Travel and living

Tips for a Great Incentive Travel Program

Incentive travel can be a great way to reward, encourage and motivate your staff for their ongoing commitment, endeavour and results to your business.

Using travel as the basis for the incentive program provides an opportunity for staff who participate to network and engage in a new, different and unique environment separate from their traditional workplace.

These programs can also establish some friendly competition amongst staff and, importantly, contribute to the reinforcement of your corporate culture and vision.

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As an industry leader in this area, Corporate Challenge Events has identified some key ingredients for a successful incentive travel program for your staff.

  1. Planning

Incentive travel is typically organised as a reward for staff and other stakeholders in the business, so it is imperative to make it seamless and memorable for those attending. This may likely involve many hours of planning and organisation, particularly in the booking of transfers, flights, accommodation, corporate events, team building activities and dining.

An experienced event manager can be the difference between a well-organised incentive program and one that may add unnecessary stress for the delegates. An event manager will be well versed in identifying appropriate locations and venues, scheduling and booking travel and, importantly, communicating itineraries and other vital information to your delegates.

  1. Audience

Like any good plan, understanding your audience or, in this case, the profile of your staff, is crucial in the organisation of the incentive travel program. Profile information like age, gender, cultural background, personal interests and recreational pursuits can all provide valuable information to help shape the destination and experience.

Other questions you should strive to answer include: how well do the delegates know each other, have they been a participant on an incentive trip previously, and, do they have any individual special requirements or considerations.

All of this information can help shape what the group will find exciting, memorable and beneficial. It will also direct you away from experiences that they may not like or cannot participate in.

  1. Budget

This is a determining factor in all areas of the incentive travel program such as total numbers, destination, venues and types of activities.

It will determine whether the trip is local, interstate or international; which team building activities you provide; what dining experiences you offer, and potentially, what corporate gifts you present.

Establishing the budget from the outset is important, so you do not waste unnecessary time and resources on a program that is unrealistic to deliver.

  1. Destination

Research where your delegates are currently located and what may be an effective destination for them all to reach. A consideration may be a location that has some synergy or link with your business or organisational culture. Potentially, you may wish to expose or familiarise your staff with this location as part of your business.

Whatever you decide, it is vital to do your due diligence to ensure that the destination and venues suit your requirements and will be fully accessible, exciting and safe. If the incentive travel is overseas, then research into visa and medical requirements, culture and language considerations, and currency, is vital.

  1. Wow

As a final box to tick on your planning checklist, make sure there is at least one experience that will provide a ‘wow' element for your delegates. This will contribute to the program leaving a lasting memory and be talked about for years to come.

This ‘wow' factor will come down to knowing your audience and budget, but can be most effective when it provides a unique experience that only that destination can offer.

Shared by http://www.corporatechallenge.com.au/

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