Baudville has been in business for almost 30 years, so we have a lot of expertise and insight to share with our customers on employee recognition! One of the most important tips we share with managers is that employee recognition programs need to be as dynamic as the employees they serve. To help you keep your programs fresh and exciting, we are constantly creating new recognition themes, gifts, and tools. Recently, we released two new recognition themes  and added items to our most popular lines of appreciation gifts.

For example, consider our proprietary recognition themes. Our themes make employee recognition programs and events easy to create. Each theme is made up of exclusive artwork and messaging that we apply to gifts and tools. Using a theme makes your appreciation more effective because the repeated message reinforces the value or behavior you’re recognizing.

Now available on Baudville.com, our two new recognition themes are ready to become a part of your recognition program. The new themes “You Rock ” and “We Appreciate You ” both have more than ten unique appreciation gifts that can be included in employee recognition programs. I know the bright colors and timely sentiments will be as popular with your team as they were with ours.

We also added new Twist Top Tumblers drinkware and lapel pins. I expect the Twist Top Tumblers to be a popular corporate gift for summer events this year!

Our artists have been busy designing new lapel pins, too! You can check out their thirty new lapel pin designs online. The new lapel pins help managers keep their employee recognition programs fresh by regularly updating the appreciation gifts and awards.

At Baudville, product innovation and design has always been a top priority. Every product is designed to the highest level of design and practicality for our customers. We want to create great looking tools and gifts, and we want them to work well for our customers.

Tell us what you think! What’s your favorite new product or theme?

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Kristy is the Vice President of Product and Merchandising at Baudville. Since joining Baudville in 2008, she has been integral in the development of the functional, innovative, and great looking products you see today. As the fearless leader of a multifaceted team of creative minds, Kristy always stays armed with her secret weapon of motivation: candy!

In the new economy, innovation can begin anywhere.  We have always embraced new concepts of innovation and creativity through our design process, but we recently had a new experience when we were contacted by Jessica Muraco, an entrepreneurial Michigan mom with an idea for new healthcare appreciation gifts.

Jessica thought we would be the perfect company to produce and distribute her stethoscope charms that had become popular gifts for nurses at local pediatrician offices and nursing conferences.

Through a collaborative process, we are excited to launch Steth-o-Charms, an exclusive line of gifts for nurses and healthcare professionals. The stethoscope charms have been developed in twelve of our most popular healthcare lapel pin designs. The charms slide easily onto stethoscope ear tubes and an elastic backing keeps charms securely in place.

Steth-o-Charms are great gifts for nurses and doctors who can use them for added flair and a personal touch on their stethoscopes. The charms allow healthcare professionals to easily identify individual stethoscopes in a busy office, start conversations with patients, and provide a welcome distraction to young patients.

The design for Steth-o-Charms originated out of Jessica‘s experience in the dental field and her desire to stay connected to the healthcare industry as a stay-at-home mom. By partnering with Baudville, Jessica is able to increase Steth-o-Charms’ market exposure while lowering costs.

Jessica's original goal was to use Baudville’s healthcare lapel pin designs as stethoscope charms, and now Steth-o-Charms are going to be on a nationally distributed catalog cover!

Steth-o-Charms make great gifts for nurses or doctors during National Nurses Week. Department managers can purchase a charm for every member of their team as part of the celebration. We also recommend using them as part of a regular employee recognition program. Steth-o-Charms are sold for $8.95 each and are available for sale on the Baudville website.

Shop Steth-o-Charms today and get them in time for National Nurses Week!

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Kristy is the Vice President of Product and Merchandising at Baudville. Since joining Baudville in 2008, she has been integral in the development of the functional, innovative, and great looking products you see today. As the fearless leader of a multifaceted team of creative minds, Kristy always stays armed with her secret weapon of motivation: candy!

Back in 1987, fresh out of college and full of hope for a long and happy career, I began my job search. Looking for the perfect job where I could utilize my education and make a mark on the world, I was thrilled when I landed a position as a customer service representative. I remember my first day like it was yesterday. The owner greeted me with his three “rules” of the job, which were very simple:

1. Pick up the phone by the third ring.
2. Smile when you answer the phone.
3. Know something personal about every one of your customers.
 
At that time, being a somewhat over-confident 24 year old, I thought, “Is that the best you can come up with?” But, over time, I realized how effective his three rules were.

For those of you in the customer service industry, you know how hard it is to answer the phone every time it rings - let alone with a smile! But, I encourage you to try it. When you start off every call with a positive mindset, the conversation just naturally goes better. As far as getting to know your customers…that was the best rule ever. Almost 25 years later, many of those customers have become lifelong friends and the others: well, they just made that call a bit more interesting.
 
Whether you are starting off your career working in a call center, or have made a career out of serving customers, one thing is for sure: interacting with people from all walks of life can be a wonderful experience. It taught me that that behind every business transaction is an opportunity to make someone’s day…even mine!

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Kristy is the Vice President of Product and Merchandising at Baudville. Since joining Baudville in 2008, she has been integral in the development of the functional, innovative, and great looking products you see today. As the fearless leader of a multifaceted team of creative minds, Kristy always stays armed with her secret weapon of motivation: candy!

There is nothing like a Michigan summer to remind you of what a great state this is. The long summer days have a way of making up for all those long, cold, and snowy winter days. Unfortunately, even with our beautiful weather, this summer has had a symbolic cloud hovering daily over many of my friends and professional associates. As I am sure all of you are aware, Michigan has been one of the states most impacted by the economic crisis, and I personally know too many highly skilled people who are looking for work.
 
Having once been in similar circumstances, I’ve now made it a personal goal to connect regularly with the people I know who are back in the job market. What I’ve found to be so interesting in talking with them is that they seem to have settled into a new perspective on job hunting. While yes, there is imminent fear about financial “peace of mind”, many of them are so disillusioned by Corporate America and how disposable they were, that they appear to be more on a soul search than a job search.
 
When I ask them what they are looking for, they unanimously reply that they want to be valued and have their work matter. They don’t care what their title is, they just want to be paid fairly and be able to impact the success of the organization.
 
My question is: when the tides turn, and the job gates open, what kind of influence will this new group of hires have on the organizations where they land?

With new-found grace and appreciation for their work and the people around them, my bet is it will be profound. People with this type of perspective will end up leading an organization, managing teams, or simply contributing to a team—and bringing with them the groundwork for a “new and improved” point of view for corporations; one that puts a higher value on individual contributions, where managers and employees will recognize and be recognized for the little things.
 
I, for one, can’t wait to see how all my great friends and associates introduce the act of recognition and appreciation to their future employers! 

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Kristy is the Vice President of Product and Merchandising at Baudville. Since joining Baudville a little over a year ago, she has been integral in the development of the functional, innovative, and great looking products you see today. As the fearless leader of a multifaceted team of creative minds, Kristy always stays armed with her secret weapon of motivation: candy!