What are the best non-monetary incentives for employees?
Employee rewards don’t have to be in the form of cash. You may maintain your employees’ enthusiasm, motivation, and engagement by offering non-monetary incentives. Let’s discuss the best non-monetary rewards your company may provide and go deeper into the advantages of non-monetary incentives.
As the name implies, non-monetary incentives are non-cash perks that firms provide to their staff. They serve as a means of providing rewards to employees beyond standard monetary benefits and compensation.
Non-cash benefits include extra time off, experiential rewards, and flexible work schedules—more on that later.
What advantages do non-monetary incentives offer?
Before we go into our list of examples, let’s examine a few advantages of non-monetary rewards:
People can be rewarded (nearly) instantly: The majority of non-monetary advantages are available immediately, in contrast to monetary bonuses or pay increases that need waiting until the following paycheck. This implies that people receive acknowledgment almost exactly in real-time, at the appropriate moment.
They stick in your memory: Giving employees a gift, lunch, or a little vacation to show appreciation at work has a more positive and long-lasting effect on them than giving them more money. Their experience with your business will be unforgettable as a result.
They offer excellent value for the money: You can make a big difference without going over budget by using non-monetary rewards. Peer recognition programs are an excellent example of this.
In terms of finances, starting such an effort doesn’t require a large sum of money, and there are numerous advantages: improved employee relations, a long-lasting increase in participation, increased trust, productivity, performance, and much more. By the way, non-cash incentives that do involve a financial outlay are frequently deductible as business expenses.
They encourage internal drive: They demonstrate to individuals the impact they have on the company, offer them opportunities for growth, and help them feel important.
They support worker engagement. Non-cash benefits, such as team outings, physical prizes, or time off for volunteering, are excellent conversation starters. They can be a great method for individuals to strike up a discussion and “break the ice.”
They could support both retention and attraction. Money is vital because, let’s face it, we all have bills to pay at the end of the day, or should I say month. Still, money isn’t usually the primary motivator for us to join or remain in a company. Our reasons for staying (or leaving) are the people we work with, our management, the work itself, and yes, the non-cash benefits. Therefore, offering non-cash incentives can be a crucial component of your employer branding strategy and the reason a prospect decides to select you over a rival.
The best non-monetary rewards for staff
- Time for independent project work
One of the best non-cash rewards is this one. The concept is straightforward: employees are driven by their passions and really value their employers encouraging them to pursue these interests.
Google is arguably the most well-known example of a business that allows its workers to concentrate on personal projects during downtime. However, there is disagreement over whether the so-called 20% Time system actually existed in the first place.
Let’s go over the details anyhow. 20% of work time is (was) encouraged for employees at Google to work on personal projects. It’s interesting to note that a lot of Google’s well-known products, like AdSense, Gmail, and Maps, were formerly 20% time initiatives.
To put it another way, some of Google’s most successful products were once these “personal” endeavors. This is an excellent illustration of how non-financial rewards may spur creativity, highly motivated staff members, and successful business outcomes.
Myplanet is another example of a business that allows its employees to concentrate on personal projects during business hours. Awesome Time is a company-wide benefit that allows employees to dedicate 5% of their working hours to personal pursuits. Myplanet may make sure the initiative is sustainable by opting for 5% as opposed to 20%.
- Adaptable scheduling
It should come as no surprise that this is one of the most well-liked non-cash benefits among workers. Before COVID, many already valued flexible work schedules highly.
But not everyone desires to change their working hours or work from home a few days a week.
For example, some people would much rather work from the office because they don’t have a suitable workspace at home or because they find it more convenient to interact with and pick the brains of their coworkers there.
The key in this case is to consider flexible working in its fullest meaning. That means that workers have the greatest degree of freedom to select what they want.
For instance, this is what Salesforce chose to do. Workers in positions that permit remote work have the option to: 1) work remotely 2) visit the workplace a couple of days per week; 3) work from the office exclusively.
When applying, candidates can select between opportunities that are totally remote or (mostly) office-based at other organizations, like Eventbrite.
- Recognition by the public
As cliche as it might sound, a simple (public) expression of appreciation can have a significant impact when it concerns non-monetary rewards.
One of the best ways to make sure that people hear “thank you” is to establish a culture of recognition that is welcomed by everyone in the organization—from the top to the bottom and vice versa—and is reinforced by a peer recognition program that works.
Peer appreciation can take many forms, from simple post-it notes and thank-you notes to personalized emojis on Slack, (virtual) medals or points, and much more. Further, it’s a great way to inspire employees to uphold the company’s ideals.
- More time off
Employees can be rewarded with more time off by giving them an early finish on Friday or a later start on Monday, an extra day or two off for their birthday, or a longer lunch break.
In an effort to encourage their employees to disconnect, several firms have also instituted “Mental Health Days,” a trend that intensified during and after COVID-19.
For instance, caller ID startup Hiya made the final Friday of each month a holiday. Eventbrite, on the other hand, introduced Britecamps and Britebreaks, wherein the entire company is off on the first Friday of each month.
- Additional chances for growth on both a personal and professional level
According to Randstad’s company Brand Research 2020, 49% of candidates consider possibilities for career advancement to be crucial when selecting a company.
Assisting your people with reskilling or upskilling is one approach to give them these opportunities. Of course, there are other approaches to this. The good news is that a large budget isn’t always necessary for this.
Consider establishing a program for peer coaching and/or mentorship. Employees may benefit greatly from both in terms of developing better bonds, broadening their skill sets, and learning from one another.
- Rewarding experiences
One advantage of experiential incentives over transactional incentives is that they are easier to remember. Also, they allow you to establish an emotional connection between your target audience and your company.
Here, the possibilities are really endless. Some businesses offer their staff a trip of a lifetime upon reaching a specific milestone.
However, one wonderful thing about experiential rewards is that you can tailor them to fit your budget, staff, and brand.
Taking your staff to a nearby sporting event, an art class, or a celebratory evening with one of the company’s founders are a few more examples of experiential rewards.
- Volunteering time
One could argue that “Volunteer Time Off,” or VTO, is a form of experience reward as well. After all, most of us have never worked for a charity before, so it’s a completely different experience.
Regardless, providing your staff with the opportunity to volunteer for a charity of their choice is a kind of non-cash reward that many of them value and that also gives back (to the planet, the community, etc.).
- Fringe benefits
Another kind of non-monetary incentive is fringe benefits. In essence, they are extra perks that you offer to your employees.
You can provide a plethora of other fringe perks to your employees, including health initiatives, coupons for free meals at work or restaurants, incentives for commuting, movie tickets, traveler checks, and more.
- Individual consultations
Spending time with their manager one-on-one can be really beneficial for people. Setting up weekly or biweekly meetings with each member of the team is something that managers, particularly those in charge of smaller teams, should give careful thought to.
One-on-one meetings give employees a sense of inclusion and a designated opportunity to talk to their management about whatever’s on their minds. These meetings foster a more open communication channel and help managers and staff become more trusting of one another.
A routine one-on-one meeting between a manager and staff member can also be a great way to get input, talk about projects and performance.
- Consult with your colleagues!
When it comes to examples of non-monetary incentives, who better to ask than your own staff members? They might have brilliant ideas that you had not even considered.
In addition, listening to your employees will increase their engagement and job happiness if you decide to implement one or more of the perks they suggested— a win-win!
- Material gifts and incentives
Like an experiential prize, a tangible gift leaves a lasting impression compared to a monetary incentive. Additionally, it is simple to customize them to your employees’ tastes.
Tangible gifts and awards can also take the shape of business swag, such as sweatshirts, water bottles, pencils, mugs, and t-shirts. Although branded merchandise, such as goodie bags, is frequently given to new hires as part of their onboarding process or during a corporate offsite, it can raise morale among staff members at any time.
Final Thoughts
Non-cash rewards are a useful tool for praising staff members for a job well done. They will, however, only work if employees are offered an acceptable salary in the first place. A variety of non-monetary incentives can help transform a good team into an excellent one.
