Employee Incentive Programs: The Best 24 Ranked [2024]
Employee incentive programs are the most direct methods of attracting and retaining professional talent. More creative and competitive employee incentives yield better bottom lines and greater business growth. These programs also have a positive impact on your employee turnover rate.
If you’re looking for creative ways to increase employee engagement, look no further than our list of the 23 best employee incentive programs. They will help you improve the overall employee experience in your organization.
To learn more via video, watch the video below or skip ahead to jump straight into the list.
Employee Incentive Programs in 2024
Today’s employee incentive programs have to consider the wants and needs of the modern worker. Items such as paid transport, gyms, and complimentary coffee/tea are not as viable now as they were before since almost every company offers them.
However, as employees become aware of the options available (in terms of job opportunities), companies have to compete harder than ever to attract the best talent.
To stand out, employers and managers need to modernize their approach to employee appreciation and think outside the box when creating employee incentive programs. These programs will help you mitigate the cost of disengaged employees in your organization.
Do Employee Incentive Programs Work?
Statistics:
- 90% of the highest-performing companies use incentives and monetary rewards to retain and encourage employees.
- 99% of employees have unique reward preferences, which makes incentives an excellent alternative to a traditional reward system.
- 80% of employees prefer strong incentives over a bigger paycheck.
- 78% of employees are willing to remain with their current employment due to the competitive benefits of employee incentive programs.
In addition to these stats, a comparison simplifies the difference between companies that offer incentives and those that don’t.
You can expect better engagement and superb retention with better incentivized employees in the long run.
The Best 24 Employee Incentive Programs for the Modern Enterprise
Any modern enterprise can expect to face the current talent-attraction-and-retention challenges. This calls for unique employee incentive ideas that will appeal to your employees.
1. Customized Paid Vacation
Paid time off isn’t new—the idea is to provide your employees with a paid vacation to a location of their choice.
To do this, consider:
- Rotating a survey to find out employees’ preferred vacation spots and activities
- Creating a customized itinerary based on each employee’s preferences
- Allocating a dedicated (yearly) vacation budget to manage finances in the long term better
By giving your employees a vacation of their choice, with their choice of activities included, you are ensuring they stay with the company, maybe for the next 5 years.
And the next spot to visit on their bucket list.
2. Green Transport
According to a recent study, 76% of Millennials would prefer working for a socially responsible company—they are even willing to take a pay cut to do so.
To go “green,” consider:
- Assembling a fleet of eco-friendly vehicles (hybrid/electric cars and buses, scooters)
- Outsourcing your shuttle services to companies that use hybrid/electric buses
- Creating awareness inside your company regarding the benefits of eco-friendly transport
- Transitioning to the use of solar energy
A fleet of environment-friendly vehicles dedicated to employee commuting services will portray you as socially conscious.
As a result, it will help attract and keep ecologically responsible talent.
3. On-site Entertainment
One incentive that flies under the radar is a perfect environment.
Sure, a workplace comes equipped with all the necessities, but factors such as great ambiance or a place to unwind after working hard are great incentives.
To add a productive dose of fun into the mix, consider:
- Compiling a list of entertainment choices (video games, board games, Netflix, movie nights, etc.)
- Conducting a company-wide survey to gather a popular vote on the choices
- Allocating an entertainment room with a separate section dedicated to each activity or game
On-site entertainment will also prevent employees from losing focus while at their stations.
You can also advertise the entertainment center to attract further talent.
4. Unlimited Sick Leaves
Regardless of how dedicated an employee is, they may miss a few days or weeks due to medical concerns.
A company that understands this and implements proper measures to ensure the message will have higher employee retention.
To better accommodate employees, consider:
- Amending the current leaves program to cover an unlimited number of sick days off
- Creating a work-management plan to manage the responsibilities of an employee taking consecutive days off. You could divide the on-leave employee’s tasks among fellow team members or hire a freelancer to cover the employee for the required off days
- Bonus: Providing a ‘back-to-work’ adjustment period of 2-3 days, during which an employee is delegated half their usual amount of work
Offering unlimited sick leaves can compensate for lost time and effort by inspiring employees to put in extra effort as a token of gratitude for the company.
5. Free Online Skill Development Courses
Part of being a great manager or employer is recognizing great potential.
To help employees expand their skill sets and reach higher levels of professionalism, companies have to do more than encourage employees to learn.
They must also provide employees with the means and resources to do so.
To help cultivate a culture of growth, consider:
- Subscribing to an eLearning service like Skillshare that offers courses that can improve your employees’ existing skill sets
- Setting course completion deadlines for each employee
- Creating a secondary incentive by rewarding the employee for completing their courses. You can do it through an upgraded salary package or a bonus amount, with the coinciding month’s check
- Requesting employees to complete courses in areas related to their line of work
Investing in online courses for employee skill development can increase the professional value of your employees.
You can have a better-skilled workforce by providing employees with free training.
Interested in learning more about employee incentive programs, then check out our HR certification courses:
6. Free eLearning Program
Expanding on the previous incentive idea, it is motivating for an employee to also receive access to educational material on their hobbies or passions.
Consider the following actions to provide employees with another route to personal growth:
- Subscribe to an open eLearning service (, Skillshare, etc.) or educational streaming (Masterclass, CuriosityStream, etc.) for employees
- Encourage them to take courses alongside their day-to-day tasks, to expand their skills and knowledge in their areas of interest
- Bonus: Allow employees some time during the day to progress in their online courses
Music, media production, languages, and even astronomy courses are often more affordable when purchased as a batch subscription.
Provide employees with the option to take any available courses whenever they want.
7. One-on-One Mentorship
To engage employees and develop healthy relationships, employers must establish individual connections with employees rather than as departments or groups.
To do this, consider:
- Introducing one-on-one mentorship as part of an employee skill development plan
- Hiring an industry leader or subject matter expert to provide valuable insights in one-on-one sessions
- Providing each employee with guidance on employee productivity on how they can improve their performance and workflow
- Bonus: You, too, can fill this role if you have considerable experience in areas where employees may need mentoring
Above all, one-on-one sessions instill confidence and a sense of individuality in employees, who will feel cared for and valued.
8. Fast Food Catering on Specific Weekdays
In our list of employee incentive programs, you may notice a trend: options.
Providing employees with customized options and the consistent ability to influence how or what they do in a given situation will help boost employee morale and team chemistry.
You can do it on a significant level down to something simple – such as food:
- Run a survey to find out which fast food spots employees visit, and shortlist the companies catering for corporate events.
- Communicate with said companies and work out arrangements for catering services on particular work days.
- Rotate among the selected to maintain a variety.
Employees are bound to feel more comfortable and familiar with the workplace with this incentive.
NOTE: Free food in the workplace may prove expensive, depending on the number of employees. To circumvent cost-related issues, you can rotate fast-food days between departments. For example, the Sales team could have theirs on the first Wednesday of the month, whereas the Marketing team could have theirs on the second Wednesday, and so on and so forth.
9. Free Healthy Snacks
Healthy snacks are becoming more of a necessity than an incentive, but you can find a way to customize them.
For example, you could always introduce snacks like mini yogurt bowls, fruit, seasonal smoothies, etc.
Or, you could go one step further and have an expert prepare specific snacks tailored to your employees’ taste buds:
- Survey to determine employee preferences
- Create a list of healthy snacks and provide them daily
- Appoint a health-food expert cook to prepare said snacks or purchase them pre-made
- Create a new list every few weeks or months to maintain variety and keep employees from going back to junk food
Moreover, this particular incentive can give potential employees a more health-conscious view of the company.
10. Stationery and Equipment Personalization
Workspace personalization is a common trait among Millennials.
In addition to allowing employees to decorate their work space, you could also offer them the option of creating their own printed stationery using custom designs.
To accomplish this, you could:
- Hire a design studio or online designer to create custom stationary design options
- Allow employees to create their stationery designs using the options above
- Get employees’ chosen designs printed on their stationery
Extend personalization options to laptop skins, mugs, mouse pads, and other desk fixtures for an even better employee incentive.
11. Health and Programs
One way for an employer to show they care – is to show they put health first.
As a manager/employer, an employee’s health is a valuable asset. Investing in health programs will ensure that this asset is well taken care of in the long term.
You can do it by:
- Creating a health program dedicated to holistic health practices and general employee
- Hiring a health expert to conduct group health sessions every week
- Working with the health expert to create customized fitness goals for each employee
- Bonus: Introduce this employee incentive program along with the healthy snacks idea for a more complete, health-based incentive package
With such a program, employees become more confident, sharper, and active in tackling work-related challenges.
12. Club and Society Membership
A great way to foster employee engagement is to contribute towards balancing their work and personal lives.
You can do it by helping them improve the quality of their time spent away from work rather than just while at work.
To do this, consider:
- Purchasing corporate memberships in sports and entertainment clubs for monthly visits. Make sure membership packages include a variety of gaming and entertainment offerings
- Enrolling employees in exclusive book clubs, gaming societies, or other specific groups related to their hobbies or interests
- Providing company-maintained gym, yoga, or pilates memberships
Furthermore, you can also create clubs and groups within the company by surveying common interests.
This will allow employees to enjoy daily activities they wouldn’t have access to.
13. Rest and Relaxation Rooms
The Japanese were the first to introduce the concept of ‘Inemuri’, or taking naps while at work.
Google made the practice more mainstream with its futuristic ‘sleep pods’.
These sleep pods provided a room of relaxing stimuli to help employees re-energize themselves during long shifts.
While such investments may is not an option for every employer, there are ways to capture the same employee benefits:
- Designate a room or section of the office dedicated to resting/napping
- Encourage them to take short, scheduled naps during work
- If office space is limited, allow employees to nap at their stations
Besides increasing overall employee performance, allowing short nap breaks may shorten brainstorming and decision-making periods, leading to more efficient operations.
14. Streaming Subscriptions
While this is not a groundbreaking employee incentive program, it is one less thing an employee has to worry about maintaining.
Any factor that helps relieve an employee’s financial strain, regardless of how big or small, is icing on the cake.
In this case, it also provides them with a source of entertainment.
To implement this, consider:
- Allocating a section of the incentive budget to streaming subscriptions to reward employees
- Create a list of employee options, such as Netflix, HBO, etc.
- Providing them with a free subscription of their choice for their entire tenure.
This can build a culture around being informed about various media channels and encourage discussions regarding favorite movies/TV shows, which fosters effective communication between employees.
You can also use this incentive to generate interest in documentaries or informative content that provides skill development or personal growth.
15. Department/Team Activities
Focusing on improving team chemistry can help boost employee engagement and improve employee retention.
Consider the following to create an environment that encourages teamwork:
- Each month, dedicate one day to various group sports/games, as well as team-building activities.
- Arrange team-based activities and games as a permanent part of the team culture.
- Include such activities in the overall employee engagement plan.
- Encourage them to discuss projects and tasks and seek each other’s input.
You can scale these activities to include departments and even business branches (if applicable).
16. Gamification of Tasks
‘Gamification’ is more than a buzzword these days.
Internal operations are evolving into the modus operandi of many companies worldwide.
To catch up with the trend, consider the following:
- Turn a specific part of a product life cycle or the entire time spent in the office into a game-like process.
- Light gamification can include a point system for completing tasks, rewards for quicker completion, etc.
- Deeper gamification can include actual video game references (quests, checkpoints, power-ups, and more complex tasks).
You can choose the depth of the gamification you implement, which will depend on the office’s general age demographic (e.g., younger employees benefit more from deeper gamification).
17. Profit Sharing Among Employees
A ‘profit-sharing’ model is different from a commission-based one in that all net profits are shared equally among employees.
Furthermore, such models can help boost efficiency, dedication to task completion, and employee motivation to seek out more responsibilities.
To implement a profit-sharing model, consider the following:
- Working with the finance department to determine an appropriate shareable percentage of incoming profits
- Setting a company-wide percentage standard that increases on an annual/bi-annual basis
- Encouraging better performance among employees with the prospect of bigger payouts as a result of the profit-sharing model
IMPORTANT: This model is for employee incentive programs for small and medium-sized enterprises, as the shared sums grow more significantly with increasing employee numbers.
18. Working Remotely, Whenever
One of the best ways to retain employees is to eliminate inconvenience.
Whether an employee is sick, having car trouble, or just having one of those days and would rather work from bed, create an unlimited work-from-home policy to accommodate.
To do this, consider:
- Providing laptops, iPads, and other portable devices to help employees work from home
- Investing in online conferencing software such as Zoom, RingCentral Meetings, etc., to compensate for employees working remotely
- Working with remote employees to create weekly plans to ensure the efficient execution of their tasks
This will allow employees to take the initiative while demonstrating their trust.
Unrestricted telecommuting (work-from-home) will also attract top talent that you can locate in a different city or country.
IMPORTANT: Treat remote employees the same as in-person ones. Distance already creates a barrier between collaboration and team-based exercises, and you don’t want to further distance the former from the company.
19. Elimination of Degree Requirements
More and more companies are beginning to overlook a prospect or employee’s educational history and place emphasis on skills, experience, and what they can do for the company.
To expand the pool of potential employees, consider:
- Removing the college degree requirement from job ads and prospectus
- Introducing a talent-based job admittance system, where prospects are tested on their problem-solving and organizational skills
- Creating greater acceptance for non-conventional study backgrounds and vocational diplomas
In the long run, it’s fruitful to emphasize applicable talent instead of degrees and similar qualifications.
Through training, mentorship, and hands-on experience, you can always develop or perfect skills on the job.
21. Unlimited Medical Insurance Coverage
This prime employee incentive program is to develop confidence in you as an employer/manager.
It will also make employees feel protected while employed by your company, thereby retaining them for longer.
To provide unlimited medical insurance coverage to employees, consider:
- Creating an in-house (employee-owned) insurance offering that covers EVERY mild to severe illness and condition
- Providing coverage for pre-existing conditions
- Extending the insurance to cover the family members of employees, if possible
Providing employees incentives that cover all aspects of maintaining a healthy lifestyle will establish a team of focused, energetic, and driven professionals.
22. Vehicle Financing Assistance
Another effective employee incentive program is vehicular financing assistance, which should allow employees to attain their vehicle of choice, with the company serving as a reliable co-payer.
To assist employees with vehicle financing, consider:
- Setting up an automobile financing assistance plan that covers a percentage of the required payments
- Including the co-payment amount in the employee’s salary
- BONUS: Approaching a group of automobile dealerships with custom plans to collaborate on financing services
- Selecting the dealership(s) that offers the most affordable payment plans
IMPORTANT: The amount the company provides as a co-payment should not be deducted from an employee’s salary since that would defeat the purpose of the incentive. If a deduction has to be made, it should still be minor to provide some advantage.
23. Consumer Goods Financing Assistance
Employee incentive plans that offer financial assistance can help boost appreciation and retain employees in the long run.
Employers can diversify their portfolios by including consumer goods, vehicles, and healthcare to offer a more complete financial assistance program.
To do this, consider:
- Creating custom monetary incentives in-house plans for gadgets and appliances, such as cameras, phones, computers
Talented workers may join just to receive these benefits of employee incentive programs and stay for other potential incentives.
24. Student Loan Debt Assistance
Helping employees relieve themselves of such a financial burden will increase their dedication to the company and improve the overall quality of their lives.
To help employees free themselves of student loan debt, consider:
- Creating a monthly or annual student debt relief plan for all employees, regardless of the amount owed
- Tying the repayment assistance program with their regular salary or providing a monthly/yearly amount for the same purpose
- Taking advantage of third-party repayment assistance services to make processing and documentation easier
Perhaps the most important draw for younger workers is student loan repayment assistance, which is a creative employee incentive idea and retention method.
Conclusion
Employee incentives in 2024 must be creative and sustainable in the long term, with plenty of room for modification according to changing employee demands.
Considering this, managers, business owners, and staff must prioritize retention-related strategies, of which incentives are a major part.
To that end, employee incentive programs should cover medical insurance and expenses, create an ideal work environment, encourage genuine action towards achieving work-life balance, and provide all-around assistance with personal and professional growth.
FAQs
Here are the most frequently asked questions about employee incentive programs.
What are some effective employee incentives?
Effective incentive programs reward employees for their contributions and align with the company’s objectives. These programs can range from traditional cash bonuses and performance-based incentives to innovative recognition programs. Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) are an increasingly popular incentive that fosters long-term commitment by offering employees a stake in the company’s ownership. Additionally, non-monetary incentives such as professional development opportunities, flexible work arrangements, and wellness benefits can significantly boost employee satisfaction and motivation.
How do Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) work?
ESOPs provide employees with an ownership interest in the company through the distribution of company stock. These plans often serve as a retirement benefit, where employees accumulate shares over time, and the value of these shares grows as the company performs well. ESOPs can enhance engagement by giving employees a direct financial interest in the business’s success and aligning their goals with the organization’s goals. When managed effectively, ESOPs serve as a valuable incentive and contribute to a strong sense of loyalty and teamwork among staff.
Can you provide some examples of employee incentives?
Organizations can implement numerous employee incentives to improve morale and productivity. Some famous examples include spot bonuses for outstanding performance, peer-to-peer recognition programs, and profit-sharing schemes. Companies can also offer experiential rewards, such as team-building trips or exclusive access to industry events, to recognize exceptional effort. Additionally, implementing ESOPs is an example of a long-term incentive that aligns employee interests with the company’s growth. Customizing these programs to match your workforce’s needs will maximize their effectiveness.
Why are employee incentives important for businesses?
Employee incentives are crucial for businesses as they help attract, motivate, and retain top talent. An effective employee incentive program encourages high performance by rewarding employees for their contributions, leading to improved productivity and innovation. Programs like ESOPs promote employee engagement by creating a sense of ownership and investment in the company’s future. Employees who feel valued and recognized are more likely to remain loyal and committed, ultimately reducing turnover rates and building a solid organizational culture.
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