Rock Stars or Awards?

A recent article in the 1/3/12 Wall Street Journal highlights a handful of tech companies, such as Oracle, bringing in superstar performers for their annual customer/techie conference. Oracle scored both Tom Petty and Sting this year as well as other rock giants in the past, such as Elton John and Billy Joel. Pop star Christina Aguilera entertained Microsoft’s top salespeople while Ebay hired the Shins to play over the course of 12 planning meetings for senior executives.As one CEO stated, getting well-known rockers “is a best practice” and “even conservative investors would realize that it was a good investment”.

Not everyone can or will make the investment of between $500,000 to 1.5M (in addition to all the ancillary costs associated with the performance) to book a Rock Star. Indeed, when considering that the ultimate aim is to engage employees, a recognition program that honors key achievers will enhance attitude, innovation and performance without disrupting company budgets. We’ve all heard the saying, “A happy employee is a productive employee.” “Companies that manage and recognize their people outperform companies that don’t by 30 to 40% … A recent WorldatWork study found that 85 percent to 95 percent of all incentive programs reach or exceed their goals.”

Effective employee recognition enhances motivation and satisfaction, increases productivity and contributes to improved organizational performance. The most effective employee recognition programs have multi-faceted and multi-tiered events. This means that recognition is intended to support and value employees, to positively reinforce their initiative and creativity and to enhance business performance.

Diana Martin Gifts has partnered with companies across the country to support employee recognition programs designed to align employee performance with business growth and profit objectives. We provide customized approaches to acknowledge, recognize and reward employees. Contacting us is the first step in increasing employee productivity.

Looking for a retirement gift for an executive that has everything or ideas for saluting your most creative and innovative employees, send us an email with your questions at info@dianamartingifts.com or call us at 9496312727 x 202.