Monday, January 26, 2009

Corporate Awards, Are You Underrating Them?

Company awards are presented to employees of a company for a variety of reasons.  Sometimes people gain awards for reaching particular milestones in their career with the company, like 10 years and 20 years of service.  Other times companies give awards for reaching goals or satisfying a certain criteria.  Often at the end of a large project, after it has successfully come to fruition, a company might reward the employees responsible for the project.  Numerous companies still give awards as holiday bonuses, though this practice is dwindling with the economy.

Company awards are often some form of jewelry to commend an employee for great service, similar to a tie tack or a pin.  An employee celebrating a 20th anniversary with the company might receive a fine watch, whereas someone celebrating only 5 years receives a desk set.  Holiday bonuses might include a party and some type of present or a ham or turkey.  Many companies are giving gift cards today rather than handing out actual food products.  And then there are still a select few company bonuses that come in the fashion of cold, hard cash (or at least a bonus on the paycheck).

Although it is true that employee awards can be a positive factor in boosting a company's performance, a similar, but much overlooked method is to obtain awards for the company itself. You'll find details on this subject at the business awards site. Corporate recognition awards - in which an industry body recognizes your organization as the best in it's sector or in a particular aspect of delivery like customer service or employee development - can be a great marketing benefit. These awards can obtain favourable PR, free news coverage and attract better employees. Savvy companies are deliberately targetting awards in their sector each year as part of their formal marketing plan. Company awards are definitely worth learning more about.

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