When we design programs, we’re glad to recognize the good work of participants, but what we’re really trying to do is help our clients motivate and inspire behavior – bringing about changes in everyday actions that will lead them to a worthwhile end result.

πŸ’‘ Key Insight: Technology platforms award points. Strategic programs drive lasting behavioral change that delivers business results.

A lot of our competitors have these fancy platforms where you can award points, but what makes us different is we work really closely with our clients to make sure that the design is there and that they’re getting the results that they want. They don’t just have a technology platform that works; they have a comprehensive solution that works for their business.

Here is how we approach designing a high-impact program, from creating the initial holistic strategy to measuring ROI.

Build a Recognition Culture That Connects Every Level of Your Organization

A lot of times when clients come to us, they’re wanting to move the needle with maybe one specific part of their workforce. Maybe it’s just the managers, or maybe it’s those boots-on-the-ground employees working the day to day. But what we always tell them is you need to look at your organization holistically and develop a solution that will promote a positive culture across all aspects of your workforce.

Real-World Example (Transportation): If you’re trying to make sure that your drivers are efficient, it’s important for them to not only be recognized, but for their leaders to be recognized as well, for communicating that priority and helping instill that behavior.

So when we’re designing a program, we’re not just thinking about one specific group. We’re thinking about how we can connect all parts of your workforce to drive toward these business goals.

Make Recognition Effortless Through Design

3 clicks or lessβ€”that’s our design standard for every user action.

We’ve put a lot of thought into the design needs of our different users, making sure that each user can get the information they need with as few clicks as possible.

  • βœ” Participants – Someone who just got recognized for 20 years of service can click the catalog, see their points, and shop. Front and center, super easy.
  • βœ” Leaders and admins – Recognizing someone for a safe behavior or a great client meeting? Capturing that information and sending those recognitions is just as easy.
  • βœ” Universal design – Our platform is very configurable, very customizable, and also really simple and easy to use on any device.

Prove ROI: Track Your Program’s Real Business Impact from Day One

How do we isolate the specific impact of the incentive program? The only way that we can successfully do that is with constant communication and dialogue with our clients.

πŸ’‘ The Bottom Line: Unlike competitors who hand you a tech platform and walk away, we maintain consistent dialogue to establish baselines, define success, and track progress against milestones.

We measure impact from multiple angles:

  • Pre-launch planning – What’s the baseline? What does success look like? Let’s make some milestones and see how this program is helping us to achieve that.
  • Ongoing measurement – We’re looking at login activity, initial point awards, and analysis of different segments of your participant base to see how they interact with the site.
  • Beyond redemptions – A lot of times when clients are first launching a program, they don’t really understand the impact until maybe a redemption happens. But our team shows them that this is providing value from the day you launch it all the way to that redemption moment.
  • Strategic data analysis – We have dedicated data analysts who take basic reports and layer in data we receive from clients to combine that into strategic reviews.

A lot of times you get the stories – you know it’s working, you know people are paying attention – but you also need the data to justify your ROI, and that’s an important part of our services and solution.

Design for Growth: How Great Programs Evolve with Your Business

The program that’s designed in year one might not be the most effective program in year three. You need to be constantly evaluating all of those different data points to make sure that you’re still driving the results that you want.

Here’s how evolution works:

  1. In a perfect world, we create a program, we create that behavior, and we drive a business result.
  2. Then, we want to focus on something new.
  3. So the next thing that you want to build on, you can modify your program to evolve with your business.

πŸ’‘ Critical Success Factor: That constant dialogue and constant review of the data is critical to having a long-term program. It’s not just a one-time design and then we let it run. It’s an always evolving, always changing, always improving solution.

What Sets Us Apart

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Michelle is the primary liaison between the client and QIC, and is responsible for the health and growth of the company’s existing portfolio of incentive and recognition programs. Previously she worked for a major retail chain where she led her team to achieve consistent brand standards and a positive store culture. Her experience has given her a passion for finding creative solutions to improve employee morale while increasing employee retention.