Face it – a company’s weakest link does not get perks such as a travel incentive. However, those privy to the inner sanctum, such as a Sales Excellence Club or the President’s Council, likely do. They are the company’s top performers and often get rewarded – if not with cash then with a trip, known in industry parlance as a travel incentive.
Many believe travel is a far greater reward than cash. Here’s why:
* Cash versus travel – most people think of cash awards as salary and not a key motivator.
* You can build a more dynamic and memorable program around travel than you can with cash.
* When Canadians were asked how they spent their last cash reward, 29 per cent said they used it to pay bills, 18 per cent said they couldn’t remember, 15 per cent said they never received a cash reward and 11 per cent deposited it into savings.
* American Express Incentive Services said that when they polled employees who had received a year-end cash reward in 1999, 32 per cent said the perk didn’t improve their work performance.
* The magazine Corporate Meetings & Incentives polled 410 readers last year and reported that the most popular international incentive destination was Cancun. London and the Bahamas tied for second place and Paris was a close third.
* An increasing number of companies are providing travel incentives to non-sales teams rewarding employees for their loyalty, their efficiency, customer service and health and safety records. The key to designing a winning incentive is to develop effective measures.
