 60 percent of program owners say they’re either reviewing making wellness part of their programs, or have already implemented a series of changes to integrate it.
Expanding Budgets Improve Programs. The recovering economy is having an extremely positive impact on motivation programs. Nearly 40 percent of incentive travel program owners and 42 percent of merchandise and gift card program are increasing their budgets this year.
Connecting People to Profits. Businesses that have invested in building what some call a “culture of appreciation” are now looking for employee engagement to translate into more immediate, recognizable and revenue-related results. This represents a key opportunity for providers of non-cash award and incentive travel programs who can connect programs to the direct outcomes of sales, retention, productivity, and customer satisfaction.
Big Data. The opportunity to collect and analyze the massive amounts of data produced daily is being hailed as the next big opportunity for businesses of all sizes. HR departments and providers of Rewards & Recognition programs that can capture, translate and integrate this data to more effectively support the company’s desired outcomes will be better able to position themselves to outperform the competition.

For additional details on the results and to read the full report.