Scott Johnson, Motivosity, Inc. CEO: “The flexibility of Motivosity’s rewards marketplace empowers employees by giving them the freedom to choose rewards that are personally meaningful.”

In 2013, Scott Johnson founded Motivosity, Inc. with a deceptively simple question: what if the key to better business results wasn’t bigger perks or fancier offices, but authentic recognition? From its base in Lehi, Utah, the company has grown into a people-first platform that helps organizations rethink how employees experience work. Motivosity’s mission is clear: create cultures where people feel seen, valued, and connected. Instead of leaning on outdated rewards systems that too often reduce recognition to an annual gesture; the platform uses principles of positive psychology and data to make appreciation an everyday habit. For leaders in HR, finance, and the C-suite across healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, professional services, SaaS, and higher education, this shift isn’t just cultural. It drives retention, productivity, and business growth.

What sets Motivosity apart is the breadth and flexibility of its offering. Its recognition tools cover everything from service milestones and nomination-based awards to peer-to-peer appreciation and spot bonuses. Its rewards marketplace is equally expansive, spanning Amazon shopping, Shopify integrations, gift cards, charitable giving, branded company swag, Lifestyle Spending Accounts, and the first-of-its-kind ThanksMatters Visa card, which lets employees spend recognition dollars where Visa is accepted. Beyond recognition and rewards, Motivosity builds community through social recognition feeds, employee Spaces, internal communication tools, and engagement surveys that help leaders stay tuned to the health of their culture.

The impact is tangible. Companies that adopt Motivosity often see higher employee satisfaction, stronger eNPS scores, improved customer service, and measurable gains in retention. What this really means is that recognition is no longer just a “nice to have.” For Motivosity, it’s a business strategy — one that connects appreciation to performance and turns culture into a competitive advantage.

In conversation with Scott Johnson, CEO of Motivosity, Inc.

How does Motivosity Inc’s “people-first” approach differentiate your platform from traditional employee engagement and rewards systems?

Unlike traditional systems that focus mainly on rewards, Motivosity is the only Recognition and Rewards solution that takes a holistic, people-first approach that integrates recognition, engagement, and meaningful rewards into a unified experience. We focus on creating deep social connections and empowering employees to feel seen and appreciated for their unique contributions. This human-centered approach fosters a culture of gratitude that drives long-term engagement, improves retention, and enhances overall organizational performance.

In what ways does your platform support leadership development, onboarding, and wellness programs across diverse workforce environments?

• Motivosity supports leadership development by encouraging regular, positive feedback and recognition, which helps build trust, connects employees and managers to each other, and strengthens leadership skills. We also offer employee Spaces that companies can use to house their leadership development programs, resources, materials, trainings, and internal communications.

• For onboarding, Motivosity provides a seamless way to automate introducing new hires to company culture through early recognition, sending onboarding gifts, facilitates new hire stipends via Lifestyle Spending Accounts, and makes it easy for HR teams to create New Hire Onboarding Spaces that house all onboarding materials, events, communications, and trainings. These Spaces can have automated membership rules where only new employees with a start date less than 90 days (for example) can be enrolled, and they can be automatically removed from the Space when they “age out.” Plus, HR teams can create achievements and badges for completed trainings or onboarding tasks that can give employees rewards for timely completion. Motivosity also includes an org chart and employee profiles that make it easy for new hires to navigate the culture.

• In terms of wellness, the ability to regularly celebrate and appreciate employees’ personal and professional milestones contributes to a more balanced, supportive work environment, which is crucial for employee well-being. But more specifically, Motivosity partners with SworkIt to offer templated and automated wellness challenges, such as steps challenges, including the integration with wearables like Apple Watches/Garmins, to automatically track and achieve health goals. Companies can attach rewards and badges to completed challenges to incentivize participation and can also create an employee Space for Wellness initiatives to give employees one easy place to go for information and updates.

Motivosity Inc. offers a comprehensive rewards marketplace from gift cards to company swag. How does this flexibility influence employee behavior and drive engagement?

The flexibility of Motivosity’s rewards marketplace empowers employees by giving them the freedom to choose rewards that are personally meaningful. This personalized approach increases engagement because employees are more likely to feel motivated and appreciated when they receive rewards that align with their preferences. Additionally, the wide variety of options, from gift cards to company swag, helps reinforce the company culture by allowing employees to connect with the brand in a tangible way.

How does Motivosity Inc. empower remote and hybrid teams to stay connected, celebrated, and aligned with company culture?

Motivosity’s social platform keeps remote and hybrid teams connected by providing a central hub for all culture-related information and activities, including real-time recognition and celebration tools that can be accessed from anywhere. Employees can give and receive recognition through the platform, creating a sense of community regardless of physical location. Additionally, the ability to tie recognition to company values helps maintain alignment with the organization’s culture, even in decentralized work environments. Motivosity’s best-in-class mobile app makes it easy for employees to send, receive, and engage with recognition from anywhere. Social profiles, personality types, and employee Spaces that enable common-interest groups help build community and connection across the company. As our customer Colton Richins, Head of People Ops at Blueberry Pediatrics said, “Motivosity is where our remote culture lives.”

What role do real-time data and employee feedback play in shaping and refining your platform’s engagement tools?

Real-time data and employee feedback are central to the Motivosity platform. By
continuously collecting real-time insights and employee feedback around engagement, employee satisfaction, and recognition, our customers can easily identify areas of growth and success and opportunities for improvement. This data-driven approach helps companies make informed decisions, allowing them to adjust strategies in real-time and maximize the impact of their employee engagement initiatives.”

How do your platform’s integrations with HRIS and communication tools streamline internal communications and simplify program management?

Motivosity’s integrations with HRIS and communication tools simplify the management of recognition programs by streamlining data flow across systems. These integrations reduce manual work and ensure that recognition efforts are aligned with performance metrics and HR processes. By integrating seamlessly with tools employees already use, such as Slack or Microsoft Teams, Motivosity ensures that recognition is an effortless and natural part of everyday workflows. Additionally, Motivosity houses a robust set of internal communication tools inside the platform, enabling employee Spaces for targeted communication to specific groups, announcements, post engagement metrics, and push notifications via email, the mobile app, and SMS.

What does the future hold for your company and its customers? Are exciting things on the way?

The future of Motivosity is bright as we continue to innovate and enhance our platform. We are focused on expanding our integrations and partnerships, adding new ways to engage and connect employees, building more robust Wellness solutions, and creating powerful new tools for engaging and recognizing deskless workers. As we continue to grow, we are excited to support our customers in creating even more connected, engaged, and high-performing workforces, and we are always looking for new ways to deepen the impact of recognition on company culture.

Meet the leader behind the success of Motivosity, Inc.

Scott Johnson, CEO of Motivosity, is driven by a deep commitment to improving the work experience and overall happiness of employees across the globe. With a passion for building company cultures that prioritize positivity, gratitude, and connection, the CEO’s vision for Motivosity has led to the creation of a platform that not only rewards employees but actively nurtures the relationships that drive business success. Scott’s leadership is foundational to Motivosity’s culture and its mission to make work better for everyone.

“Motivosity’s social platform keeps remote and hybrid teams connected by providing a central hub for all culture-related information and activities, including real-time recognition and celebration tools that can be accessed from anywhere.”