Incentive - August 2008 - (Page 33) uring tough economic times, banks and financial institutions Top producers for Thrivent Financial for Lutherans enjoyed often bear the brunt of criticism cocktails on the rooftop of the 620 Loft and Garden in as people scramble to hold on to New York’s Rockefeller Plaza their homes, assets, jobs and sanity. But many banks may be able to keep relationships strong with employees, customers and their communities through incentives designed to benefit everyone. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans awards its top 25 producers with the Pinnacle Leadership Retreat. The Minneapolis, Minn.–based company has some 2,800 financial representatives in its field force, so the 25 best form a rather elite group of attendees—less than 1 percent of all reps. The event is always held in the United States at an exclusive location. The Inn at Spanish Bay, Pebble Beach, the Sanctuary at Kiawah Island and the Four Seasons, Scottsdale at Troon North are a few of the five-star resorts where the retreat has been held since the program was started 10 years ago. The New York event, designed and produced by San Diego–based event planners TBA Global, kicked off with a catered dinner on the Lexington, a private yacht, followed by a boat ride around the southern tip of Manhattan, to the Statue of Liberty and then up and down the East River. In attendance were two bagpipe players from the New York Police Department’s Emerald Society. “As attendees walked onto the boat, the bagpipe players mingled in the crowd,” says Dan Young, director of event planning and field recognition for Thrivent. “With this being a sunset cruise, Manhattan was just lighting up for the evening, and the cloudless sky as the boat circled the Statue of Liberty made this a perfect moment for us all.” The next evening featured a pre-theater dinner with a surprise visit by two principal cast members (Christian Hoff and Daniel Reichard) from the Broadway show Jersey Boys, who’d been hired to entertain. Attendees got autographed CDs from the show, along with the Playbill. After the show, the top 10 producers from the group and their spouses were given a backFinancial institutions use awards as sales inducements stage tour. The group also witnessed and community involvement as a stimulus to growth the opening of the NASDAQ at MarketSite in BY PETER HILDEBRANDT D Incentives You Can Bank On | August 2008 | Incentive | 33
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