The Student Loans Company, which administers government-funded loans and grants to UK students, processes about 900,000 new applications a year, most of which arrive between June and October.
In the run-up to last year's four-month peak, the HR department introduced a motivational programme to recognise and reward performance and inject an element of fun into the working environment.
HR manager Colin Brack says: "We are under enormous pressure during that period. Our 600 contact centre staff must handle calls efficiently, and we have 650 people who manage the processing of applications. Our objectives were to improve the average handling time for telephone enquiries and increase the application processing rate, while maintaining quality."
A Hollywood-themed campaign, with weekly Oscar presentations, was devised, with the Love2choose gift card from Love2reward selected as the award. Cards can be activated and loaded remotely with a £20 prize, which can be spent in a number of retailers or converted to other retail vouchers online.
Brack adds: "They are simple to administer, have universal appeal and are easy to store."
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