To attract top talent to join them, business organizations often dangle competitive salary and benefit packages. However, when it comes to retaining these top performers, most organizations offer something beyond cash rewards – opportunities for career advancement, recognition and a unique company culture.   Recognition programs like a travel incentive program appeal to a lot of employees due to varied reasons. However, one major reason why this type of reward program works is that it gives top performers an opportunity to indulge. When organizations give monetary rewards to their key performers, these employees typically use the money and forget how they spent it. With a promise of a luxurious reward, however, employees strive harder because most people are guarded against spending their own money on such indulgences.   Other appealing qualities of travel programs include the opportunity to create a memorable experience, the psychological value of competing and winning, and the overall buzz created.   That is not to say that all travel programs become successful or maintain their success overtime. Some programs fail during the year they were launched while others simply fail a few years later. If you want to avoid failure or if you want to sustain program success, there are several tasks that need to be done.   If your current reward scheme failed to deliver the expected results, the first task that needs to be undertaken is to eliminate any confirmation bias on the part of those who are involved with its implementation. This will allow the organization to properly assess where the program took a nosedive.   It is also worthwhile to conduct a survey, preferably anonymously, among the program participants and inquire after the type of reward that they'd prefer more. Whenever possible, give the survey participants a chance to name a specific reward option that they would like to receive but is not included in the given list. After the survey, those who implemented the program can gauge whether the selected reward is indeed appealing to a broad number of people or the reward should be changed the next time it is implemented.   Ideally, the survey should be conducted at least a month after the awarding. The advantage of waiting a bit further is that for those who will participate in the survey, the excitement of the event has worn off and they are now in an objective mind-set.   If there are winners of the program who did not redeem their awards, it is important to inquire why they did not take advantage of the rewards.