Incentive Trips Eclipse Cash Bonuses

We were recently commissioned by a corporate client to survey their employees to find out which would they prefer: A cash performance bonus or a company-sponsored incentive trip. This was not the first time we had been asked by a client to carry out such a survey of their employees.

A total of 85 sales executives made up the target audience. To remain entirely objective, the company asked that the survey be conducted anonymously. The survey was very simple and gave employees only two options:

Receive a cash bonus (the amount of which was not disclosed), or be eligible to go on a company-sponsored incentive trip (no details were provided regarding the nature of the trip).

To make sure everyone’s vote was counted, we followed up with everyone to make sure we had received every eligible employee’s response.

The results were no surprise to us. 93% of the target employees indicated that they would prefer to go on an incentive trip forgoing any cash bonus.

We communicated the results to the company executives. The results were no surprise to us—reconfirming the results of our previous studies on the subject.  The rise of company-sponsored incentive trips over the last several years reflects a growing trend in corporate culture aimed at enhancing employee motivation, engagement, and productivity. The only period that may show some deviations from that trend was 2020 to 2023 (due to COVID-19 health and safety concerns by most employers).

Incentive trips are often widely valued by most employees.  Our previous studies showed that over 80% of employees consider incentive trips highly motivating while fostering spirit de corps among colleagues allowing for deep-rooted comraderies to emerge among co-workers.

From the corporation’s point of view, offering an opportunity to take part in an exclusive incentive trip provides most employees with tangible goals to strive for with the hope of taking part in the incentive trip. Among other benefits to the company are enhanced motivation and job satisfaction among employees which are often critical to the success and profitability of the firm. No such benefits were observed when cash bonuses were offered.

Incentive trips have a proven positive impact on team dynamics. Shared experiences during an incentive trip improve team building and allow employees (who may not be working in close proximity to one another) to bond in ways that may not be possible in the confines of an office environment. This can drive improved productivity and ultimately profitability.

In summary, the intrinsic value of an incentive trip cannot be overstated. Cash bonuses rarely stir that spirit among vital employees of a company.

To plan that extraordinary incentive trip for your top performers, let event architects at GMS Events propose the perfect getaway.