Why celebrate an employee’s milestone or any achievement? Isn’t the achievement celebration enough? As individuals, we spend 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, in the office working and doing our best to become even better at what we do. By doing so, we’re pursuing the possibility of moving up the ladder and going for a higher and better-paid position. Yet, quite a lot of employees are finding it hard to motivate themselves for any sort of pursuit, professional or personal.
When addressed about the issue, many employees suggest that there’s no constructive or positive response from superiors and the feedback seems to be dull and plain. And though we understand how a working environment is more about professionalism than it is about creating bonds and relationships, any form of recognition flatters and often gives you the needed confidence you’ve been missing. Let’s wind back a few years. While in preschool or elementary school, small achievements have been celebrated with a rating system in the form of stars (sometimes other shapes). And while behaving correctly and doing everything right, you’d get a little star on the board as a token symbolizing your hard work. It was never about the value of the star itself, as it doesn’t have any, but rather what it stands for! As grown-ups, not much has changed, and those little moments of recognition still mean something to us.
While running a business and company, we’ll have to take a more human stance, looking at our employees not as simple tools or means to an end but as living and breathing parts of the company. And so, celebrating employee milestones and achievements is a cornerstone of a positive workplace culture. Corporate gifts serve as a tangible expression of appreciation, fostering loyalty, morale, and a sense of belonging. But how to do it? In the text below we’ll demonstrate a simple and comprehensive guide to using corporate gifts as a way to make every win a memorable achievement.
Creating the Right Environment
Though we’ve given a few hints on why you might consider gifting your employees to celebrate their achievements, now we’ll take the chance to truly talk about how creating a positive working environment affects your employee’s motivation and their work ethics. It might seem like a generic statement, but work should not be just about work. If anything, work is all about your employees and how they feel, perceive, and (re)act around the workplace. With gifts, you’ll show a clear sign of appreciation for their hard work and dedication, giving them the right motivation to keep pursuing their professional goals within the workplace.
Choosing the Right Gift
Now comes the tricky part of the whole ordeal: choosing the right gift. As we said at the beginning, we’ll try to give you a comprehensive and easy-to-follow guide on how to do it. The key word in choosing the right gift is personalization. The best way to send a message to the employee receiving the gift is the time and effort put into making it something they’d like and want.
Think of Their Preferences
To make the gift appropriate for the person, you’ll have to think of their preferences and interests. A simple talk with the HR department might give you a good insight into their hobbies and personal interests, or if it’s a smaller company, you probably vaguely know what they like, making it a lot easier to narrow down the right choices. If an employee enjoys hiking, a high-quality water bottle or a gift card to an outdoor gear store might be more appreciated than a generic mug. The point is to keep it simple and stick to one particular interest of theirs. Whether it’s a good read or something practical they can use on an everyday basis, make sure it’s something they’ll be glad to receive.
Celebrating the Achievement
Another interesting idea when it comes to personalization is to symbolically celebrate that specific achievement; therefore, the gift itself should resonate with that idea. Let’s say someone has completed a major project; a framed certificate of appreciation paired with a gift that acknowledges their contribution is a great and easy idea. If you’re lacking the time, many different agencies and companies are offering their services, and they usually specialize in making corporate gift baskets, especially when you have other obligations to tend to. They’ll ask you about the preferences, the event, and what’s being celebrated and they’ll successfully craft the perfect gift basket incorporating all the elements needed. Though it might seem a bit less genuine, you’ll find it best as it often is easier, and it looks more professional.
What About Culture
A gift that resonates with the local culture of the community or the cultural background of the employee is also something that you might consider when crafting the gift. You’ll also have to be careful, as some of the employees might find certain themes and motives inappropriate, but a locally crafted item or something associated with their heritage can deepen the emotional value of the gesture. It stands for something, and so they’ll appreciate it.
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Gift that Equals Values
Among all the other things we’ve talked about, don’t forget that the gift itself should reflect the company’s values. The organization’s ethos should be incorporated into the gift itself. Let’s say you’re a green company putting great emphasis on sustainability and environmental consciousness; naturally, your gift should reflect these values and elements and can be made from sustainable or recycled materials that are friendly to the surroundings. It reinforces your company’s identity, reminds your employees what the company stands for, and gives them also the needed motivation to keep that mindset. If you’re a big tech company, maybe you’d include certain elements that show your dedication to cybersecurity and safety, among other things. If it’s a family company, you’ll try to make it all about community and a sense of belonging, giving your employees a feeling of acceptance and gifting them something that shows you’ve been listening to them all these years whenever they’ve talked about certain topics. The list goes well with the above-mentioned personalization. The idea is simple: the gift should be a reminder that it came from your company.
Pick the Right Time
You’ve probably heard about the good old saying that timing is everything! There’s a reason why it prevailed the test of time, as a well-timed gift—such as a celebratory package delivered on the day of an anniversary or shortly after a major achievement—shows genuine attentiveness.
On the other hand, a delayed gift might be perceived by the worker as an afterthought, something that came to your mind out of the blue and you’ve decided to act upon. And although it’s not necessarily a bad thing, even then it shows a lack of proper interest in their achievement. So, avoid giving the gift later than you should and try to align it with a special event in their personal life, as we said, a birthday, anniversary, or wedding, as it’s a double joy for them. And last but not least, try to keep it a secret from the rest (sure, you can share it with a few trusted co-workers) as you’ll need that element of surprise to make it worth something. To achieve that, keep the circle tight and small, avoiding any “leaks” that might spoil the surprise itself.
Value over Quantity
Meaning never came from extravaganza, and value never came from quantity; rather, it’s the quality that counts. When making the perfect corporate gift to show appreciation and celebrate the achievements of your employees, it all comes down to making the perfect balance between budget and quality. Most expect corporate gifts to be something valuable and expensive, often referring to the fact that companies simply “have” in excess and don’t know what to do with it. And even if that’s true, the main objective and goal of the gift is not to be a demonstration of wealth but of appreciation and thoughtfulness. And so, thoughtful and cost-effective gifts are a far better option than anything expensive or over-the-top extravagant. Think of that while trying to make the right decision.
Tech Age
The digital age gave us an opportunity to make something different, and the many options available give us a new chance to pick from a variety of different choices. Now, everything is being gifted. You can gift someone a monthly subscription to a streaming platform, a VPN, or any other website they might be interested in. Smartwatches, tablets, phones, apps, earbuds, and numerous gadgets are now all possible gifts for your employees. Especially if the gift has a utilitarian purpose and is multifunctional, it makes it perfect for everyday use and an easy-to-pick present. And so, virtual gift cards, online shout-outs, or personalized video messages can make remote employees feel equally celebrated.
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Gifts as a Team Building Event
Look at gifts as a way of building your team into a more cohesive unit; these events or celebrations of special achievements are a great way to make your whole team become a part of it and feel like a part of it. Especially if you’re making it into something a bit more party-like, with food and drinks and maybe a bit of background slow music, it can become relaxing for everyone in your workplace. It’s a nice way to get their head and thoughts away from work for a few moments, giving them a couple of minutes of peace. Plus, the initiative itself means a lot to your employees, making them appreciate the workplace more as they feel as though they mean something to the whole company and are not just replaceable parts of a bigger machine. We’re human after all, and the thing that distinguishes us from machines is the emotions we put into our work.
A Few Tricks
Now, we’ll talk about a few tricks you can use to make it a bit more personal, as these small touches put an extra emphasis on and show how your gift is supposed to truly mean something.
Handwritten Notes
No matter the gift, a heartfelt, handwritten note adds an extra layer of personalization. Expressing sincere gratitude or referencing specific contributions in the note can transform the gift into a cherished memory.
The Box Itself
Try to make it interesting by maybe using unusual shapes of boxes or maybe hiding the gift in a small box within a bigger one. That way you’ll opt for the element of surprise and make it more intriguing for the employee, as they’ll be guessing and wondering what the gift could be. Also, you can put interesting details on the box to make it more unique and rare, such as small painted details symbolizing dates that are special to the employee.
Include Family
And the whole event with all the food and drinks and special gifts that celebrate the achievement and the employee’s milestone would be nothing if there weren’t a couple of special people that mean the world to the person. It’s easy to organize it; all you need is to make a couple of phone calls, making sure you reach out to the right people who are more than happy to become a part of this special event. Partners, spouses, friends, kids, and family or other relatives should all be part of this special event. Their purpose is to show special appreciation and additional support.
While doing your best to make the workplace a special and unique place for your employees, you’ll find it hard at the beginning as it requires careful consideration and a lot of thought needs to be put into the whole idea. And though it might seem impossible at the beginning, with a bit of luck, it’s easy to achieve. Your employees will thank you and care about your company more than ever, and you’ll have in return a motivated workforce that’s more than happy to do their best to truly make it work. It’s safe to say that these corporate gifts are more than just material items; they are an investment in your workforce’s emotional and professional well-being.
