i2i Answers New Demand in the $46 Billion Incentive Industry

Companies that traditionally had to take program design advice from incentive providers that sold merchandise and travel awards now have a better option. i2i is a new consulting firm that designs behavioral influence programs without regard for the award media that drives most incentive company recommendations. End Quote

Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, SC (1888PressRelease) January 05, 2009 - Eschewing the standard formula for incentive companies, a new company, i2i, provides clients with reward, incentive and influence recommendations -- and promises NOT to fulfill the program. Traditional incentive companies give free advice in the hopes of driving fulfillment sales, while i2i – “An Influence Consultancy” -- cares only that a performance improvement program is designed correctly, regardless of the fulfillment vehicle.

Companies who can’t find unbiased expert recommendations on the best way to influence their employee’s behavior can now get it, thanks to a new consulting firm called i2i.

Most incentive and recognition companies rely on specific award vehicles or software solutions to make money, therefore their recommendations are biased toward including their products in their “solutions.” i2i provides strategic direction and program recommendations that increase the effectiveness and decrease the costs of almost any program that influences behavior.

“We were tired of seeing clients get poor program design simply because the provider needed to sell more merchandise awards”, said Managing Director of i2i, Paul Hebert. “Our goals are different. We don’t care what is at the end of the pipe, as long as it is an appropriate, effective reward – what we care about is that the program is structured to achieve objectives and isn’t designed around the award vehicle.”

Traditional incentive and reward companies, not surprisingly, tend to recommend programs that use their own award vehicle and, more importantly, increase the use of that vehicle. i2i is turning this idea on its head. Clients pay for unbiased recommendations based on research, psychology of influence principles and a deep understanding of the incentive industry. It’s not free – but it is sound.

The main beneficiaries of this service are companies that currently use a large incentive supplier for their incentive and recognition programs that target employees and distribution channel. However, in keeping with their unbiased approach to influencing behavior – i2i will also assist incentive companies who wish to enhance their client’s current program or simply get another point of view. Incentive companies should welcome this service since i2i doesn’t compete with them for the fulfillment portion of their business.

In addition to working directly with clients and incentive companies, i2i can partner with compensation consultants, HR consultants, advertising agencies and related businesses to help maximize the impact of their recommendations. Whatever your position or perspective, if you need to influence someone’s behavior, i2i can assist.

The idea of i2i came from the popularity of the blog “Incentive Intelligence” (http://incentive-intelligence.typepad.com) – one of the highest Technorati rated blogs on incentives and recognition.

“We started that blog in 2006 and we received a lot of traffic from people interested in the design of the program and the subtle ways communication and structure can increase the success of a program, regardless of the end award,” says Hebert. “With over 20 years experience in the incentive industry consulting with Fortune 100 clients, I knew absolutely we had the expertise and the point of view to help clients design the best programs possible.”

For additional information on i2i contact Paul Hebert or visit www.i2i-align.com.

About i2i :
i2i occupies a unique space in the motivation consulting marketplace bridging the gap between strategies that sound great but are difficult to implement – and fulfillment processes that are operationally sound but not linked to strong strategy.

i2i helps companies answer questions like…
• What initiatives are you using to influence behavior?
• Are your initiatives working?
• Are all your initiatives pulling in the same direction?
• Do you leverage the latest thinking in the psychology of influence, behavioral economics and motivation?
• Are your measures aligned with behaviors or are they simply results?
• Am I getting the best return on my expense?

Contact:
Paul Hebert, Managing Director, i2i
864-286-6780
Company website address: www.i2i-align.com
Email addresses and contact information available on the website.

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