Introducing a rewards program into your recruitment agency is a powerful tool to increase employee engagement and company culture; and retain top talent. Working within the recruitment industry is highly results-focused, demanding and consistently evolving to meet market demands. As a result, your employees can feel under appreciated for going the extra mile or exceeding their sales or KPI targets.
“82% of employees do NOT think they are recognised for their work as often as they deserve.”
Why is Employee Engagement Important For a Recruitment Agency?
However big or small your recruitment company, having a cohort of highly engaged employees is everything. It can lead to better job satisfaction and higher productivity, as employees care more about their work and are therefore increasingly willing to go the extra mile. This trickles down into improved customer satisfaction; happy employees are more likely to create positive experiences across the entire organisation, which has a direct impact on customer loyalty and sales.
One of the most important outcomes of providing more employee engagement solutions is better retention. When employees feel connected to their work, workplace and colleagues, they’re less likely to leave. This in turn benefits financial business success, saving them recruitment and training costs.
If you have conducted an employee engagement surveys and the results are wanting, taking action before poor engagement turns into poor turnover is essential. As a business leader, the challenge remains; how can you introduce a creative and personalised employee incentive program to reward top performing employees across all divisions of your recruitment agency and boost employee engagement? We have done the research for you by providing a list of creative rewards and incentive ideas to cover all budgets and individual tastes.
1. Mental Wellness Days
Encourage work-life balance by offering additional paid mental wellness days each year. Working in recruitment is significantly high pressure in which long hours, stress, and emotional resilience come as part of the job. Mental wellness days help to boost the employee experience by giving them actionable insights for managing stress and emotional wellbeing in the modern workplace. Offering these as a reward can benefit business outcomes by making employees feel like senior leaders care about them outside of the work they produce, boosting work culture, relationships and dedication to the team.
These days off can be used to relax, recharge, or simply take a break from the fast-paced world of recruitment for both employers and employees. They can involve full days off to rest and recharge, or light activity days in which organisations do a yoga or pottery class as a team, boosting company relationships along with individual health as well as peer to peer recognition.
2. Subscription of Their Choice
Allow your employees to disconnect from the office with a yearly subscription. While the obvious choice, not everyone wants access to Netflix, so it is best to offer a flexible subscription allowance where employees can choose from a range of services, including:
- Spotify (for music lovers)
- Headspace (for mindfulness)
- Apple TV+ (for binge-worthy shows)
- Audible (for audiobook enthusiasts)
Combining personal enjoyment, lasting value, and a sense of ongoing appreciation is a great way to boost engagement metrics and a key driver for helping to develop a productive team. As a long-term reminder of their success, every time an employee logs onto the platform they will be reminded that their higher performance was recognised and appreciated which will ensure a significant boost in work engagement.
Employee Recognition with Uber Credit
This benefit offers a safe and comfortable trip home whenever they need it; whether that is straight from the office or after a night out. With the number of Uber users reaching a mammoth high of over 150 million in 2024, this employee engagement strategy is equivalent to striking gold as an employee reward.
For recruiters in particular travel is often a key component of the role, for client meetings, networking events, career fairs and candidate interviews, so some free Uber trips will go a long way. As well as increasing workforce morale, uber credits are an invaluable, practical reward and play a role in supporting work-life balance. With a flexible starting balance, this reward is also ideal for companies who want to reward employee engagement efforts while sticking to a budget.
Whether it’s for a safe ride home after a long day or to cover daily commutes, monthly Uber or public transportation credits offer practical and much-appreciated support, especially for employees with longer or more complicated journeys. Who wouldn’t want monthly Uber credit?
3. Promote Company Values by Giving To A Charity Of Their Choice
When it comes to employee engagement strategies enabling a worker or your entire organisation to give to a charity can be one of the best rewards in terms of engagement and overall employee wellbeing. When given as an individual reward it can feel tailored and personal, as the employee can choose a cause that means something to them. As opposed to a gift card or trinket, giving to a charity carries a significant psychological benefit as the employee feels they are contributing to something bigger than themselves. Managers can offer to pay a nominated amount directly to the charity or reward workers with a few days out of the office per year to do voluntary work.
4. Improve Employee Engagement With Sporting Event Tickets
This is a great reward for or employees who are passionate about their sports, drawing together fun, experience, and connection that supersedes many other award options. Like charity-based rewards, sporting events can be tailored according to interest, whether this is in football, rugby, or tennis. Matching the reward to the employee’s personal interest shows them how much you really care and makes the reward itself more meaningful. If you add an extra ticket or two as a plus one the reward can double up as a relationship-building experience between colleagues, which is sure to drive team engagement.
5. Home Office Upgrade
As many recruiters spend some portion of their working week at their home office, this can be the gift that keeps on giving. Offer employee recognition with a home office payment for ergonomic furniture, high-quality headphones, or the latest tech gadgets to boost their productivity and comfort.
As well as boosting productivity and reducing fatigue thanks to the availability of ergonomic seating meaning recruiters can remain sharper for client calls and negotiations, home office upgrades can be particularly valuable for employees as it signals long-term commitment; in other words, the company views the recruiter as a vital part of its future and wants to ensure this future is a comfortable as possible.
6. Exclusive Event Experiences
Give your team the chance to attend premium experiences, whether that’s a VIP sports game, theatre tickets, or music festivals. Tailor the reward to their personal interests for extra impact. While cash incentives are ideal for many circumstances, it is possible to forget how much was given. Events, however, are emotionally memorable in a way that monetary incentives aren’t. When these memories are also attached to feelings of being valued, job satisfaction soars, which drives employee engagement. Additionally, if the reward is shared with colleagues, workplace relationships are strengthened.
7. Dinners For A Month
After a hectic day in the office, often the last thing workers may feel like doing is going to the super market and then preparing and cooking dinner. Give employees (and their partners) their evenings back by having delicious prepared dinners delivered straight to their home for a month.
Unlike other rewards, driving engagement by gifting employees with an evening meal for a month provides an instant, tangible benefit, particularly if the food is at a nice restaurant and includes variety. If the reward includes additional work colleagues, dinner as a reward can also turn into development opportunities for the team. This is sure to foster greater collaboration in the future.
8. A Paid Holiday as an Employee Engagement Strategy
Recruitment work, though highly rewarding, can be high stress, with employees required to take on different roles. Offering employees a contribution towards their holiday once a year is a great way to show that you value their time off and mental wellbeing. Employees who take vacation breaks are known to be better rested, sharper, and more motivated to keep moving the business forward.
Unlike more niche perks like golf memberships or subscriptions to specific services, holidays have a much more universal appeal. Almost everyone, from managers, to senior leaders, to juniors, appreciates extra vacation time. This reward can encompass various aspects of a holiday, from paying for their Airbnb or hotel or by giving them airline vouchers to prompt a much-deserved getaway.
9. Gym Membership OR Personal Trainers to Create Highly Engaged Employees
In today’s workplace and beyond, staying active is regarded as a pillar of mental and physical wellbeing, but it can be difficult to balance with a demanding career in recruitment. Offering a gym membership for a year or a personal trainer for 3 months as an employee reward will encourage them to keep fit and give them the motivation they need.
With regards to the gym, many workers have the desire to join, but financial barriers hold them back. Covering the cost and removing this barrier will make workers feel more appreciative which will improve employee satisfaction. Unlike holidays and restaurant vouchers, gym memberships carry long-lasting benefits. A year’s membership will serve as an ongoing reminder of the award, meaning positive sentiments and employee motivation will be sustained month after month.
Though not quite as long term, having a personal trainer can feel more valuable than a gym membership, with workouts and nutrition plans designed specifically for the employee’s goals. Both a gym membership and a personal trainer can be seen as a wellbeing investment by managers and business leaders. Better physical health supports mental health, reduces stress, and can lead to fewer sick days as well as higher energy levels in the work environment.
10. Personalised Coffee Cup
At first glance the coffee cup may not seem like a suitable reward. However, the coffee cup can be simultaneously practical, visible, and emotionally meaningful. Not to mention their usefulness for tea and coffee lovers.
From a more psychological perspective, a personalised coffee cup can help make employees feel more connected to the team. An enduring reminder of management’s appreciation of their discretionary effort to boost business performance, the personalised coffee cup is suitably heavy in sentiment for workers while being light on budget for management, making it an ideal reward on both sides. As en extra benefit, the coffee cup is also environmentally friendly and encourages the use of reusable drink ware, supporting company values on sustainability.
11. A Day Off Work Pass Drives Employee Engagement
No matter how hard-working your employees are, there will come a time when they just need a day off, no questions asked. Give them the freedom to have two short notice days off per year to just relax and get away from the stresses of the office.
As well as having an instant impact which your employees will undoubtedly be grateful for, a pass for a day or two off work signals trust in your employees. When workers feel that their wellbeing is being prioritied rather than just their billings they are not only more likely to stay and save finances on new staff onboarding and training, but they are more likely to receive positive employee feedback and wind up running highly engaged workplaces.
12. Unique Learning Experiences Bolster Business Outcomes
Support continuous personal growth by offering learning and development experiences tailored to their interests. This could include:
- Cooking or mixology classes
- Language-learning programs
- Masterclass subscriptions
Learning experiences like these are much more likely to stand out to recruitment workers and generate interest as employee rewards. Generally, recruitment workers are sociable and people-focused. Interactive and sociable activities like mixology classes or language learning are therefore ideal for professionals who thrive on social interaction. Enrichment activities like these also provide a mental refresh for workers who may be stressed, tired, or even edging towards burnout. Learning something new also switches on different parts of the brain, breaking employees out of the ‘calls-emails-meetings’ cycle. This can improve general problem-solving and idea generation; great for organisational success and individual development.
13. A Car Wash For A Year
Let’s face it – no one likes washing and polishing their car. It’s a chore that we all have to do and often put off for as long as possible. By covering the cost of a local car wash service for their car to be washed and polished for a year means it is one less chore they need to think about on the weekends.
As many recruiters driver frequently for client visits, this is a practical and highly useful reward even when compared with other engagement initiatives, as a clean car supports a professional image when meeting clients. Another benefit is that it significantly bolsters pride and confidence, in both oneself and the recruitment agency. Employees who receive this reward are more motivated to push themselves harder at work and achieve maximum results.
14. Personalised Reward Packages for Peer Recognition and Engaged Employees
Recognise individual achievements by creating tailored rewards packages. Celebrate work anniversaries or big company wins with a customised box of treats, whether it’s their favourite snacks, wellness products, or even personalised tech gadgets.
One of the biggest advantages of this reward is that it is flexible and scaleable in accordance with budget, level of achievement, and milestone, making them ideal for both individual and team rewards. In addition to personalised gifts like this making employees feel seen and respected, it can help to dampen some of the high pressure elements of recruitment work, such as the long calls, meetings, and candidate searches. Small yet tangible perks like snacks and stress-relief products can provide an instantaneous mood boost.
Eclipse’s recruitment software offers both direct and indirect support for recruitment employees.Our recruitment management systems streamline processes such as candidate screening, applicant tracking, and client relationship management. In particular our Eclipse Core Pro platform offers features that supports employee engagement, such as:
Automation of Repetitive Tasks
Thanks to the automation of repetitive processes such as CV screening and interview scheduling, recruiters can narrow their focus to meaningful interactions, potentially giving job satisfaction a significant boost.
Centralised Communication
The impressive integration opportunities Eclipse provides enable seamless communication across numerous channels. This ensures employees are both well-informed and connected.
Performance Tracking
The software can also provide tools for monitoring Key Performance Indicators, which can be a huge aid in recognising achievements and identifying areas for potential development.
For a glimpse of what Eclipse has to offer, book a demo today.
