Resource Library - Whitepapers

A summary of research by the ISPI (International Society of Performance Improvement) on the impact of incentive programs and the essential implementation steps necessary for success. Shows how helpful incentive and motivation programs can be in terms of engaging employees and improving performance.... [ read more ]

‘Repeat business or behavior can be bribed. Loyalty has to be earned’ - Janet Robinson While Ms. Robinson may have been referring to brand loyalty or product loyalty as opposed to customer loyalty programs in the above quote, her words illustrate a very important concept. Incentive programs don’t start with built-in loyalty and customer buy-in. Without question, incentive programs need to generate loyalty – not only from senior management, but also from the customers they’re trying to entice. An effective program will excel for both management and customers when it is built with a foundation that provides a clear vision for success. In fact, many established programs have been assembled using five critical building blocks that inspire brand loyalty among customers. ... [ read more ]

Yvette Widdicombe, vice president of distributor Jack Nadel, Inc. (UPIC: NADELINC) in Palo Alto, California wanted to pamper her employees with a unique gift. After much thought, she decided on lounge pants with an accompanying spa bag and shirt.... [ read more ]

Manufacturers are sometimes cautious about the use of their brands in special markets. Obviously they want to maintain their brand integrity and avoid any impact consumer sales channels. This white paper from the Incentive Marketing Association (IMA), however, suggests that with basic safeguards in place, special markets like the incentive industry are “a win for the supplier, a win for the company, and a win for the employee.”... [ read more ]

This white paper delves into the mechanics of sales incentive programs, providing managers with useful information to design successful sales initiatives at their own companies and providing their corporate decision makers with hard evidence.... [ read more ]

Measurement is a key element in any performance improvement effort and particularly to the development of any incentive or recognition plan. The intent of this paper, published in October 2010, is twofold: First, it updates a performance measurement methodology originally published in 1992 called the “Master Measurement Model of Employee Performance”; second, it addresses how to measure the short and long-term impact and ROI of incentive and recognition plans. This paper is targeted primarily at professionals who design incentive and reward programs, whether they are organizational staff or external consultants, as well as for those that support and implement the programs, whether they conduct training, deliver the rewards and incentives themselves, or manage the programs. ... [ read more ]

Results from the study Awards Selection: Insights from Managers, conducted by the Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement, sheds light on the efficacy of 12 distinct motivational tactics used by HR and marketing managers across many industries to achieve 10 specific organizational objectives.... [ read more ]

This report presents a series of cases involving companies that implemented sales incentive programs. It makes a case for the use of post-hoc or post-program measurement of ROI to demonstrate the impact of the programs on sales performance.... [ read more ]

A study on employee motivation and performance in the hospitality industry that looks at strategies for reducing employee turnover. ... [ read more ]

Federal legislators in 2002 enacted the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX), which was designed to improve the accountability of corporate managers to shareholders and to improve public confidence in publicly traded companies. This white paper is an outline of the potential impact of SOX on the use of performance improvement and incentive programs. ... [ read more ]

This white paper discusses the range of "zero-based performance improvement strategies" that can be developed with the help of full-service incentive and performance improvement companies. It also includes contact information on members of the Incentive Marketing Association's Performance Improvement Council, made up of a dozen organizations dedicated to offering companies solutions-based incentive and performance improvement programs.... [ read more ]

This paper summarizes two basic ROI measurement methodologies using case studies from companies that have implemented measurable sales incentive programs in the past, and offers insights into understanding the data requirements relative to these two methodologies. It explains that Post-Hoc Measurement is essentially the use of field experimentation using historical data, while Outcome-Based Measures considers such areas as accounts receivable and inventory levels that can be affected by sales improvements.... [ read more ]

Gift cards have become an important corporate tool for reward and recognition. This paper looks at the growing use of gift cards and how to add to the "trophy value" of gift cards via communication, customization, and presentation.... [ read more ]

In the world of talent management, social networks have been used successfully in knowledge sharing, the identification of skills and construction of teams, in recruiting, onboarding and certainly learning. “Social Recognition,” which uses software to enable people to recognize one another, is a relatively new entrant in the pantheon of talent management technology. Yet it draws on practices from some of the world’s most popular internet applications. In connecting peers to peers, and in this case, employees to employees and employees to customers, partners, suppliers and others (the extended enterprise) it opens another dimension in recognition that has the potential to generate powerful cultural evolution within remarkably short timeframes. In others words, social recognition software can be transformative. It can fill a recognition gap quickly and it can extend recognition beyond the organization to help engage customers and other constituents.... [ read more ]

The federal income tax considerations for incentive programs are often overlooked. While it is difficult to give technical tax advice that would apply equally to all incentive programs, following certain general income tax principles can make an incentive program more successful and avoid unpleasant surprises.... [ read more ]

Section 274(j) of the Internal Revenue Code contains specific rules on the tax treatment of “employee achievement awards.” As a general rule, the employer cannot deduct employee achievement awards, unless they meet certain criteria.... [ read more ]

This paper discusses four psychological processes that can be categorized as items that directly affect the perceived value of an incentive or recognition award. In particular it looks at factors that increase the perceived value of earning the award because the awards are earned rather than purchased. ... [ read more ]

This paper introduces the discipline of "People Performance Management" as developed by the Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement, a unit of the Integrated Marketing Communications Department of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. People Performance Management refers to an integrated process designed to help firms maximize long-term financial performance through a strategic focus on their most valuable asset -- human capital.... [ read more ]

This study, conducted by Frank Mulhern on behalf of the Promotion Marketing Association with the support of the Forum, identified key challenges facing organizations attempting to fully integrate external and internal marketing.... [ read more ]

Engagement Event Returns $2 for Every Dollar Spent
The Enterprise Engagement Alliance (EEA) recently announced that research measuring the return on investment (ROI) of an annual meeting of healthcare insurance brokers that stressed training, relationship-building and networking opportunities found the sponsoring company enjoyed a return of almost $2 for every $1 invested in the program. Initial results reported in March revealed that the program had a profound impact on the way brokers thought and felt about the company, its products and its people. Parts 1 and 2 of the study, The 'ROI in Channel Partner' Conferences – A Case Study, can be downloaded here. ... [ read more ]

This white paper highlights four key areas that impact organizational adoption of integrated marketing and motivate employees to think about and cooperate with integrated marketing efforts beyond their functional silos.... [ read more ]

This paper looks at the types and applications of gift cards and gift certificates and reviews the research that points to the efficacy of gift certificates and cards in achieving business results. Gift certificates and cards have been shown to increase sales, improve employee performance and build loyalty, foster teamwork, and create new markets, among others.... [ read more ]

Subtitled "Linking Recognition to Improved Job Performance and Increased Business Value - The Current State and Future Needs," this study, cosponsored by the Human Capital Institute, the Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement, and the Incentive Research Foundation, synthesizes recent research by analyzing case studies of successful recognition programs and recommending further investigation into workplace recognition. Recognition's value is demonstrated by recent studies that show a high correlation between recognition and improved employee engagement, which in turn improves job performance and captures business value. It also finds that organizations that actively improve employee engagement through recognition financially outperform their competitors. ... [ read more ]

Each year in the United States, organizations spend tens of billions of dollars on cash and non-cash rewards for consumer, distributor, sales and employee incentive programs –merchandise, gift cards, group and individual travel programs, time off, cash, etc. But few organizations invest the necessary time to understand which rewards should be used for which people to encourage what outcomes... [ read more ]

Historically, incentive programs, unlike other sales and marketing strategies, have endured economic downturns. In fact, according to a review of past Incentive Federation and industry studies, the incentive industry managed to grow following the recessions that occurred in the late 1980s, after September 11, 2001, and during the downturn of the late 1990s, following the dot-com collapse. In fact, there is no evidence that the industry suffered serious declines following the recession in the late 1970s/early 1980s, and the industry continued to prosper even during the Great Depression when the industry’s trade magazine at the time, Premium Practice, was filled with advertising pages.... [ read more ]