Staff incentive ideas: creative ways to boost employee morale

Think boosting morale means big bonuses or fancy retreats? 

While those can be nice, too, the best rewards feel personal and thoughtful.

When you tailor incentives to what people really value, they feel seen. This kind of recognition sticks with people. It makes them want to show up, give their best, and stay for the long haul.

Let’s take a closer look at some creative and thoughtful ways you can keep morale high and your team motivated with employee incentives. 

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1. Offer complimentary professional headshots

Think about things that employees might never do for themselves but would appreciate receiving. A perk that feels both practical and special.

For example, the price of headshots can put people off from paying for them. But a high-quality headshot can boost confidence and help your employees build their professional image.  

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Staff can use them to update their LinkedIn profiles, add a bio to their work projects, or speak at events. They’re also a requirement for certain collaborations. 

When I offered these to my team, they jumped at it. (I was a seasoned photographer and already had a pro camera, so we just took images outside in the natural light.) Not only did our team use the images for their online profiles, but we also used them to create staff stories on our Instagram business profile.

That led to a win I wasn’t expecting. We got more customer sign ups that month than we ever did with our previous social media marketing campaigns.

So, pick a day, book a photographer, and give your team a heads-up. Make sure to share tips on wardrobe and what to expect. 

This small gesture tells them you care about their long-term career growth. Not just what they do for you today. And hey, it might help you attract more customers, too!

2. Host an employee celebration week or gratitude board

Celebrate your people just for being awesome.

Pick a theme week — like Employee Appreciation Week — and plan daily treats and team prizes. Think coffee carts, catered lunch, or desk gifts. It’s less about the budget and more about the gesture. 

Take inspiration from how hospitals celebrate Nurses Week with freebies. They do food, prizes, fun awards and LOAD their nurses up with freebies and discounts. 

Nurses get exclusive deals and discounts that week, including:

• Restaurant, food, and grocery savings
• Clothing and shoe discounts 
• Tech and electronics deals
• Health and wellness offers

Nurses can also enter their name in a drawing to win bonus freebies.

You can also celebrate your team with a gratitude board.

A small company I managed turned a break room wall into a gratitude board, where teammates posted sticky notes with shout-outs and appreciation. That wall stayed up for months because people kept adding to it. Something that started as a one-week activity turned into an everyday ritual. It also enhanced employee satisfaction as a whole.

And don’t forget birthdays, work anniversaries, and project wins. Make them a big deal. 

Those little moments of celebration help your staff feel recognized and give them a sense of belonging. One of my previous managers used to bring red velvet cake (a staff fave) anytime we had a birthday in the office. None of us complained, ha! 

Highly recommend. 😋

3. Support employees' well-being

Healthy employees are happier employees. Offer perks that help them feel good inside and out.

You don’t have to install a full-blown wellness program to make an impact. Start with simple, consistent offerings that encourage healthy habits.

For instance, consider offering perks like:

• A monthly gym membership or wellness stipend
• A subscription to a meal service or fitness app
• Nutrition classes or healthy snack boxes
• Mental health days or therapy support
• Onsite health screenings

My staff used to jump on the opportunity to get free health screenings, for instance. It gave them a break from their desks. And it took a task off their plates that they’d usually take care of outside of work. 

4. Alleviate some of their financial burdens

Money stress hurts focus and morale. Offer help to alleviate some of the burden if you can.

For example, you can help employees get student loan stipends, or meet with a provider to discuss options for student loan refinancing.

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You could also reward top performers with cash-based incentives, like:

• Equity-based employee reward schemes like stock options
• Financial gifts like gift cards or stipends
• Monetary rewards
• Cash bonuses

Or take it up a notch.

Offer a life settlement cashout. That means an employee could opt to cash out part of their life insurance policy. Abacus Life has more on what a life settlement is if you want to explore that route.

Even covering public transportation or offering financial planning workshops can ease daily stress. The key is showing you care about what’s weighing on them.

I personally love giving my staff holiday bonuses. I typically make a spontaneous announcement right before Christmas that they’ll be receiving them soon. It’s not big bucks, but they always appreciate this extra boost of financial support.

5. Offer flexibility and time-related perks

Time is valuable. And flexible schedules can make a huge impact on a worker’s quality of life.

Consider offering:

• A four-day workweek or alternating Fridays off
• Unlimited PTO (if your team is built on trust)
• Surprise half-days or long weekends
• Flexible start and end times
• Work-from-home options
• Additional time off

One of my previous managers used to surprise us with an afternoon off if our sales were high. Another perk I used to love was unlimited lunch time! As long as we crushed our goals, we could take a two — even a three-hour — lunch break, and no one would bat an eye.

Think about your team’s real lives. They likely have school pickups, doctor appointments, and need time off to recharge. When you give them flexibility, you get back focus and loyalty.

6. Support their professional growth and development

Dedicated employees want to grow, so give them a positive work environment and opportunities to do so.

Offer things like:

• Free access to platforms like Skillshare or Coursera
• Leadership training for employees showing potential
• Stipends for educational resources like online courses or certifications
• Tickets to conferences or industry events
• Internal mentorship programs

I personally love sharing my own expertise and the insights my staff has to share, so I’ve always offered plenty of learning opportunities like workshops and extra training. While they’re sometimes mandatory (which may feel less like a “perk”), my team members always walk away with new skills and insights they can apply to build their careers. 

Having one-on-ones is also underrated. All managers are busy. But when you carve out time to meet with your employees 1:1, you can learn firsthand what they’re struggling with and how you can better support their growth. 

Anytime I meet with someone on my team, we workshop a plan to help them get to where they need to be.

So, support their goals — and they’ll stay invested in yours. When employees feel like they're growing, they’re less likely to look elsewhere.

7. Recognize their contributions thoughtfully

Recognition doesn’t have to cost a dime. Give praise often and in ways that feel real.

For instance, give:

• Experiential rewards like tickets or team outings
• Meaningful gifts based on employee hobbies
• Access to peer-to-peer recognition platforms
• Public shout-outs during team meetings
• A gift certificate to their favorite places
• Private thank-you notes from leaders

I also like using positive messaging in my email communication. A simple “Thanks SO much for this, Amanda.” Or, “Appreciate your hard work!” shows team members that I care and see their efforts.

Slack’s a great channel to use for this, too. Consider using a #kudos hashtag so anyone can drop appreciation anytime. You can also integrate an employee experience app into Slack, like Donut. 

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Donut automatically pairs up teammates for virtual coffee chats. But you can also use it to schedule public recognition shout-outs or nudge managers to check in regularly. It makes recognition and relationship-building feel less like an extra task and more like part of the rhythm of the workday.

Also … recognition doesn’t always need to be about output and cliche employee achievements.

Celebrate the people who lift others up, solve tough problems, or go out of their way to help. You don’t need 100 little rewards. A few thoughtful ones will mean more.

Wrap up

If I could leave you with one takeaway after reading this, it’d be …

Know what excites your team and build a plan around that. 

Consider handing out polls, surveys, or hosting a meeting to check-in about work incentive ideas they’d appreciate. (Sometimes, you just need to ask!) You might be surprised by how many ideas your staff has regarding how they’d like to be recognized. Or what inspires their job satisfaction.

For good measure, here’s the list of employee incentive ideas we went over in this guide:

1. Complimentary professional headshots
2. Employee celebration weeks
3. Wellness incentives (gym, mental health support, health screenings)
4. Financial perks (loan help, cash rewards, gift cards, life settlement options)
5. Time perks (surprise time off, flexible hours)
6. Growth opportunities (mentorships, stipends, conference tickets)
7. Recognition (shout-outs, awards, thoughtful gifts)

Be genuinely helpful and excited to support your entire team — and they’ll feel it. I promise.

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