HRO Today July/August 2016 - 37

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considered minor, discretionary recognition efforts
meant to balance out more formalized efforts. In fact,
WorldatWork doesn't even track this form of recognition.
It seems that as more and more web-based eCard and
note programs become formalized, HR professionals
are more apt to give these no- and low-cost programs
credit for keeping employees engaged. The low initial
investment is just the icing on the cake.
After reflecting on current budgeting trends, this is
not surprising. As the U.S. economy enjoys the lowest
unemployment levels since the days of the Great
Recession, belts are beginning to loosen and more
focus is being placed on these types of programs as
investments rather than expenses. According to current
WorldatWork data, the top two reasons organizations do
not field recognition programs are " too challenging to
administer " (25 percent) and " too costly " (22 percent).
Easily administered and budget-friendly no- and low-cost
solutions may be emerging as the perfect antidote for
these types of situations.
3. Early recognition commands a split decision. If budgets
are becoming more flexible, has that affected how
early organizations begin engaging new hires with
recognition? In a word: maybe. There was a near 50/50
split from survey respondents on offering employees
recognition within the first year (this refers to any form
of recognition, whether it be onboarding gifts, service
awards, etc.).
It is likely that early recognition will eventually become
a preferred option among organizations. Over the past
few years, recognition has been trending toward more
comprehensive solutions, as employers further embrace
the idea of melding formal and informal methods to
provide employees an end-to-end experience. Even if
employers do not offer formal recognition, they will at
least provide some introduction to their reward systems
and tout them as an added benefit to new hires to aid in
recruiting efforts.
With recognition budgets rising, there is more room
for experimentation with newer types of initiatives.
WorldatWork research shows that currently 26 percent
of organizations spend 1 to 2.9 percent of payroll on
recognition programs-a 16 percent increase since the
last time it was measured it in 2013. The survey revealed
70 percent of respondents plan to make changes to their
recognition programs in the next 12 months, an increase
of 10 percent from last year.
Employee engagement,
motivation, and satisfaction
improve greatly when
organizations leverage
results-driven recognition.
4. Return on investment (ROI) measurement has room
for improvement. Along with budgeting, measuring
a recognition program's ROI can be a challenge for
many organizations. So what are the preferred ROI
measurement methods? The clear winner was employee
surveys, according to 39 percent of survey takers, followed
closely by 35 percent saying " we do not measure. "
This is troubling considering the data and analytical tools
available to track program performance. In the age of
big data, most-if not all-modern recognition solutions
provide some form of analytics or reporting scheme to
capture all pertinent data points.
Employee surveys are easily administered and excellent
for checking the temperature of a program, but surveyed
opinions must be balanced with objective data to get
the whole picture. Other options for ROI measurement-
participation rates, customer surveys, turnover, and
productivity-only garnered single-digit results from the
survey.
Keep Looking Forward
Recognition budgets and initiatives will continue to
expand as long as organizations can press the advantage
of a rebounding economy and rising engagement rates
worldwide. Whether it is early recognition, no- and
low-cost solutions, or seamless data tracking and ROI
measurement, HR has more flexibility and lower risk with
a rewards program. Employee recognition investments
are the strongest they have been in a decade, and
the technology available has made it much easier for
organizations to get the most out of each dollar spent.
Cord Himelstein is VP of marketing and communications for
Michael C. Fina Recognition.
JULY/AUGUST 2016
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HRO Today July/August 2016

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