Background
Comm-Works is the leading North American provider of technology and infrastructure services and solutions for large corporations and government agencies. Comm-Works simplifies the complexities of the design, deployment, and on-going support of its customers’ voice and data systems to reduce operational expenses, improve cycle times, increase operational efficiencies and decrease time to market. They are headquartered in Minneapolis, MN with branch offices located in Indianapolis, IN; Mooresville, NC; Mount Laurel, NJ; and Washington DC.

The Challenge
The company wanted to design and implement an efficient cost control strategy to save money and reduce costs in a difficult economic climate.

The Business Goal
The goal was to incent and motivate Comm-Works employees to save $1 million dollars in one year. This would result in lower operational costs and contribute to the financial stability of the company while increasing employee morale. They also wanted to align employees to one of their key corporate objectives – ‘touching the bottom line through sales and cost savings’.

The Solution
Comm-Works partnered with I Love Rewards to launch “C4 Savings” – an online, points-based cost savings program. The program motivates employees to save the company money by rewarding them for such activities as negotiating contracts, getting better pricing from suppliers and reducing travel expenses and shipping costs.

Employees are awarded a percentage of their savings back in points, which they can redeem for brand name products of their choice. All Comm-Works employees have their own “C4 Savings” online account where they can view and redeem their points at any time. Program administrators can track the company’s overall cost-savings and identify top savers in the company.

The Results
• In just seven months, Comm-Works surpassed their goal of saving $1 million. Total dollars saved based on approved claims from October 2008 to May 2009 is $1,010,797.

• “C4 Savings” was so successful it expanded into two other locations.

• The number of savings submissions made by employees greatly increased, demonstrating employee engagement.

Employees drive corporate cost-savings
Your employees are the best source for cost-savings initiatives because they are at the front line of your business – they see how much is spent, what it’s spent on and how they can negotiate or reduce the cost. By rewarding employees for performing cost-savings activities, you motivate them to repeat the positive behaviour and continue to look for greater opportunities to save.
Give your employees the opportunity to directly contribute the company’s bottom line.

Customer Profile
Several divisions of Rogers have implemented I Love Rewards programs including Rogers Communications Inc., Wireless, Cable & Telecom, and Rogers Business Solutions.

Challenge
Rogers required a solution to motivate key behaviors and replace corporate branded merchandise rewards that weren’t particularly motivating. Rewards had to fit a diverse employee base and be flexible to accommodate a national program.

Solution
I Love Rewards created the flexible and robust online ‘First Time Rewards’ program for call centre employees nationally. It included new ‘PointsCard’ technology allowing managers to recognize and reward employees on the spot.

Results
Within only two years, total program members increased by over 52% – from 4,000 to 6,100. As of 2007, 78% of all program members have acquired points for performing desired behaviors.

Motivating Employees through Rewards & Recognition – Regionally & Nationally

Rogers Communications Inc. is a diversified Canadian communications and media company. Rogers Wireless is Canada’s largest wireless voice and data communications services provider. Rogers Cable and Telecom is Canada’s largest cable television provider offering cable television, high-speed Internet access, residential telephony services, and video retailing, while its Rogers Business Solutions division is a national provider of voice communications services, data networking, and broadband Internet connectivity to small, medium and large businesses.

Rogers Communications had an incentive program in place that used corporate branded merchandise to reward their employees. This type of reward was gradually becoming less effective as a motivational tool.

Rogers wanted to increase the effectiveness of their employee motivation program by offering more desirable rewards and an easy-to-use system. Due to the vast scope and geographical diversity of the Rogers Corporation, their rewards program needed to service the entire country. The program also had to accommodate a wide variety of effective motivational tools and rewards to meet the needs of each and every employee.

I Love Rewards created Rogers First Time Rewards, a points-based employee incentive program for Rogers Communications call centre employees. A scale of incentive programs were developed to motivate positive employee behaviors – customer service, sales, attendance and punctuality, call quality, and call time.

When an employee performs at or above their targeted objectives, they are rewarded for it, receiving a branded ‘PointsCard’. Each card has a pre-denominated points value, noting the number of points that the employee is receiving. The recipient then logs into their website and enters the card’s details and the points are automatically added to their account. The points earned can then be used to redeem for a wide array of brand-name products from a custom-designed catalogue.

The initial First Time Rewards program started in late 2003 with 4,000 members and within a few years has grown to over 6,100 members.

As of 2007, 78% of members have acquired points for performing Rogers’ recognized behaviours resulting in over 2,000 redemptions in a twelve-month period. In addition, the PointsCard technology developed for Rogers has since become a module available with all I Love Rewards programs.

Beyond program functions for their users, administration and reporting needed to be robust and detailed, able to accommodate a national program in over 40 Canadian offices. Detailed invoicing reporting must be provided regionally with completely customized taxation reporting.

The company worked with I Love Rewards to develop and launch their internal online rewards program. This program provides a single online tool that manages a number of peer-to-peer and motivational solutions. Daily points uploads allow members to instantly redeem for over 1,200 brand-name merchandise and experiences.

Rewards are shipped to any Canadian address – work or home, depending on the member’s preference. The program includes a robust reporting panel that provides the company with the ability to produce product and redemption reports as well as full taxation reporting for payroll purposes.

In two years of operation, the program has issued over 20 million points to its member for living their company’s values. The peer-to-peer recognition program continues to build momentum and enhance the company’s award-winning culture, netting the company two consecutive nods as a Top 100 Employer in Canada for 2007 and 2008.

Boomerang Tracking Inc. specializes in cellular tracking devices, and offers asset protection to customers across North America.

Challenge
Boomerang products and services are sold through dealers at point of purchase. They needed a solution to motivate their dealers to be knowledgeable about and promote Boomerang products and services.

Solution
I Love Rewards developed, designed and implemented a custom online incentive program to motivate dealer sales with brand-name rewards.

Results
Tracking device sales increased by 25% in a six-month period with the new BoomREWARDS program.

Boomerang Tracking Inc. specializes in cellular tracking devices, offering a solution to the concern of protecting and recovering stolen vehicles, heavy equipment and other valuable property. Through strategic alliances in Canada, Boomerang offers effective asset protection across North America and provides customers with 24-hour security.

Boomerang was in search of a solution to help drive dealer sales. They had identified the need for a program that would put their product at the forefront of available “add-ons”, which could be used easily by dealers and was scalable to accommodate program growth.

I Love Rewards developed, designed and implemented the BoomREWARDS program. The program consists of an online registration module, ensuring quick and effective program growth; an extensive rewards catalogue, offering users a large variety of products; and an online claim tool allowing members to submit sales quickly and easily.

To approve the claims submitted, I Love Rewards implemented a new process in which a Boomerang program administrator can view and approve the submitted claims immediately. I Love Rewards worked with Boomerang to develop a module that complements the commission structure and the potential to reward dealers daily.

“The BoomREWARDS program is the most successful dealer program that Boomerang has ever launched and implemented. It has helped to increase the sales of Boomerang products in the Greater Toronto area so much so that Boomerang has chosen to take the program into the other major Canadian markets.”

Marc Roth, Director, Marketing, Boomerang Tracking Inc

The BoomREWARDS program is Boomerang’s best performing sales incentive program to date, with tracking device sales increasing by 25% in a six-month period. I Love Rewards has observed submitted claims increase from under 500 in a six-month period to over 1,000 claims in the same period of time.

Customer
I Love Rewards was named one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers of 2007 & 2008 by Maclean’s magazine, and one of the GTA’s Top 50 Employers of 2007 & 2008 by the Toronto Star. I Love Rewards is a champion of practicing what they preach, providing custom incentive rewards programs for North American businesses.

Challenge
I Love Rewards Inc. is one of North America’s leading incentive companies, providing innovative solutions for driving employee and sales force motivation through online rewards and recognition programs.

Solution
We developed and designed ‘I Love Rewards Express’, an easy-to-launch and simple-to-use online rewards and recognition program that we call our ‘Applause Program’. It is the same technology we use to provide programs for our customers.

Results
Positive impacts include a retention rate of over 90% in the last three years. Awards include Canada’s Top 100 Employer & GTA’s Top 50 Employer in 2007 & 2008, and Profit Magazine’s 12th Fastest Growing Company in Canada 2007.

Building a Culture of Recognition – Recruiting, Retaining & Inspiring Employees. I Love Rewards builds online points-based reward programs that drive the employee behaviours most important to companies.I Love Rewards wanted to build a ‘culture of recognition’ and needed a way to reward, recognize, and motivate their staff in a way that would boost employee morale and increase productivity.

Taking this one step further, I Love Rewards also wanted to attract the best and brightest new recruits to the company by positioning themselves as a highly desirable place to work. Confronting their shortcomings and examining the success stories of other companies, I Love Rewards began developing their own employee incentive program.

Based on the best practices knowledge they acquired and through extensive feedback from employees, I Love Rewards developed a points-based rewards program, the Employee Applause Program. It is a program that rewards employees with points for numerous behaviours that the company has identified is important for their success.

The Employee Applause Program offers multiple ways to provide points, including administrator uploads, peer-to-peer online recognition with or without approval, or immediate recognition through new ‘PointsCard’ technology. The program is consistently communicated at internal events, keeping recognition top of mind. The points-based system empowers employees to get the brand-name rewards they want, when they want them.

“Our number one priority is to recruit, retain, and inspire great people. Our internal ‘Applause Program’ contributes to building a culture of recognition and aligns with our company’s vision. A rewards and recognition program is an investment in people, not a cost.”

Razor Suleman, CEO, I Love Rewards Inc.

The success of the organization is also evident through the investment in employees. In 2007, I Love Rewards was named the 12th Fastest Growing Company in Canada by Profit Magazine.

The unique and spirited company culture continues to grow and thrive at I Love Rewards, and is reflected in the company’s continued success.

Challenge
This client required a motivation program to align employees and partners to company values. The rewards program required national capabilities, robust reporting for structured invoicing and taxation, and a reward selection relevant to a vast number of users.

Solution
An online rewards program was launched for over 6,000 employees in Canada. It included daily uploads linked to the client’s HR Systems. Custom reporting was built according to specific requirements.

Results
The program has issued over 20 million points to members living the company values. This alignment has contributed to this client being named a Top 100 Employer in Canada in 2007 & 2008.
Peer-to-Peer Recognition – Performance and Living Values. This company is one of the world’s leading professional services organizations- a global network of member firms operating in 148 countries. Their company culture is built upon core values of integrity and honest communication. There is a focus on recognition across the organization.The company required an employee motivation program that would align with their values, emphasizing trust, collaboration, flexibility and diversity. They demanded a robust system that could manage and operate several different programs on one platform, and a method to outsource inventory, shipping, and customer service functions. Most importantly, they wanted to add extra incentive for their employees to succeed by offering premium choice in their rewards.

Beyond program functions for their users, administration and reporting needed to be robust and detailed, able to accommodate a national program in over 40 Canadian offices. Detailed invoicing reporting must be provided regionally with completely customized taxation reporting.

The company worked with I Love Rewards to develop and launch their internal online rewards program. This program provides a single online tool that manages a number of peer-to-peer and motivational solutions. Daily points uploads allow members to instantly redeem for over 1,200 brand-name merchandise and experiences.

Rewards are shipped to any Canadian address – work or home, depending on the member’s preference. The program includes a robust reporting panel that provides the company with the ability to produce product and redemption reports as well as full taxation reporting for payroll purposes.

In two years of operation, the program has issued over 20 million points to its member for living their company’s values. The peer-to-peer recognition program continues to build momentum and enhance the company’s award-winning culture, netting the company two consecutive nods as a Top 100 Employer in Canada for 2007 and 2008.