Year end award ceremony and office holiday party planning are in full swing this time of year! To help your events go as smoothly as possible – and to bring some cheer to the office – download these resources for free from our Recognition Resource Center.

 

 

Holiday Print & Posts – Our recognition print and posts are one of our most popular downloads, and our holiday edition is brand new! Post these fun sayings on your co-workers’ desks or attach to a small holiday gift for a laugh and a cheer that will warm the office…even if you’re in Michigan!

Sample Award Titles – Find the right title for your award certificate or award trophy with this helpful PDF! This resource can also provide the right amount of inspiration to fuel your creative juices, too.

Award Presentation Guide – Your award presentation speech is the most important element of the award presentation. Follow our guide and practice – a lot! – for a truly memorable presentation everyone will remember.

Employee Event Planning Checklist – Even a small office holiday party takes a lot of planning and coordination! Don’t miss a single detail by following this helpful checklist. Fill-in-the blank questions make you think of all the details.

Priceless Motivation e-book – Prepare for the New Year with a little recognition education. Download our ebook and read up on recognition tips, techniques and strategies!

Award trophies are very popular in the fourth quarter as organizations prepare to recognize their top performers from the year. If you haven’t ordered an award trophy before, you can easily be overwhelmed by all the options. Be prepared with the answers to these four questions to navigate the award trophy ordering process with ease:

1. What type of trophy is appropriate for the situation?
The material and design of the trophy should complement the prestige of the award. Is this trophy for the top honors at your organization? Then you should present a gleaming crystal trophy or metal trophy . Browse our award trophy collection for the perfect trophy for both your situation and your budget.

2. What do you want the trophy to say?
An award trophy communicates achievement, prestige and honor. The trophy verse is very important to expressing specific information about your award. Baudville has pre-written award verses to recognize a variety of occasions:

- Above & Beyond
- Achievement
- Excellence
- Making the Difference
- Shining Star

Can’t find a verse that sounds just right? Write your own award trophy verse, and we’ll place it on the trophy of your choice.

3. Do you need custom engraving?
Award trophies typically allow you to select a verse and personalize the trophy with a few lines of personalization. This is where you add the recipient’s name, the date and name of your organization. However, you may also want to include your logo. This requires custom engraving and a short proof process.

Don’t worry! Baudville still engraves and ships same day!

4. When do you need the trophy?
Award trophies are personalized for each recipient through an engraving process. This also includes the set up of design files by our graphic artists and requires your approval. If you forget to approve the personalization or the email gets lost in your inbox, your order could fall behind. Have a firm due date in mind when you order your award trophies, and we will make sure they arrive on time!

Now that you’ve ordered your award trophy, prepare for the award presentation! Review our Award Presentation video and blog article to ensure a stellar award ceremony.

Thank you for joining me at today's Recognition TV webisode to talk about year end awards and recognition! You can watch the complete recorded version on Baudville.com or Baudville’s Facebook page. Several of my tips, ideas and best practices are below, but I recommend you watch the entire video (it’s only about 15 minutes!) to catch everything.

Watch the Recognition TV websiode here:

At Baudville, we advocate for organizations to practice day-to-day recognition, the every day expressions of appreciation that reinforce and reward desired behaviors. Day-to-day recognition makes recognition on-going and accessible to everyone, contributing to a more positive work environment and better results.

We also teach our customers that recognition holidays and certain times of year deserve special recognition, too. The end of the year is an important time for recognition. Recognizing individual accomplishments from the year improves loyalty, dedication and commitment in your star performers, and team recognition improves camaraderie and belongingness, strengthening team member connections.

So how will you recognize your staff this year? There are many reasons to recognize at the end of the year. Some of the most popular awards:
 Perfect attendance
 Top sales
 Team awards
 Exceeding goals
 Employee of the year (nominated by managers)
 Manager of the year (nominated by employees)

Celebrating Year End Recognition

Once you’ve determined what you will recognize, it’s time to turn your attention to how you will celebrate. Before you begin planning, determine your budget and the size of your celebration. I have three suggestions for year end recognition celebrations that can be adjusted to fit the scope of your party.

Formal Award Ceremony
The most common form of recognition at the end of the year is a formal award ceremony. These events typically occur in the evening and allow employees to bring a guest for dinner and entertainment. The most important part of this event, however, is the award presentation.

For memorable and effective recognition, recognize your milestone service anniversaries, and take time to give a special thank you to the spouses and guests for their support of your valued employees at your event.

If you’re presenting formal awards, use our Award Presentation Guide to collect all the information you need for a memorable presentation. Be sure you have the trophy or award certificate ready to hand out at the event, too. Your presentation won’t have the same impact if you have to give the trophy to the recipient at a later time.

For more award presentation tips and ideas, watch Kurt's Recognition TV webisode on Award Presentations and review these blog posts.

Informal Office Party
If a formal award ceremony isn’t in your budget, you can host a very nice event at your office. The important part of year end recognition is getting the team together and presenting public recognition. You don’t need a ballroom for that!

Many offices close for an afternoon and hold a holiday lunch for their team. You can have lunch catered or throw a potluck. Use a theme to make this event just as special as a formal award ceremony. Download our Employee Event Planning Checklist to remember all the little details that go into a great event.

You can have a little more fun with an informal party by encouraging employees to wear tacky sweaters or hosting a white elephant exchange. Since you’re not throwing an extravagant affair, plan to give each employee a small gift as a token of your appreciation.

I recommend having gift bags prepared ahead of time, one for each guest. Some ideas of items you can include in your gift bag:
 Holiday greeting card signed by the President
 Chocolates or a tasty treat
 Travel mug and cocoa
 Note Cube & Pen Gift Set

Personal Team Recognition
Your organization may not have a party or a gathering for the entire team, but you can still make your team feel appreciated. Managers can recognize their employees at their own small gathering or even a team meeting.

When you’re recognizing your team, I recommend you do something small and personal for each individual. For example, have an item engraved with the individual’s name and the year, or present a unique Character Pin as an award to each person.

Our Spinner Ornaments are very popular for year end recognition, too. Or choose one of our personalized gifts, and add a character story for each recipient. Award certificates are an affordable option, and you can use create award titles to make the awards fun. Download our Sample Employee Recognition Award Titles for ideas.

Year end awards and recognition can be as creative and fun as you make it. What are some of your favorite year end recognition traditions?

Next week is Thanksgiving, a day we set aside to say thank you. Naturally, we love this holiday at Baudville! We encourage people to thank one another all year, and on Thanksgiving we know that “thank you’s” are happening all over!

Don’t forget to say thank you at work, too. There are lots of ways you can express your thankfulness to your employees, co-workers and managers.

1. Write a handwritten thank you note. The best way to express your appreciation is through words. In the form of a handwritten note, your words of kindness can be kept and treasured for years.

2. Bring in a treat. Let your co-workers know that they sweeten your day by bringing in a small treat to share. Be sure to write an email or post a sign along with your treat to let everyone know how thankful you are for them.

3. Team building activity. Get your team up and away from their desks by arranging a team building activity or something fun to thank them for their hard work and dedication. You can organize a team potluck or lunch or play a trivia game.                                                                                  

4. Give a small gift. Is there someone at your organization who really makes life easier for you? Give that person a small gift as a token of your appreciation.

5. Send an ePraise. There are so many ways to say thank you, you can send a different one to every person you know! Send an ePraise today!

---------------------

Cori is Baudville's in-house Recognitionista (she's officially a Certified Recognition Professional, too)  and a member of the Millennial generation. Get her employee recognition tips and special discounts by liking Baudville on Facebook.

Recognizing top performers can have many benefits for business 

As the end of the fourth quarter approaches, companies are planning office parties and year end award ceremonies. These events are crucial cultural and motivational events for employees, says Baudville , the leading innovator in day-to-day recognition and award solutions for the workplace.

“Recognizing teams and top performers can improve employee engagement, morale and retention,” explains Baudville President and CEO, Brad Darooge. “It’s vital to acknowledge the efforts and success of your staff if you want them to remain engaged and committed to both their work and the company.”

To help companies recognize employees at the end of the year, Baudville added 70 new trophies to its trophy collection. The trophies are sold on Baudville’s website and through a special trophy catalog that will be delivered to customers this week. Baudville offers several unique services to customers that year end trophy awards easy:

 Engrave and Ship Same Day. Customers often order trophies on tight deadlines, so Baudville makes a fast turn around their primary goal. Trophies are engraved and shipped the same day they are approved.

 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. If customers are dissatisfied with their order, they can return it within 30 days.

 Free Logo Engraving. Companies can add their custom logo for free to any engraved item with a minimum purchase.

 Exclusive Trophy Designs. Baudville offers several unique designs that were created at their Grand Rapids headquarters. These trophies are sold exclusively by Baudville.

“Year end office parties and award ceremonies can be incredibly meaningful to employees,” says Darooge. “We want to help employers and organizations make the most positive impression possible during these events with quality awards and superior customer service.”

The recognition experts at Baudville have also put together their favorite resources on creating and giving memorable year end awards. The tips and ideas are available at a special landing page, Baudville.com/Awards.