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Goal-based rewards allow organisations to incentivise employees for achieving measurable, ongoing performance objectives. Unlike traditional recognition programmes focused on anniversaries or one-off achievements, this feature ties rewards to clearly defined business, learning, and collaborative goals. Admins define, manage, and approve goals, configure reward eligibility, and provide visibility through social recognition to consistently motivate employees.

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Why this matters

  • Highly engaged teams show 21% greater profitability and 41% less absenteeism (Gallup).
  • Traditional recognition systems often fail to continuously motivate employees, leading to disengagement.
  • Goal-based incentives create measurable motivation and maintain focus on achieving objectives.

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When to use incentives

Incentives are most effective when you want to:
  • Reward completion of clearly defined targets — sales quotas, learning milestones, or wellness challenges.
  • Encourage ongoing improvement and sustained effort rather than one-time accomplishments.
  • Acknowledge systematic performance improvements and consistent goal achievement.

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Example use cases

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Steps to set up an incentive award

1

Navigate to Awards

Go to Programs > Awards & Core Values > Create Award.
Programs > Awards & Core Values > Create Award navigation in the Admin Dashboard
2

Select Incentive

Select Incentive and click Proceed.
Ideal for motivating employees to achieve predefined targets or milestones. Allows individuals or teams to claim rewards manually after successfully completing measurable goals.
Award type selection screen with Incentive option highlighted
3

Fill in award details

Enter the award name, description, image, and recipient type. Click Continue.An award recipient can be an individual, a team, or kept flexible.
Award details form with fields for name, description, image, and recipient type
4

Configure the reward

Choose to reward points or gift cards and merchandise.
Reward configuration screen for incentive award with points and merchandise options
5

Define nominee, nominator, and approver eligibility

Set constraints on who can nominate, be nominated, and approve.
Nominee, nominator, and approver eligibility configuration panel
Advanced eligibility filter settings for nominator and nominee constraints
Use OR when matching any one clause is sufficient. Use AND when all clauses must match.
6

Configure approver selection

Click the pencil icon and select a First Level Approver. Use advanced filters to refine your selection.
Approver Selection screen with First Level Approver and advanced filter options
7

Configure advanced settings

A. Set Questions for Nominator — Create up to 20 questions for nominators to answer when claiming the award. Text-based mandatory questions can also require an attachment.For multiple-choice questions, select Add other to append an Other option that lets nominators type their own answer. Set a character limit for the Other response between 1 and 1000 characters (default 250). A multiple-choice question can have up to 15 options in total, including Other.
Set Questions for Nominator configuration with multiple-choice and short text options
B. Citation Input — When a mandatory public question exists, you can skip the separate citation input.
Citation Input setting showing the option to skip citation when a mandatory public question is present
C. Nomination Validity — Set a validity period after which open claims are automatically declined.
Nomination Validity setting with period configuration
D. Self Nomination — When enabled, allows employees to self-nominate and claim the incentive award after completing the goal.
Self Nomination toggle in advanced award settings
E. Notify Stakeholders — Specify who is notified when the award is given (manager, HRBP, department head, etc.).
Notify Stakeholders configuration with relation options
F. Announcement and Feed Controls
  • Award Visibility — Public (visible to all) or Private (visible only to sender and recipient).
Award Visibility set to private — only sender and receiver are notified
Award Visibility set to public with option to allow nominators to control visibility
  • Information Disclosed — Show/hide Award Giver, Citation by Nominator, and Award Name and Icon.
Information Disclosed checkboxes for Award Giver, Citation, and Award Name and Icon
  • Privacy Control — Centrally / Public / Private / By Nominator/Approver.
  • Team Size — Minimum 1 (2 for team-only awards), maximum 100 members.
Privacy Control and Team Size settings with Confirm and Create button
Click Confirm and Create to complete the award setup.

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FAQs

Yes. Changes to reward values, receiver conditions, or evidence questions do not affect existing nominations. Changes to award name, icon, or criteria apply retroactively.
Deleting an award does not impact existing nominations.
Managers and admins can issue awards. Employees can self-nominate if the Allow employees to claim this incentive checkbox is enabled during setup.
Admins define claim frequency per award: Daily, Weekly, Fortnightly, Monthly, Quarterly, Yearly, or Once in a Lifetime.
Admins can add questions that employees must answer or attach evidence to when submitting a claim.
Yes. Eligibility can be defined for specific users or teams, and team size restrictions can be configured in advanced settings.
Admins can control award visibility (public or private) and choose who gets notified when an award is issued.
For feedback or questions, reach out to cs@xoxoday.com.