RewardsNation Rebrands As iziiStory With A New Focus On Employee Storytelling

RewardsNation Rebrands As iziiStory
With A New Focus On Employee Storytelling

We were convinced that employee recognition should be democratic and transparent. We never anticipated the unintended consequences that would translate into crowded feeds and obscure content for organizations the world over.

Back in 2005, online employee recognition was in its infancy and most organizations focused on extrinsic rewards for management-driven formal awards, often neglecting to recognize day-to-day employee contribution.

RewardsNation was the first platform to promote peer-to-peer recognition with full transparency, launching with the popular Facebook feed style of the day. Our team believed that encouraging employees to share examples of what colleagues do right when they're at their best would democratize recognition, breathe life into corporate values, and inspire all employees through their new role models. After all, teammates are closest to the action and usually enjoy a unique vantage point.

The novel approach revolutionized the Rewards & Recognition industry and today, feed-style social recognition platforms are ubiquitous.

STORIES

hOME

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES

Years later, having analyzed countless recognition messages, we realized something our team never anticipated: much of the peer recognition going through a company feed today is thoughtful and well-meaning but sadly, forgettable and devoid of humanness. With one or two short sentences and no context, the story behind the recognition remains a mystery for most but the closest teammates. In the worst cases, programs are little more than reward delivery mechanisms.

To add greater value for our own customers and deliver on our promise of increased engagement, we had to find a simple method to help employees write more insightful recognition messages. To be effective, it had to be quick and easy, and require no special training. Complicated programs never work.

EUREKA

After many brainstorming sessions, mock-ups, and beta tests, we've changed the game once again, and iziiStory was born. With simple tools, employees can now easily add the back story, the challenge, and the happy ending, making the narrative much more engaging.

Through the power of iziiStory, people in every corner of the organization gain valuable insight into what used to be largely invisible - daily challenges, wins, big and small, encouraging progress, teamwork, and shared values. Unlike a quick shout-out, a story creates an emotional connection. A story is human and relatable. Stories teach. Stories stick.

EASY DOES IT

iziiStory's integrated tools make the daunting process of collecting stories from employees surprisingly fast and easy. By following just a few steps, anyone can write and then be proud to share an inspiring story to the company virtual wall.

In addition to real-life examples of its culture in action, the organization ends up with a story bank full of teachable moments created by employees, about employees, for employees.

As was the case with RewardsNation, we remain unwavering in our focus to make life as easy as possible for our hero - the program administrator. However, the name iziiStory better aligns with our value proposition, which is to place greater emphasis on intrinsic rewards for deeper employee engagement. iziiStory helps organizations define their authentic workplace culture through employee storytelling as an integral part of social recognition.

RewardsNation Rebrands As iziiStory With A New Focus On Employee Storytelling