Introduction
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Unlike many vendors in the recognition space, Motivosity believes in an employee driven culture which manifests itself in a product focused on peer to peer recognition and engagement versus the top down nature of most incumbent players in this space.
Ratings
Ease of Use
Best For
Key Differentiator
Price
Free Trial
PROS
- Employees can access this system from their phones, desktop, and apps they are in at work such as Teams/Slack
- One platform that combines rewards, recognition, employee engagement, and more
- Built in reporting with insights around potential attrition, most recognized employees, managers that need coaching, etc.
CONS
- Only has dollar (not points) based rewards. Their research shows dollars is more effective, but many companies want points.
- Some users claimed sometimes it can be a bit buggy connecting to Slack to notify people that an appreciation came through.
- It would have broadened the number of gift card options for users to choose from.
- There could have been an easier way to integrate the software with swag stores. For now, you have to transfer funds to a card and then link that card with the swag store, which slows down a bit the process to cash in funds.
C.A. Short Company
C.A. Short Company
Nectar
Nectar
Motivosity
Motivosity
Terryberry
Terryberry
Workstars
Workstars
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Over 96% of employees use Motivosity’s system in a month. To us, that stat really says it all. Employee recognition solutions drive value when employees are actually engaged, and a 96% rate of engagement can only be achieved with a superior product.
The core workflow is that employees login, tag a colleague to be recognized, say why they are recognizing this person, connect it to a company value, choose how much they want to reward, and post. Other employees can now see this recognition, add to the dollar total, like, and comment. It’s simple, yet effective.
There are many small details their product team has implemented to create a seamless experience. For example, you can post comments to upcoming birthdays/work anniversaries and the comments don’t go live until the date of the celebration. This means once a month you can give kudos to all upcoming birthdays, without having to login each day. See below for more detail on features and functionality within the product.
As mentioned, this company has the philosophy that engagement and recognition should come from the bottom up, not from management down. This means the product is accessible to employees (they have a mobile app, slack/teams integrations, and it’s just simple to use with an interface that looks like a social network vs enterprise software). It also means that employees get money to reward one another, it’s not only coming from managers.
There are several virtuous feedback loops in this product that make it so successful. Each time an employee is recognized, they are encouraged to log in, see who recognized them, and then give their own recognition. This of course inspires newly recognized employees to come back and repeat the cycle.
In addition, their rewards are easy to use. They even launched a debit card recently (called the #Thanksmatters card) that allows employees to spend their rewards as cash wherever Visa is accepted. When you use your rewards, it reinforces the good vibes with your employer, and also leads to more recognizing! In fact, employees who have this debit card recognize colleagues at a 40% higher rate!
While Motivosity is a leader in the employee recognition and rewards space, it is also worth noting their other employee experience modules which have continued to grow as their product evolves. They have 1:1 management, surveys, eNPS, coaching, succession planning, manager scorecards, and all the reporting you’d expect from a modern HR solution.
Lastly, it’s important to note that Motivosity’s solution isn’t a heavy lift for HR teams. The average administrator spends just 43 minutes per month in this system. For a tool that can do so much to help with employee engagement, that is a high ROI investment!
I used Motivosity for employee engagement, which comprised a small portion of my weekly workflow. We primarily used it to increase connectivity among employees and promote appreciation and engagement. This was particularly relevant for our performance-driven roles in sales, customer service, and account management, where there was an emphasis on making extra efforts for better results. We used it in short intervals when team milestones were achieved or initiatives were launched.
- Motivosity has a user-friendly UI that makes employee engagement easy to understand.
- It is helpful for small businesses that lack a framework for employee engagement.
- Motivosity improves connectivity among employees in businesses with multiple locations.
I used Motivosity at a previous employer. I only had the opportunity to use it for about three months, as we needed a way to increase and manage employee engagement. Before implementing this system, we relied exclusively on survey-driven initiatives. Motivosity was intended to bridge the gap in these engagement initiatives and provide a more consistent way to foster engagement.
- Motivosity is too expensive for the features it offers; I believe there are cheaper options for enterprises looking to invest more in employee engagement.
- Some of Motivosity's fringe features can be confusing to use or lack clear use cases.
- Its reporting capabilities are not as advanced as many competitors.
Motivosity offers a very user-friendly UI that is easy for any employee to use and understand, unlike competitors that often require more administrative management to oversee user experience. It also has features that create community-like interactions, which is especially helpful for companies without other platforms for employee interaction, particularly remote or multi-location companies.
- How much are you willing to invest in employee engagement?
- How much do you already spend on engagement initiatives?
- What is the size of your business, and do you have multiple locations?
- How valuable are employee engagement and rewards for your type of company (e.g., sales-heavy roles)?
Motivosity has been investing in improving user experience, aiming to make it feel seamless for employees.
Motivosity is good for sales-driven or performance-driven organizations.
Motivosity is not good for large enterprises that need more robust and horizontally integrated systems.
Motivosity for management and leadership development has been a major area we employ. We use this to facilitate one-on-one and small group meetings between supervisors and their teams. It's been extremely helpful in getting everyone to participate and as they can add agenda items and plan in advance.
Performance has improved as a result because staff receives guidance on problem-solving and prioritizing work from their supervisor and they receive acknowledgment afterward. Also, the leadership team can see the reports on how often these meetings are happening and get a sense of how well our supervisors are performing.
We also use the recognize feature to reward the daily achievements and allow staff to recognize coworkers. Great work that often went unacknowledged or just was easily forgotten/overlooked now gets the attention it deserves. We found that everyone responds to this feature and that these small, regular acknowledgments tied to tangible monetary and gift rewards have really increased overall employee motivation and satisfaction and made doing great work rewarding and fun for our staff. We also set it up to make sure major events like an anniversary are not missed.
We also benefit from the surveys and feedback that leadership can see as insightful and data-driven reporting. It has been critical in getting information that was mainly anecdotal, unpredictable, and sporadic in the past. We use this for departing employees' exit interviews and to track turnover. Handling and understanding employee turnover had been overly informal and a bit chaotic before this feature, but we use the exit interviews and data to get a better picture of areas we need to focus on.
It improved employee morale and performance by offering ways for them to connect better with coworkers and supervisors and allowed ongoing, regular, and routine recognition rather than just major things like salary increases and promotions.
Leadership has gained a better sense of how our management is performing and increased the effectiveness of our supervisors at every level.
It's given us valuable data about how our staff are performing, employee turnover, and management performance in reports.
We were concerned about employee engagement given the fact that a large number of employees were remote, and we have multiple worksites. Both factors created a sense of disconnect among the staff from both the company and their co-workers. It seemed to be harming employee morale and, consequently, employee productivity.
We were also very concerned about increased interpersonal conflict, declining employee retention and feedback that generally indicated dissatisfaction. We were also looking for a way to provide ongoing recognition and to attain ongoing feedback, because annual reviews and occasional surveys were not enough, and were not incorporated into the day-to-day culture.
We've used motivosity for about a year and a half. In that time, we've seen improvements in all these areas.
We were not thrilled with the customer support regarding questions about billing and technical errors.
The system seemed to have some technical issues and was sometimes really slow or even would crash.
Though it met our needs, there do appear to be products on the market that have more features for around the same cost.
Having used a few similar products, I think Motivosity does a better than average job creating personalized connections between coworkers and social media-like content for staff members and was very good at fostering a sense of empowerment by management to the employees.
It allows for employees to recognize each other, not just management recognizing employees as is typically the case. Also, the user interface is very straightforward, intuitive, easy to navigate, and easy to use.
A tool like this will very likely increase employee engagement and increase performance and retention, but people should consider the costs involved both in the product and in monetized rewards and recognition to staff.
Once you institute such rewards, taking them away may be poorly received by staff. Also, it requires leadership to support and endorse the efforts to use this product and without that, it may not be effectively deployed, especially if you do not have full participation.
From my understanding, they have refined the features to focus better on reporting and on management development.
Remote workers will especially benefit. It helps to replace some of the personal bonding and connection that usually happens through in-person interactions.
Organizations, where there is infrequent staff interaction, will also find a lot of benefits in both the sense of personal connection and regular recognition that can be lost when workers are not physically near each other often.
An organization that highly values a top-down style of relationships may find that they don't value the degree to which employees are empowered to give feedback and recognition.
I use Motivosity on a daily basis, as it is a part of my routine and habit. Here are some key workflows I use it for:
Every morning, I check the social feed to see the recognitions that my colleagues and managers have sent and received. I like to read the comments and reactions, and join the conversation by adding my own.
Throughout the day, I send and receive recognitions, points, and badges for the work that I do and the work that others do. I try to align the recognitions with our core values and goals, and be specific and sincere in my messages.
Every week, I redeem my points for gift cards, perks, or donations. I like to treat myself or others with something that I or they enjoy, or support a cause that is cared about.
Every month, I review the analytics and reports that Motivosity provides. I like to see the impact of recognition on my performance, engagement, and retention. I also like to see the trends, patterns, and insights of the recognition and rewards activities.
Some of the main reasons why I like Motivosity are:
It helps me feel appreciated and valued by my colleagues and managers for my work and contributions.
It allows me to redeem my points for gift cards, perks, or donations that I enjoy or care about.
It integrates with my other tools such as Slack, Microsoft Teams, and ADP making it easy to access and use.
My organization bought Motivosity because we wanted to improve our employee engagement and retention. We had a problem with low morale, high turnover, and lack of recognition among our staff. We needed a tool that could help us create a culture of appreciation and motivation in our workplace.
I have personally used Motivosity for about six months, and I have seen a positive change in our workplace culture. I feel more appreciated and valued by my colleagues and managers. I also enjoy recognizing and rewarding others for their work. I think Motivosity is a great employee engagement platform that helps us achieve our goals and grow as a team.
Some of the main ways that Motivosity can improve or I wish it were different are:
It could offer a free trial for the upper tiers, so that potential customers can evaluate the features and benefits of the platform before purchasing.
It could improve the Android app, so that it is more stable and reliable, and has the same functionality and user experience as the iOS app.
It could provide more direct support options, such as chat, phone, or email so that customers can get faster and better assistance for their questions, issues, or feedback.
Motivosity is different from its competitors in a couple of ways. Here are some of the main differences and how it stacks up:
Motivosity has a unique feature called MVTV, which is a live stream of recognition that can be displayed on TVs, monitors, or screensavers. This feature enhances the visibility and impact of recognition in the workplace. I have not seen this feature in any other platform, and I think it is a great way to celebrate and inspire employees.
Motivosity has a flat pricing model that charges per user per month regardless of the number of users. This makes it easy to budget and scale the platform as the organization grows. Most of the other platforms have tiered pricing models that charge different rates based on the number of users or features. I prefer Motivosity's pricing model because it is affordable, transparent, and easy to use.
Employee engagement software is a type of tool that helps organizations measure and improve the engagement and satisfaction of their employees. When buying this type of tool, people should think about the following criteria:
The tool should offer features and functionality that match the organization's goals and needs for employee engagement. The tool should also be easy to use, customize, and scale.
It should have a high user adoption and feedback rate which means that most of the employees who are invited to use the tool actually use it regularly and provide feedback on their experience. This indicates that the tool is engaging, fun, and valuable for the employee.
Lastly, the tool should have a transparent and affordable pricing model that fits the organization's budget and expectations. The tool should demonstrate a clear and positive return on investment (ROI), which means that the tool helps the organization achieve its desired outcomes, such as improved performance, retention, and culture.
I have noticed two ways in which Motivosity has changed or evolved over time to meet users needs:
It has introduced new features and functionality to enhance the user experience and provide more value to the customers. For example, some of the recent additions are MVTV, a live stream of recognitions that can be displayed a number of ways; ThanksMatters Card which is a Visa card that allows users to use their Motivosity Bucks anywhere Visa is accepted; and 1 on 1's, a tool that helps managers and employees have effective and meaningful conversations.
Motivosity has expanded the integrations and partnerships to make it easier for users to access and use the platform from different platforms and tools. For example, some of the recent integrations and partnerships are Microsoft Teams, a chat and collaboration tool that allows users to send and receive recognitions, points and badges from within the app; Covver, a swag provider that allows users to redeem their points for branded merchandise; and Sweeteners, a perk provider that allows users to redeem their points for discounts and deals.
Motivosity is suitable for teams of all sizes, from small startups to large enterprises, across various industries and sectors. It is especially beneficial for remote or hybrid teams, as it helps them stay connected, engaged, and motivated.
Motivosity might not be a good fit for users or organizations that:
Prefer more customization and flexibility for the recognition and rewards features, such as creating their own badges, points, or gift cards.
Require more direct support or contact options from the Motivosity team, such as chat, phone, or email, for their questions, issues, or feedback.
We had used Motivosity to promote events in the community. We also used it to facilitate Employee Giving (i.e. Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico several years ago). During the pandemic, it was leveraged especially to lean into our Employee Resource Groups. We used it to focus on specific dates on the calendar, such as Veteran's Day, Juneteenth, and International Women's Day. We also used this platform to encourage Employees to take the Employee Experience Survey.
Clean Interface. Multi-faceted and easy-to-use
Our organization bought Motivosity as part of our strategy for Corporate Social Responsibility. A discovery from our Employee Experience survey showed that there was an interest in our employees who wanted to give back to the community.
The interface is easy to use. The benefits of the platform include multiple functions such as global connection and employee giving. I used this Motivosity for close to a year.
I don't have anything negative to see about Motivosity.
I would say that Motivosity offers multiple streams to help support Employee Engagement.
Executives should think about the company culture. Does the culture support employees taking on projects and missions for CSR projects? Also, from a Technical standpoint, is it easy to integrate with their current systems?
I would say Motivosity has made our needs, and it has stayed the same.
For-profit corporations and/or organizations with many employees.
Small non-profit companies with small margins.
KPMG, Bosch, Toyota, cotopaxi, WGU
Motivosity’s product is changing every time we see it! However, there are a few features that we feel help set it apart from other vendors:
- eNPS: Motivosity has a built in employee Net Promoter Score survey that goes out on the cadence you choose (we recommend quarterly). Scores above 30% are great, and you can pay employees to incentivize completions (usually $2/employee).
- Surveys: If you’re looking to do pulse surveys or generally understand employee engagement, you can do that through Motivosity.
- Lead: This tool has an entire suite for managers that includes 1:1 management, coaching, succession planning, manager scorecards and more.
- Org chart: You can visualize your organization within this tool. This is especially useful for smaller companies that don’t have an HRIS with similar functionality.
- Employee profiles: Employees each have their own profiles that lists what they do in the company, outside of work, and even a personality score. When you view another colleague’s profile, you immediately get a sense for who they are so that you can best collaborate with them.
- #Thanksmatter card: They recently launched a debit card that allows employees to spend rewards much more freely. As mentioned, employees who use this card recognize others at a 40% higher rate (when you use rewards, you are reminded to recognize!).
- Leaderboard: There is a leaderboard to show who is recognizing (not recognized) the most in the company.
- Analytics: There are many pre-built reports, our favorite is one that shows how different parts of the organization recognize one another.
- Employee awards: You can create awards for just about anything: who did the most sales calls, who can eat the most hot wings, who won the company foosball tournament.
- Customizable rewards: In your rewards shop you can include a wide range of rewards including gift cards, experiences, and company branded swag.
- Slack
- BambooHR
- WorkDay
- Okta
- Namify
- SSO
- Sharepoint
They also have an Open API for vendors to build on top of, and are constantly launching new integrations.
Motivosity’s pricing works per module. “Connect” is included with every license of the other three. They do offer a free trial for each of them and the pricing is as follows:
- Connect: Free
- Recognize: $4 per person per month
- Lead: $5 per person per month
- Listen: $2 per person per month
Movitosity’s employee recognition software has customers from 10 person startups to 10,000 employee large enterprises. However, their sweet spot tends to be mid market (100-3,000 employee) companies that are looking to take their employee experience to a new level.
Implementation support is included for all customers, cost-free, in every plan. If you have an HRIS that integrates with their solution, it’s very simple to import data and keep your employee profiles updated. If not, it’s a matter of uploading this data and keeping it up to date manually.
Projects usually start with a kickoff meeting between the team and Motivosity’s experts except for the smallest companies which onboard themselves.
Afterwards, phone and email support are provided in order to walk customers through the launch. The time to launch depends a lot on your company size and can be as little as a few days to a few months.
Key considerations here are to figure out how much you want to give in rewards (usually $3-5/employee/mo), if you want to setup custom rewards (company swag, local restaurants, value aligned rewards), and how you want to communicate the launch (soft launch, party, at ab offsite, etc).
- Premium support is included with every product
- This includes self-help options such as help desk, help site, community site, and training videos that are constantly updated.
- Motivosity also include quarterly QBRs with a dedicated Customer Success representative for large customers.
Motivosity was founded by serial entrepreneur Scott Johnson who had previously built WorkFront, another HR Tech company that was sold to Adobe for $1.5 Billion.
The mission of the business is to make employees happier at work. You can see this in their product which is very much focused on employees vs administrators and managers (although it helps them too by having more engaged workforce!)
They definitely punch above their weight in terms of delivering a strong product that easily competes with the larger incumbents in this space like WorkHuman and OC Tanner. In addition, their broad mission means we are pretty sure we’ll keep seeing new product releases outside of their core recognition module that broaden their scope, and help push innovation in the employee experience category.
Company HQ
Lehi, UT, United States
Number of Employees
Motivosity has over 80 employees
Year Founded
2013
Amount Raised
Bootstrapped
