Recognition/Awards at Work

[Phoenix84]

How important is recognition/awards at work for you?  Have you ever received any awards or other public recognition at work, and what form did it take?

Does your employer give out awards frequently, rarely, or not at all?

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

I got a reward for being an employee for five years. They had various products you could choose from, I picked a set of pearl earrings.

It wasn't a huge deal. I was surprised I'd been here that long already, I haven't been keeping track.

Otherwise they don't do much, at least in the area I work in. Which is fine with me I don't need public accolades, they make me uncomfortable.

I do appreciate my boss acknowledging what I do from time to time with a thank you. I work completely alone and can go DAYS without seeing another person except in the hallway. Telling myself "you get a paycheck" only serves as motivation for so long.  I do need/want occasional feedback.  My boss letting me know he's aware of what I do pumps me up when I get into a work slump.

[zibazinski]

Show me the money. I don't care about a parking spot or employee of the month. I want cold hard cash rewards.

[Iggy aka IG]

Awards are useful when marketing your business, IMO.  The times I've won producer awards, I make sure I list them on my LinkedIn profile, and now my business FB page.  The goal is to show clients and potential clients how busy and successful my agency is.

As far as recognition among fellow agents, yeah, show me a bonus check.  Or two, like at last week's award ceremony. 

[justme]

I earned two awards last year. $100 each. It was nice to be recognized, but the amount was a bit of whoop-de-doo. The amount used to be higher, but it was one of several things the cut back on. I could see it for the team awards (could be a lot of people), but the only give out 4 individual awards a year. Making them $500 or $1000 isn't a large number compared to other expenses in this company.

[Phoenix84]

Apr 22, 2014 11:11:03 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

I got a reward for being an employee for five years. They had various products you could choose from, I picked a set of pearl earrings.

It wasn't a huge deal. I was surprised I'd been here that long already, I haven't been keeping track.

Otherwise they don't do much, at least in the area I work in. Which is fine with me I don't need public accolades, they make me uncomfortable.

I do appreciate my boss acknowledging what I do from time to time with a thank you. I work completely alone and can go DAYS without seeing another person except in the hallway. Telling myself "you get a paycheck" only serves as motivation for so long.  I do need/want occasional feedback.  My boss letting me know he's aware of what I do pumps me up when I get into a work slump.

Interesting, aren't you a state employee?  I thought gifts like pearl earings were forbidden, at least in the federal government they are.

For length of service awards, we get a pin and a certificate at 10 years, and (I think) every five years after that.  I will have been with the feds for seven years as of October.

[Deleted]

We don't do awards. Some of our shop and field guys have a drawing for a safety award if they are accident free, though.

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

It was a bunch of stuff that I think amounted to less than $50 you could choose from. I'm not an exercise freak nor do I want a bunch of crap with UNMC's logo cluttering up my house. So I chose the earrings.

There's probably a limit on how high the monetary value of the reward can be, I don't know if it increases with the amount of time you've been here or not.

We can't receive monetary rewards, which is what I would prefer like everyone else.

[HoneyBBQ]

I got a 5 year pin after 6 years of service.

[Deleted]

Only in retail.  I got "Sales Star of the Month" seventeen times when I worked at Macy's.  I still have all of them in the filing cabinet.

At Parisian's, I made Sales Consultant, which is the highest level, in less than a year.  Parisian's had a luncheon for all the sales consultants and gave out plaques.  They also gave us a pen engraved with "Parisian's" and a silver-plated business card holder.  I didn't go to the luncheon because I didn't really belong.  I also made the President's Club for Instant Credits.

My teaching career has been less distinguished.    I did get a few smiley stickers on my lesson plans.

[souldoubt]

The only things I care about are my title, my salary and accomplishing the goals my boss and I discuss at review time and throughout the year.  

[Rocky Mtn Saver]

Apr 22, 2014 11:38:11 GMT -5 Phoenix84 said:

Apr 22, 2014 11:11:03 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

I got a reward for being an employee for five years. They had various products you could choose from, I picked a set of pearl earrings.

It wasn't a huge deal. I was surprised I'd been here that long already, I haven't been keeping track.

Otherwise they don't do much, at least in the area I work in. Which is fine with me I don't need public accolades, they make me uncomfortable.

I do appreciate my boss acknowledging what I do from time to time with a thank you. I work completely alone and can go DAYS without seeing another person except in the hallway. Telling myself "you get a paycheck" only serves as motivation for so long.  I do need/want occasional feedback.  My boss letting me know he's aware of what I do pumps me up when I get into a work slump.

Interesting, aren't you a state employee?  I thought gifts like pearl earings were forbidden, at least in the federal government they are.

For length of service awards, we get a pin and a certificate at 10 years, and (I think) every five years after that.  I will have been with the feds for seven years as of October.

I work for the State and we get a choice of several gifts at 5-year intervals.  I think they all have our names engraved on them, but there is a small variety.  No jewelry, though, at least in what I was given to choose from. 

[sheilaincali]

Apr 22, 2014 11:05:03 GMT -5 Phoenix84 said:

How important is recognition/awards at work for you?  Have you ever received any awards or other public recognition at work, and what form did it take?

Does your employer give out awards frequently, rarely, or not at all?

Not at all.  I have been harassing the Bossman about that for years.  I tell him "the guys would really appreciate an occasional pat on the shoulder from you".  And he just looks at me like I'm speaking a foreign language.  He has never understood the need for feedback and that.  He just assumes that people will do the job they were hired to do and that should be that.  I'd love for some occasional feedback so I would know if I was a valued employee or a drain on company resources.  I figure so long as he isn't yelling I haven't screwed up too bad.

DH's employer doesn't give out a lot of physical awards but they are pretty open with the positive praise and things like that.  If a contract gives them swag (company sweatshirt or coat, tickets, etc.) upper management always passes them on to the guys in the field doing the work.  DH has had a handful of vice presidents stop by his office in the past week or two to tell him what a great job he's doing and that they are happy to have him up at HQ (recent promotion).

The USAF was big on awards and crap like that.  I have a folder full of letters of appreciation and plaques and things.  Honestly they mean next to nothing to me but they made someone feel benevolent to give them to me so I've kept them.  They won't survive this next round of decluttering.   

[giramomma]

I work for the state. My lawmakers and other taxpayers tell me that I should not be recognized or rewarded. They tell me I should be thankful for getting paid. Because, I really don't earn my own money. It's the taxpayer's money. (Technically, though, the taxpayers only provide for 25% of my salary.)

I got a pin at 5 years, and that's when times were *good.*

I just started my 10th year in my current position. Been here for 12, though.

I'm lucky in that my bosses have given me verbal feedback, so I know I'm not a drain. That's enough for me.

[Phoenix84]

I have gotten a few cash awards, but it was kind of weird, I got no feedback on how or why I got them.

I never really get much feedback on how good or bad a job I'm doing.  I don't really need public accolades, but an occasional "thank you" does go a long way.  It was kind of frustrating when I took on and completed a major licensing project that saved the government over $20k a year, and never even got a "thank you" or any acknowledgement that I did anything at all.

But in general, I figure as long as they keep paying me and aren't on my case about something I must be doing a good job.

[Regis]

I like for the owners to recognize the value I have to the company.  I couldn't care less if they say it publicly or not.  Awards?  I've gotten my fair share of bonuses but again, I don't care that they give it to me privately without a bunch of fanfare in front of the other employees of the company.

[midwestlily]

In LA in 1994, I got a free lunch (Panda Express) and, later, a $100 gift card for showing up at work on the day of the Northridge earthquake.  Because I was so dedicated!

No, what actually happened was that, a few hours after the quake hit, my cable TV stopped working (it had been fine up to that point).  I only lived 5 miles from the office, so I decided to drive over there and watch the coverage on the rabbit ears TV in the IT department.  If they thought I was devoted to my job, so much the better.

[midjd]

We have an annual Employee Recognition Ceremony, but it's more to recognize years of service than any big accomplishments. I don't have much of an opinion either way (I will be much happier to vest in the pension at 10 years vs. getting a plaque!)

In March, the verdict came out on a trial my boss and I did late last year... since I was out on maternity leave when the last motion was filed, my name didn't end up on the final order. My boss sent the clerk an email (ccing me) asking him to correct it, and said that she knew very few women who could try a case like that while 9 months pregnant, and wanted me to get the recognition I deserved. I appreciated the email much more than having my name on the top of a Supreme Court order (although that was nice, too )

[sesfw]

I do appreciate my boss acknowledging what I do from time to time with a thank you.

This is all I need.  I discovered a long time ago that public pats on back can have a very sharp knife attached.  I try to stay away from 'winning' an award.

I don't even like annual reviews.  I have both given reviews and gotten them.  Not my thing.  Some people love the pomp of awards so I let them have all of mine.

[Phoenix84]

Apr 22, 2014 11:31:07 GMT -5 justme said:

I earned two awards last year. $100 each. It was nice to be recognized, but the amount was a bit of whoop-de-doo. The amount used to be higher, but it was one of several things the cut back on. I could see it for the team awards (could be a lot of people), but the only give out 4 individual awards a year. Making them $500 or $1000 isn't a large number compared to other expenses in this company.

They only give out 4 awards in the whole company and you got not only one, but two?

You must be a real billy badass at work.

[justme]

Apr 22, 2014 15:25:54 GMT -5 Phoenix84 said:

Apr 22, 2014 11:31:07 GMT -5 justme said:

I earned two awards last year. $100 each. It was nice to be recognized, but the amount was a bit of whoop-de-doo. The amount used to be higher, but it was one of several things the cut back on. I could see it for the team awards (could be a lot of people), but the only give out 4 individual awards a year. Making them $500 or $1000 isn't a large number compared to other expenses in this company.

They only give out 4 awards in the whole company and you got not only one, but two?

You must be a real billy badass at work.

They give out 4 individuals (got one), 4 team awards (got one), and 4 manager/lead awards. So Individual of the quarter, team of the quarter, and manager/lead of the quarter for the 4 quarters. But yes, I was told that doesn't happen very often.

So the only wildcard is the team awards which could have any number of people on it (though I think the largest I've seen is around 8). So I could see $100 for the team award, but the other two are only 8 people combined - $8k isn't going to break the bank of a company with millions in revenue and a profit.

[Cookies Galore]

This upcoming Sunday is my five year anniversay. I will get $100 in my pay on thursday ($100 bonus for every five years, so $200 for 10 years and so on), and I've already earmarked that for the liquor store. I also got a catalog of gifts today. I will also be 100% vested in the pension this year.

At six years I get my fourth week of vacation. Hell yeah!

We have a spot recognition program where you can get letters of thanks, silly little ebuttons (I laugh at them), and earn points to put towards a gift of your choice.

[muttleynfelix]

I get an atta girls from my boss about once a month or so. It is nice to feel appreciated.  I've had a contractor tell me good job a couple times and tell my boss that my plans rock. That made me feel real good, that I do a good job.  And an architect tell me good job (client). We don't put our projects up for awards and it isn't like our company has awards with only 7 people.  The boss will buy us lunch about once a month.  That is nice. 

[movingforward]

I work for a small company so we don't really do awards.  I have received several unexpected bonuses though which is great!  Like Zib said just show me the money .  That is reward enough for me.  I also get a lot of good job, etc. from the Board of Trustees so I feel very appreciated in my current position.  It is interesting reporting to a board because I have 14 bosses (well, I guess the executive board is really who evaluates me and determines raises and bonuses so just 5 REAL bosses).

[Ombud]

I got a pearl bracelet at my 20 yr anniversary & a plaque when I was Employee of the Year for the county (only 1... they made a big deal about it & I got an extra day off with pay). Last employer celebrated every 5 yrs so it meant nothing

[raeoflyte]

In 2007 they sent me to Vegas because of how hard I worked through a hellish company buy out.  I was the by far the lowest title'd person to go which was kind of neat since that stuff is usually reserved for big wigs.  

My new office works hard on this type of stuff.  I've received 3 gift cards in the last couple months (2 in the $40-$50 range and 1 $150) for well rated customer surveys, a technical skills quiz, and covering for the boss' when they were on the last awards trip.  I'm hoping to qualify for next years awards trip but that's based on production, although even if I win it I'll probably give it away to someone else.  I'm not leaving the continental US when I have little kids at home.   

[sarcasticgirl]

We don't have awards... Recognition comes through reviews, raises and bonuses.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using proboards

[tskeeter]

Most of the places I worked didn't do much for awards outside of the 5 and 10 year survivor awards and performance bonuses.

I did get a trophy once.  Which was awarded in front of my peers.  All I had to do was work 40 hours a week on a project in addition to my full time job.  For about a year and a half.  What kind of sucked is that the person who said "let's have an award" and "it should be a trophy" also got the same award.  I think I put in a lot more effort and my project yielded a lot more return to the company.  So, to give someone who worked on a project for maybe 10 hours the same award as someone who worked about 3,000 hours of overtime and delivered millions of dollars in savings kind of devalued the award.  For me, it turned out to be more of a dis-incentive than an incentive.  

[Deleted]

My job doesn't do awards or anything similar, at least not at my location. They use to do small things like drawings for being accident free or bar-b-q hamburger and hot dogs  once a year and our supervisors could give us "money" we could use to "buy" something with our company logo from the "store". Most of the stuff I "bought" is long gone except a warm jacket I still wear to work when the weather is cool. I like cold hard cash as much as the next person, but I don't think that's allowed. A simple, sincere "thank you" works for me when I've gone over and beyond to get it done. Just having your efforts acknowledged with words is nice.

[lynnerself]

We get lots of little perks, but not much money and no bonus.
There is the Employee of the Month, the "caught doing something good" cards, and the You rock award (I don't quite get this one?).
Employee of the month is like $50 and a prime parking space.
At 5 year intervals we get a little cash $50, $100, $150 etc.
Also at 5 and at 15 year we get a yearly paid "personal day"

So, a lot of attempts at morale building without spending much money.