Building a high-performance culture: A global recognition implementation

Scope

Understanding the impact an effective recognition strategy can have on business performance and revenue, this global bank was looking to reimagine the way they recognised their people to drive a high performance, highly engaged workplace culture.

Whilst they had a number of existing global and local programmes in place, they sought a single global solution that would provide line of sight of recognition activity across their whole organisation. Through a common tool they wanted to ensure all recognition activity had a clear link to their strategic objectives and valued behaviours whilst providing regional flexibility that would extend the reach and impact of recognition to their 90,000+ employees in 52 countries.

The Approach

Implementing global recognition solutions comes with its own unique set of challenges. In partnership, we took this client through our comprehensive reward and recognition design and execution process we call, the ‘Six Streams of Implementation’.

Over 10 months and conducted entirely online, our subject matter experts led 75 global stakeholders (from their HR, IT, marketing, finance, legal and internal communications teams) through six project streams to discuss and agree every element required to effectively implement recognition solutions globally, including:

• Legal, compliance and governance – MSA and statement of works, regulatory considerations, ongoing governance, audits, risk requirements, commercial approval.
  
  
• IT integrations, data security and transfer – Information security review, hosting options, data transfer from their HRIS, as well as the organisation's bespoke requirements for a One Cert integration which allows them to manage bespoke access permissions to wider reporting.
  
  
• Finance, tax and payroll – tax considerations, invoicing requirements, points parity.
  
  
• Programme design – existing programme inventory and audit, design workshops, creative development, programme design to ensure incorporation of existing regional initiatives into the global framework and reach to employees in all markets.
  
  
• Platform development – Language translations requirements, system configuration and customisations, user acceptance testing.
  
  
• Communication and engagement – communication inventory and audit, recognition awareness gap analysis, recognition training, engagement, and communication plan development, reporting and analytics.

Delivered via our cornerstone recognition platform, Daymaker and integrated with our market leading Global Rewards Marketplace, the “Appreciate” programme has provided the organisation with the gold standard in reward and recognition solutions.

Key highlights of the solution and implementation included:

• Translated into 4 key languages with plans to expand this further – 19 languages available as standard.
  
  
• Integration with BI WORLDWIDE’s Global Rewards Marketplace offering their employees access to over 7m aspirational merchandise, experience, and personal development rewards globally.
  
  
• A strong technical foundation upon which to strengthen the organisation's high performance, recognition-rich culture and support future growth and inclusion of wider employee engagement initiatives.
  
  
• With a focus on adhering to the company’s own stringent IT and data security policies, compliance framework and FCA, local Monetary Authorities and other regional financial services regulators, global briefing sessions were delivered to achieve overall programme buy-in and alignment from their 2,000 strong HR community worldwide.
  
  
• Throughout the design, implementation and launch phases, a comprehensive communication and engagement strategy was developed to help the bank in communicating key messages around the objectives of the programme to wider stakeholders and programme influencers. This included activities such as a programme naming contest, a package of teaser communications, CEO announcements, best practice, and FAQ guides.

Outcome and Results

Via a healthy communications plan, the global recognition and reward programme was successfully launched in four languages.

In its first 30 days, “Appreciate” had a huge impact on the banks’ global employee community.

Receiving over 52,000 website visits, processing more than 35,000 recognitions and issuing over two million reward points to employees; numbers which continue to snowball as the months roll on. We even saw the first reward redemption happen on the second day!

Based on this successful implementation and launch, we continue to build on the strength of this foundation with the implementation of global service awards and widening employee engagement initiatives through tactical campaigns as well as scope to extend even further with Life Events and Performance Incentives.