Abstract

The case ‘Siemens Designs Large-scale Rewards & Recognition Programs to Embed an Ownership Culture among Employees’ describes the company-wide R&R program of Siemens that helped it balance its business autonomy due to the decentralized organizational structure with higher corporate-level visibility and control requirements. The R&R programs ‘Champions’ and ‘You Answered’ helped Siemens AG reinforce core values such as responsibility, innovation, and excellence among employees in its business units in the US and the UK. The case touches upon the corporate plan ‘Vision 2020’ put in place by Siemens AG in 2015 to drive performance through profitable growth and significant investments in innovation. The case then describes the core values of the two R&R programs, the program objectives, the program design, and how it was implemented and aligned to the corporate Vision 2020 are described in detail. In January 2022, Siemens UK won the award for ‘Most Motivational Benefits’ as part of the 2021 Employee Benefits Awards program. The case ends with Siemens AG’s further extension of the Vision 2020 to Vision 2020+.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Describe the need for a company-wide R&R program that aligns with the organization’s strategic and tactical objectives
• Recognize the benefits of large scale peer-to peer R&R programs
• Examine the various steps in designing and implementing large scale R&R programs that align with company values and improve cross-functional collaboration

Keywords

Rewards and recognition; Ownership culture; Employee experience; Peer-to-peer recognition; Employee engagement; Employee motivation