Recognizing companies that went above and beyond.
See the specifics of each winner's efforts and results—plus view our honorable mentions!
See the specifics of each winner's efforts and results—plus view our honorable mentions!
Best Employee Engagement
Best Global Strategy
Best Offline Strategy
Best Change Management
Best Recognition Strategy
Select the desired category below, review the requirements, and apply with our simple form. Applicants can select multiple categories to submit. Please consider applying even if not every requirement is met for the selected categories. **Please be sure to substantiate your story with as much qualitative AND quantitative evidence to provide your organization the best chance of success.
The Recognize Awards celebrate the achievements of organizations that have seen incredible success with rewards and recognition—and the impact it’s had on their employees. Winners will be celebrated in-person at the 2024 Recognize Summit in Park City, Utah.
5 unique categories highlight a wide array of achievements across every industry. Multiple category submissions are encouraged!
Managing change can be a challenge in any case, but perhaps no more challenging than when introducing something new and asking employees to buy in. The Best Change Management award highlights teams that facilitated this change effectively, with clear communication, and with no impact on productivity or morale.
Demonstrated & measurable effectiveness in implementing organizational changes smoothly and efficiently
Clear and intentional communication management of the change process to all stakeholders
Minimization of disruptions and resistance during the transition period
Successful adoption of the change by employees with minimal negative impact on productivity or morale
Employee recognition and appreciation have an impact no matter when or where they’re given, yet a clear and concise recognition strategy amplifies the effect to lofty heights. Those with the Best Recognition Strategy plan ahead, have clear goals, and know how to report back.
Implementation of a comprehensive and inclusive recognition program that acknowledges and rewards employee contributions effectively
Clear alignment of recognition efforts with organizational values and goals
Creativity and innovation in recognition methods to ensure meaningful and personalized acknowledgment
Positive impact on employee morale, motivation, and retention
Many organizations have employees all over the globe, and implementing a recognition program strategy for every employee provides unique opportunities for success. The Best Global Strategy means that no employee is overlooked, and everyone has an equal opportunity to participate in recognition.
Development and execution of a strategy that effectively addresses the unique challenges and opportunities of operating in multiple countries or regions
Consistent alignment of global and local objectives to ensure synergy and cohesion across diverse locations
Cultural sensitivity and adaptation of practices to resonate with employees from different backgrounds
Achievement of measurable success indicators on a global scale
Good employee engagement is often a prize we all chase, but few truly achieve it. The Best Employee Engagement award will go to the organization that has not only implemented a successful strategy, but has seen measurable success.
Implementation of initiatives that foster a sense of belonging, commitment, and motivation among employees
Regular communication channels that encourage feedback, collaboration, and participation from all levels of the organization
Creation of opportunities for professional development, growth, and recognition
High levels of employee satisfaction, retention, and productivity
Much of today’s workforce is not tied to a computer. By some estimates 80% of the global labor force is offline—hence the need to ensure effective recognition programs for every employee no matter where they work. The Best Offline Program award celebrates the success of companies that have done this, and more.
Development and execution of an impactful program that enhances employee engagement or organizational objectives through offline activities
Clear objectives and target outcomes for the program
Creativity and innovation in designing offline events, workshops, or activities.
Measurement of program effectiveness through qualitative and quantitative feedback from participants
Demonstrated success in achieving desired outcomes offline, complementing online initiatives where applicable
Check out the Recognize Award winners from previous years, and get inspired for what you can do, too.
BNY Mellon has a unique “Moments that Matter” program that highlights the life events of their employees with recognition & support, including things like birthdays, new babies, marriages, retirement, and bereavement. Their unique approach to life events has made them our most impactful client in this space—nobody does it like BNY Mellon.
Okta has a “People First” initiative that has worked to create a company-wide effort in service of a shared sense of ownership and vision. That’s hard to do when your organization spans the entire globe, including 30 countries. However, through their unique approach to strategy, regular training, and comprehensive support resources, Okta has seen incredible global success with 87% participation and triple the number of recognitions in a year.
Texas Roadhouse runs a host of different programs for their employees to participate in. They strive to think outside the box and get their employees excited and engaged throughout the year. Some examples of past programs include March Madness, Manager to Employee, and Peer to Peer programs.
Brooks Running wanted every employee, regardless of location, to feel like a part of the team. To achieve this they created many different regional programs specific to the location, showing their teams they care about their cultures and individual lives. Brooks has seen wonderful engagement as a result of these efforts.
Universal Orlando Resort has a lot of on-site and loyal employees, and they’ve created a fantastic milestone rewards program to celebrate their people everywhere they work. Universal Orlando Resort’s utilization of physical workstations, qr codes in break rooms, and physical packets sent to recipients has led to one of the highest redemption rates we’ve seen—a good sign that the program is working well.
Rush launched their program to 15,000 employees, and created a robust communication plan to notify every employee and train new managers on their new recognition efforts. This included flyers, QR codes, and several reminder emails going out before the platform went live. This all created a ton of buzz for their program and led to measurable engagement for their organization.
Zendesk had a goal: to make the adoption of their new recognition platform easy and exciting for all their employees. To accomplish that, they created a branded guide and a branded video that really showed off the capabilities of the program. In their first week alone, they had 785 unique recognitions! They also used Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) to ensure their global employees were rewarded equally from the very start.
Service anniversaries are the greatest milestone an employee can celebrate at work, and no one celebrates them quite like Chick-fil-A! Because of their extremely generous reward system, employees are rewarded a ton of points as they reach certain milestones. This has made retention a strength of Chick-fil-A.
Creating engaging recognition programs can be difficult, but not for Vineyard Vines. They pioneered the “Snap and Claps” program and the “We Give 50, You Give 50” program, each designed to make recognizing and rewarding employees easier and more fun than ever. Because of these innovative programs, Vineyard Vines has a staggering amount of unique recognitions!
Zillow used Awardco to incentivize participation and engagement in their safety programs. Because of this incentive initiative for safety programs, they’ve seen an incredibly high NPS score and an amazing redemption rate on the Awardco platform—not to mention the best participation they’d seen in years.
Hertz is an employee recognition powerhouse, and weathered the global pandemic by streamlining processes with automation and reinvesting in its most important asset: its people. They made sure that each employee in their substantial global workforce was celebrated and recognized during a particularly challenging time—all with the power of automation.