💸 Merit Money: How Agile Management Can Revolutionize Employee Recognition

🚫 The end of traditional bonuses? Imagine an engaged team, where recognition does not depend only on leadership, but is distributed collaboratively, transparently, and in real time. Now, compare it with the traditional model, where the bonus comes at the end of the semester, with obscure criteria and without direct relation to the company's values. 📉 This old model is losing strength. 📈 And it is in this context that Merit Money stands out as a fairer, more agile and connected alternative to the organizational culture. ## 🔍 What is Merit Money? Merit Money is a decentralized recognition model, inspired by Agile Management and Management 3.0. Here's how it works:

• Each employee receives an amount of virtual coins at the beginning of the month

• Over time, it distributes these coins to colleagues whose actions or deliveries generated value

• In the end, those who accumulate can redeem real rewards, such as time off, courses, internal benefits, or personalized experiences

🎯 The differential? The recognition comes from those who live with you day to day — your own teammates. ## ❌ Why are traditional bonuses lagging behind? While still used, conventional bonuses face serious limitations:

• Exclusive focus on financial goals

• Decisions focused on leadership, which is not always close to the team

• Late recognition, with little motivational impact

• Criteria that are subjective or disconnected from company culture

• Lack of transparency — the employee does not always understand why (or by whom) they were awarded

✅ Why does Merit Money work better? Merit Money solves the main pain points with clear benefits:

• Continuous recognition – Reinforcement comes at the right time

• Collective engagement – Everyone participates in the appreciation process

• Transparency and fairness – Coins circulate publicly and with multiple perspectives

• Strategic alignment – Awards reinforce the behaviors and values desired by the organization

🔁 Result: more engagement, belonging, and retention of talent. ## 🛠 How to implement Merit Money in your company

Do you want to test this model? Here's a practical step-by-step:

1. Define the values and behaviors to recognize

Examples:

• Cross-functional collaboration and support

• Innovative initiatives

• Postures that represent the company's values

2. Choose a platform for program management

A digital solution makes it easy to distribute coins, track the program, and redeem rewards. 💡 > YouDeserve Differential: Our platform allows you to create a

complete Merit Money system, with virtual currencies, recognition

peer-to-peer >, integrated benefits club, and impact reporting in

real time. ### 3. Create clear rules

• What is the initial monthly coin balance per employee? - Do coins expire? - What are the criteria for redemptions? ### 4. Offer attractive and diverse rewards**

• Time off and free time

• Courses and mentoring

• Special projects and public recognition

• Benefits club with more than 200 national and local options

🔄 Generation Z, agility and organizational culture: the new normal

Gen Z doesn't want to wait 12 months to hear that they've done a good job. They want real-time feedback, legitimate recognition, and purpose in their daily lives. Companies that still operate with slow, hierarchical, and opaque models are falling behind — and losing their talent to competitors with more agile and inclusive cultures. 📌 It is not about "pampering" employees. It is about adapting management to the new expectations of the labour market. ## 🧠 Conclusion: The future of recognition is collaborative and continuous

If you still rely on traditional bonds as the main form of appreciation, it's time to rethink. Merit Money is not a substitute for compensation—it enhances a culture of employee recognition and engagement.**

🔗 With YouDeserve, you can create a robust recognition program, with Merit Money, gamification, personalized rewards, and measurable results. 👉 Schedule a demo with YouDeserve