I just returned from the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) Education Forum and Annual Meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It’s a rare thing to meet so many people passionate about their profession and dedicated to advancing it in today’s workplaces, but that’s exactly what I found at the conference.

It was Baudville’s first time as an exhibitor at the conference, and we received a very warm welcome! Attendees continually thanked us for being a part of their conference. How nice is that?

We talked to attendees about the whole kit and caboodle Baudville has to offer. It’s all about recognizing little things every day in personal and meaningful ways. Attendees were excited about our themes and clever sayings, but the sentiment we heard most often was “I should show this to my boss.”

When we get into the daily grind, it’s easy to let appreciation fall by the wayside – even appreciation for our most valued peers. The greatest mistake we can make is convincing ourselves that recognizing them once a year on their “official recognition holiday” is adequate. Or worse, adopting the archaic mentality that a paycheck is recognition enough (I shudder at the thought).

No chance. Putting off recognition of administrative professionals until their day in April will likely gain you one thing: an open position to recruit for. Recognition must be done immediately after the fact to make an impression on an individual. So don’t wait. Get the tools and training you need to make recognition a part of your daily routine, and keep passionate professionals happily working within your organization. 

Don't let your staff feel like Milton. Recognize them more than once a year.

This blog entry defines Twitter vocabulary for all of those still unfamiliar with Twitter

(*twitterverse = the body or community of Twitter users)

That’s right, Baudville is on Twitter. While our follower numbers are modest, we like to think our tweets (posts we make under our account) reach far and wide to our tweeps (friends on Twitter) around the world. We’ve recently contributed a new hashtag (trending topic on Twitter) to a majority of our posts, #positivemojo.

We pride ourselves on being the office of positive mojo at Baudville headquarters in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Daily recognition is our mission, and we strive to create a great working environment within our own walls. We carry out this mission in the recognition tools and products we design to bring positive mojo to our customers and our great customer service (talk to a real person when you call, for real).

Now we’re spreading positive mojo throughout Twitter! We’ll be using the positive mojo hashtag (#positivemojo) on posts that recognize someone or offer fun and humor for the workplace. Once you’ve received positive mojo, retweet it (a repeat of someone’s post)!

Here’s an example of a worthy #positivemojo retweet:

thisisjohnny* my officemate just got a performance award; told him it's the first of many for rm 112. we're going to make this place look like a dr office

( *This is an example of one of the many user names you'll find on Twitter.)

And here’s an example of a company in need of some serious #positivemojo. We hope this doesn’t sound like your organization:

beneubanks I used to work for a company that had an annual employee appreciation. They ignored us the rest of the year!

When it comes to spreading positive mojo on Twitter, the greatest challenge will be keeping it under 140 characters! Become a follower of Baudville, and watch the positive mojo grow!

Yesterday, readers received Recognition at Work, our new monthly e-newsletter, for the first time. Since Baudville recently unveiled a new look and over 250 new day-to-day recognition products, it seemed only right that our monthly newsletter get a facelift, too! Our new newsletter will continue to provide great employee recognition ideas, best practices and news with a new emphasis on day-to-day recognition. 

The following is an excerpt from our new newsletter. To read the complete issue and past newsletters full of employee recognition ideas, visit our Recognition Resource Center Newsletter Archive. The July issue is titled “Fire Up the Troops.” To receive Recognition at Work, simply submit your email address at www.baudville.com.

The strategy behind the “new Baudville” and our new products was fueled by the changing workplace. With multiple generations, new technology and the economy all shaping the way we work, we saw a need for recognition that’s easy and affordable.

After all, if you believe motivation and engagement are important to an organization’s success, you know they’re more important now than ever. Especially when budgets are tight, companies are looking for affordable ways to get their troops fired up and boost the bottom line at the same time. We’ve got some great employee recongiton ideas to help you do exactly that.

Ways to Fire Up

- One of the most motivating ways to give recognition is through a personal hand written note. We designed a majority of our new products around this concept. All we had to do was walk around Baudville and see the notes posted all over desks to know how true it is!

- Equip managers with recognition tools that can quickly and easily be applied to say “Thanks” or “Great Job.” See the Best Practices section of this issue for details about our new Recognition Binder System which puts over 100 recognition tools at the finger tips of your managers.

- Don’t limit the responsibility of recognition only to managers. Give the whole team an overview of day-to-day recognition, the genuine everyday expressions of appreciation given to reinforce and reward positive behaviors. Equip the entire team with the tools to praise.

- Get people excited about recognition by recognizing the praise they’re giving. When a manager or a team empties their Kudos Kit, celebrate! Reward daily recognition participation by giving casual days, treats in the break room or creating a festive atmosphere with balloons. Your people will appreciate the small things, and you’ll notice they can make a big difference.

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The other night I was getting a pedicure at the local cosmetology institute and having a conversation with my assigned student about “pursuing your dream.” She told me that her husband is currently living his dream as a guitarist in a rock band, and that she is working full time during the day and taking cosmetology classes at night to follow her own aspirations. I told her that I, too, had finally landed my dream job—as a copywriter for Baudville.

I love explaining to people what Baudville does. If they haven’t experienced recognition in their jobs, they are often somewhat mystified. It’s true, that while we do have a huge customer base, there are still many companies that do not practice any form of employee recognition. In fact, the past two companies I worked for did not (note: I’m not working there anymore!).

Our conversation led to her day job, which she explained once had a very extravagant year-end celebration, but followed the next year with a much more modest version. The year after that, they eliminated the party altogether and made a small donation to a charity instead. We both agreed that the charitable donation was a nice gesture, but because of past events, it was a bit de-motivating to the employees.

At this point, I couldn’t stop myself from making my Baudville pitch. It went something like this:

You know, if your company practiced employee recognition, especially day-to-day recognition, then big year-end celebrations—or lack thereof during tight economic times—wouldn’t be the centerpiece of employee motivation. Giving genuine expressions of appreciation at regular intervals is a proven way to encourage and, more importantly, retain key staff (remember those other companies I worked for?). Big celebrations become less important, and less likely to be missed if budget constraints put the kibosh on them.

I love it when a conversation plays right into my hands.

I think we both learned something really important that night; plus my toes look fabulous!

Very. All it takes is one look at the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics American Time Use Survey to see that work and work related activities dominate our time. If we spend so much time at work, shouldn’t it be enjoyable?

In his recent Examiner.com article, Robert Morris expressed his opinion that work is often too tedious and co-workers so insufferable that work cannot always be pleasant.

We would suggest otherwise. Bring some positive mojo into the office to spice up the culture and add a little fun to your day. Even the most boring tasks can be fun when your teammates are cheering you on and express their appreciation for a job well done.

We always strive for fun at Baudville. This past Monday, our new catalog with over 250 new products began arriving in customer inboxes. To pump up the company about this exciting milestone, a team of dedicated employees arrived super early at work – on a MONDAY, no less – and transformed the parking lot with colorful and festive chalk art.

If that’s not fun at work, then we don’t know what is.

The Baudville Chalk Artists pose in front of some of their work.

We’ve all seen them. The Employee of the Month plaques hung with pride for all to see in retail stores, restaurants and offices alike. The plaque is displayed to demonstrate the priority the organization places on its people. After all, people are our greatest assets.

But what message does it send when that plaque is hanging empty and covered in dust? A recent article by Pam Sievers explored this topic.

What I enjoyed most about Sievers take on the neglected program was the strategy she outlined for having employee recognition at all:

“The most important reason is to "align behaviors with the goals making your organization successful". Yes, you are recognizing employees who are helping the organization meet their goals.”

Work days now are more jam-packed and go by faster than ever before; employees have more work, more pressure and less time. As a result, recognition often falls by the wayside. Plus, when employees are cramming so much into one day, how can managers properly recognize their contributions to company goals when a program only allows for one award once a month?

Infrequent recognition won’t reinforce the behaviors you see occurring on a daily basis, and it’s hard to maintain momentum behind a program that only gets publicized once a month. Supporting a monthly program with a daily recognition program can keep energy going around recognition and prevent dust from collecting too thickly.

All it takes is a small hand written note or a token of appreciation. It doesn't have to be anything big. Fun certificates are another great way to communicate with employees: “What you’re doing matters, and you’re doing a great job.”

Today, recognition is more than just a pat on the back. It’s a means of giving feedback to employees about the job they’re doing. Now that’s something to recognize.

We’re back, and SHRM 2009 has officially come to a close! The entire team feels the show was a complete success. We could not have received more positive feedback from attendees about our new products and marketing. Here are a few highlights:

Our delicious hook on Sunday night drew attendees to our booth with the sweet smell of chocolate, white almond and butter cream. The gourmet cupcakes were a huge hit among the attendees! In fact, they were so popular that no one on the Baudville team had a chance to sample them! All 500 cupcakes were devoured in a mere 40 minutes. Those HR professionals are hungry people!

We’ve always known our customers to be Stupendous people, and now they have the tote bag to prove it! Our “I’m with Stupendous” bags generated quite a buzz around the tradeshow floor for their high quality material and witty line. The bag is one of 25 brand new products in our Exclamations theme. If you like the bag, you’ll love our Pocket Praise cards and other themed gifts.

Our sassy t-shirts were popular among attendees. Which saying is your favorite? Write us a comment with your pick. Any new ideas? Let us know!

1. My boss thinks I’m kind of a big deal.
2. File me under fantastic.
3. Does my positive mojo go with these shoes?
4. Awesome is my favorite accessory.
5. Medium t-shirt, x-large super star.
6. I’ve got a serious case of the positives.

Our favorite part of the conference was the positive feedback from attendees about our new products. Throughout the development process, our excitement for the new products has grown. It was thrilling to hear attendees began to echo our sentiments of praise for the new designs, sentiments and products. Attendees found the new products to be cute, clever affordable and easy to use. We hope they’ll soon start using the new products and put day-to-day recognition to work for their organizations.

A big thank you to everyone who visited the Baudville booth and experienced the place for daily recognition. We hope you’re as excited about the new Baudville and our new products as we are! Remember our launch has only just begun – the first batch of new catalogs hit mailboxes July 13th!