In 2024, just 22% of employees strongly agreed that they receive the right amount of recognition for the work they do. This lack of quality recognition directly contributed to a staggering statistic: in May 2024, Gallup research found that more than half (51%) of all U.S. employees were watching for or actively seeking a new job! Fortunately, more business leaders are turning their focus towards improving their recognition programs. Here’s how custom awards can help these programs maximize their effectiveness.
The Five Pillars
To understand employee recognition best practices, it’s important to look at the Five Pillars of Recognition. They are:
- Fulfilling Expectations - The amount the employee receives makes sense.
- Authentic - It comes across as genuine and not a “checklist” item.
- Personalized - It’s tailored towards the recipient.
- Equitable - The recognition is given fairly and there aren’t any “favorites.”
- Embedded in the Culture - It’s integrated into the day-to-day and relates to the company’s values.
The Five Pillars are incredibly powerful when structuring a recognition program. In fact, Gallup and Workhuman studies show that “Those who receive recognition that fulfills at least four pillars are 12.2 times as likely to strongly agree that they are connected to their organization’s culture and 9.0 times as likely to be engaged, as compared to employees whose recognition experiences do not fulfill any of the five pillars.”
Read more about the Five Pillars here!
The Power of Custom Awards
Custom employee awards have the powerful ability to support each of the Five Pillars. This makes them a great choice for those looking to maximize the impact of their recognition program. At Dion, we take great care to design each of our custom jewelry awards to match the company’s branding, the magnitude of the award, and any functionality needs. We create pieces that are tangible reminders of the employee’s hard work, dedication, and success, as well as the company’s gratitude. Our awards are meant to be worn, shown off, and cherished.
Here are the Five Pillars again, but with custom awards in mind:
- Fulfilling Expectations - Custom awards can be scaled up or down to meet expectations. Pins and in-field add-on components are great for “on the fly” recognition, and larger items can make an impact at formal recognition events.
- Authentic - Presenting someone with a high-perceived value item, such as precious metal, that has been thoughtfully designed and presented, helps communicate the care put into the award.
- Personalized - Creativity can be unleashed with custom awards! Employee names, hours worked, miles driven, and sales numbers are just a few of the personalizations we at Dion have incorporated into our awards.
- Equitable - By creating a standard template that can be personalized to each recipient, each employee can receive the same award, but feel like it’s their own.
- Embedded in the Culture - Custom awards celebrate the employee while also creating a branded link back to the company. Custom award jewelry in particular can be worn proudly, keeping it relevant and inspiring others to achieve the same goals.
Conclusion
As we head into 2025, it’s a great time to pause, reflect, and commit to a better future. For those looking to improve employee morale and engagement in the new year, creating a robust recognition program is key. Trying to cover all Five Pillars at once can be tricky, but proper training and the power of custom awards can help launch these programs into success.
We’re your custom award jewelry experts! Getting started with Dion is easy: simply browse our gallery of past products for some inspiration, then This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. give us a call, or fill out our New Project Form for a quote!
