ACA Group: Supporting Employee Experience with Poppulo Rewards

ACA Group wanted to make internal communication more engaging and interactive. To achieve this, they implemented Poppulo Rewards, a gamification feature designed to motivate employees through points and challenges. Since launching Poppulo Rewards, ACA Group has observed a significant increase in employee engagement, with more participation in internal initiatives, greater interaction with company content, and higher visibility on social media. This shift has strengthened both internal collaboration and employer branding.

ACA Group is a Belgian company specializing in IT services and solutions, covering everything from software development and cloud to digital innovation, AI, and data-driven strategies. With over 250 employees, the company stands out for its dynamic corporate culture, focused on employee engagement, innovation, and social responsibility.

The Engagement Gap: How to Reach Employees Effectively

ACA Group embarked on an innovative journey to strengthen employee engagement, create a sense of belonging, and enhance employer branding. ACA Group managed to reshape its internal communications strategy and strengthened its brand presence with Poppulo Rewards, the engagement feature integrated within the Poppulo platform that ties employee actions to meaningful incentives.

Before implementing Poppulo, ACA Group struggled with engagement despite investing significant time and effort in corporate communications. Traditional channels like email newsletters and wiki posts weren’t sparking engagement as hoped. Additionally, ACA Group wanted to future-proof its employer branding efforts. The company recognized the need to establish a strong employer brand to maintain a competitive edge in the IT sector.

Poppulo Rewards in Action: Why It Is a Game-Changer

ACA Group needed a solution that made communication more engaging—without adding complexity. Poppulo Rewards provides an automated gamification framework where employees earn points for participating in activities such as sharing content, engaging in quizzes, and responding to surveys.

Key objectives:

• Enhancing Employee Engagement – By introducing fun challenges and rewards, ACA creates an interactive and dynamic workplace.
• Boosting Internal Communication Effectiveness – Moving away from one-way communication channels, the platform encourages employees to actively engage.
• Strengthening Employer Branding – Employees become ACA’s most authentic brand ambassadors, increasing external visibility.

Employees earning points through Poppulo Rewards can redeem them in a worldwide gift store integrated within the platform. They can choose from vouchers, subscriptions, donations, sustainable products, and corporate goodies, ensuring rewards are meaningful and accessible. Employees can also share points through praises, fostering a culture of recognition. With a customized and regionally tailored catalog, ACA Group keeps engagement high while reinforcing appreciation and motivation across teams.

Onboarding and training played a crucial role in adoption. ACA introduced presentations, recorded tutorials, and a dedicated knowledge-sharing initiative called Brown Bag Sessions—informal learning moments during lunch breaks— to ensure employees were comfortable using the platform.

How Poppulo Rewards Empowers ACA Group

1. From Static Communication to Dynamic Engagement

Poppulo replaced outdated, one-way communication methods with an interactive, gamified system. Instead of static wiki posts and emails, employees can now actively participate in company initiatives.

1. A Fully Integrated Gamification Framework

The strength of Poppulo Rewards lies in its connection to multiple features beyond just content sharing. Employees earn points for quizzes, surveys, and peer-to-peer recognition, creating a comprehensive engagement ecosystem.

1. Effortless Rewards and Gifts Management

Poppulo Rewards makes it effortless to provide employees with an always up-to-date selection of gifts and rewards. With an intuitive e-commerce- like interface, employees can easily browse and redeem their points, while the system fully automates logistics and fulfillment, reducing administrative effort for the company.

1. A Measurable Impact on Employee Engagement

Since launching Poppulo Rewards, ACA Group has distributed 491 reward points to 72 employees over eight months, reinforcing engagement across teams. Employees earned points for key actions that support internal communication and advocacy, including:

• 144 points for content shares, boosting ACA’s visibility externally,
• 76 points for polls, encouraging employee feedback,
• 36 points for content engagement,
• 22 for quizzes, fostering knowledge-sharing.

By gamifying participation, ACA Group has made engagement more dynamic and rewarding, ensuring employees stay connected while aligning recognition with company goals.

A Successful Engagement Example: the UEFA Euro 2024 Digital Challenge

One of the most successful engagement campaigns was the UEFA Euro 2024 Digital Challenge, where Poppulo Rewards turned company-wide enthusiasm for football into an interactive experience. Employees made match predictions, earned points for correct answers, and participated in office watch parties.

The UEFA Euro 2024 Challenge successfully encouraged participation across ACA Group. 82 employees engaged in match predictions, sharing their excitement and insights throughout the competition.

The initiative sparked more interaction on the platform, leading to an increase in content activity and discussions. Employees were also rewarded with Poppulo Rewards points, which they could redeem for a selection of gifts of their choice, reinforcing engagement in a fun and rewarding way.

The Brand Ambassador Effect: Engaging Employees on Social Media

While employee engagement was the primary goal, ACA Group also saw a significant increase in external visibility as employees actively shared company-related content on LinkedIn.

• Employees shared a total of 369 posts, with an average of 123 shares per month.
• LinkedIn was the primary platform for engagement, accounting for 98.4% of all shares.
• October 2024 saw a peak of 153 shares, reflecting a surge in employee advocacy.

By empowering employees to share their own experiences, ACA Group has strengthened its employer brand with authentic, employee-driven content that extends beyond traditional corporate messaging.

Leveraging CSR with A Game-Changing Tool

Before integrating Poppulo Rewards, ACA Group faced a common challenge: getting employees to engage with CSR initiatives. Important topics like sustainability and corporate social responsibility were often overlooked, as traditional communication methods failed to capture employees’ interest.

By turning CSR engagement into interactive challenges and rewarding participation, ACA Group saw a drastic shift—employees became more aware, more involved, and more motivated to take part in sustainability efforts. One successful initiative was a sustainability quiz to introduce ACA Group’s updated environmental policies. Employees were rewarded for their participation, reinforcing key messages without a top-down, controlling approach.

Additionally, Poppulo Rewards helps mobilize employees for real-world actions, such as:

• Environmental clean-up challenges where employees can log their participation.
• Eco-friendly commuting initiatives encouraging employees to share their sustainable habits.
• Sustainability knowledge-building quizzes that test employees’ awareness of company policies in a fun, engaging way.

These initiatives put CSR back at the heart of ACA Group’s internal communications, showcasing how gamification can drive a meaningful engagement on corporate values.

Gamification Done Right: Creating Enduring Impact

With Poppulo Rewards, ACA Group redefines its internal communications and engagement strategy. The combination of gamification, peer recognition, and content-sharing creates a more interactive and connected workplace while also strengthening ACA’s external reputation.

Moving forward, ACA Group aims to expand adoption among leadership teams and optimize training to help employees maximize the platform’s potential. As employee advocacy and engagement continue to grow, the company is well-positioned to sustain its dynamic and collaborative culture in the long term.

With Poppulo, employee engagement becomes a catalyst for both internal culture and external visibility. By leveraging gamification through Poppulo Rewards, the company not only strengthened its employer brand but also fostered a more dynamic, interactive workplace where employees actively contribute to communication and advocacy efforts. This transformation has positioned ACA Group for sustained engagement, collaboration, and growth in the years to come.