Most managers and business owners intuitively understand the value of employee recognition programs. After all, everyone likes to be acknowledged for their inventiveness and hard work. What relatively fewer managers and business owners fully appreciate, however, is the value of a Years of Service award program.
This is an excellent addition to a general recognition program that will pay you handsome dividends if properly implemented. The reason is simple: It takes a lot of time and requires a significant investment on your part to replace a skilled employee when he or she leaves.
Recognizing Employee’s Value
An employee who has made the conscious decision to spend a number of years at your side has demonstrated a significant investment in time to you, and that has great value. Recognizing that value right alongside specific accomplishments will make your long-serving employees feel valued and appreciated, which will increase their engagement and their productivity. Since they know that you value their contributions over time, they’ll be much more willing to go the extra mile for you.
Starting Years of Service Awards
Whether you’ve already got such a program in place and are interested in improving it, or you don’t yet have one but are eager to reap the benefits associated with creating one, the very best place to start is by asking your employees what they think about the idea. Get buy in from them and get them involved in the process of creating or reshaping it.
You can do this in a number of ways including interoffice polls, surveys, or simply sitting down with various employees and asking them questions like:
- Do you feel like the work you do here is valued and appreciated?
- How would you rate the level of recognition at this company?
- And what would an ideal service awards program look like to you?
Armed with the answers you get, you can easily begin crafting a program that both meets your needs and aligns with the expectations and desires of the employees it is designed to recognize.
Recognizing Employee Anniversary Milestones
The two most immediate questions you’ll need answers to are these: What sort of budget can you afford to run such a program, and which anniversaries will you plan to recognize? Will you acknowledge a one-year anniversary? Three? Five? Ten? Twenty? Answering both of these questions gives you a solid framework to proceed from.
Employee Anniversary Years You Should Recognize
- 1 Year Anniversary
- 3 Year Anniversary (Optional – but beneficial)
- 5 Year Anniversary
- 7 Year Anniversary (Optional – but beneficial)
- 10 Year Anniversary
- 15 Year Anniversary
- 20 Year Anniversary
- 25 Year Anniversary
- 30 Year Anniversary
- 35 Year Anniversary
- 40 Year Anniversary
- 45 Year Anniversary
- 50 Year Anniversary
In terms of implementation, there are two key points to remember.
Stay Organized
First and foremost, stay organized and be sure you recognize employees in a timely manner. If you let an employee’s ten-year anniversary go by without acknowledgement, and then, a few weeks later, give them employee awards, it feels like an afterthought and leaves the employee feeling underappreciated, which can have the opposite effect.
Be Focused
Second, when giving an award like this, be sure to tie it back to your own company’s values, highlighting specific ways that the award recipient embodies those values and calling attention to their many accomplishments over the years. This personalizes the award in a way that merely handing them a plaque cannot, and says in no uncertain terms that you are paying close attention.
5 Best Years of Service Award Ideas
As to the awards themselves, we have a staggering range of options to choose from. Here are just a few ranging from low cost pins to high end crystal awards:
- Numbered Years of Service Acrylic Awards
- Years of Service Lapel Pins
- Diamond Crystal Awards
- Perpetual Stacking Crystal Awards
- Medallion Awards
The Numbered Years Of Service Acrylic Award
If you’re looking for something delightfully simple, yet attractive, then these acrylic awards might be perfect for you. We offer them in every number from one to 20+, so whichever years of service milestones you want to recognize in your particular program, we’ve got you covered.
In addition to that, each numeric award has plenty of space for your employee’s name and a personalized message of your choosing. These awards are ¾” thick and stand 6” tall, making them big enough to be noticed, but small enough that they can be displayed just about anywhere.
The Years Of Service Lapel Pin
If you have a very limited budget, but still want to do something memorable to recognize your employees at anniversary milestones, you may want to consider our years of service lapel pins. Although the one we’ve linked to here is the twenty-years of service pin, as with our acrylic number awards, you can find these in a variety of years of service configurations, so there’s something for everyone. This is a great, low-cost option!
The Diamond Pedestal Crystal Award
The diamond spire award is a beautiful crystal pedestal paired with a sparkling gem that can be ordered in your choice of red, clear, amber, green or blue. While the pedestal itself doesn’t display any particular numbered years of service, it boasts plenty of space for a customized message and could easily be used for that purpose.
Standing 9.25” high and 4.25” wide, it weighs in at an impressive seven pounds and is simply breathtaking to behold. If you want to really take your recognition program to the next level, using something like this is a great way to do exactly that.
The Cobalt Perpetual Recognition Crystal Award
This handsome award stands 8.5” high and 7.25” wide, weighing in at five pounds. What makes it unique among the various awards we offer is the fact that it can be used repeatedly thanks to an innovative system of cobalt blue crystal slider inserts that can be stacked atop one another on the award, growing a tower of service as the number of years working for you increases. A handsome versatile piece.
Offered in a style similar to television award statuettes given to actors and directors, this Champion Award has enough space on its black lacquered base for the message of your choosing, while the medallion held aloft by the figurine can be etched with years of service or some other, personalized message. It’s a great choice for a more fun, light-hearted awards program.
If the examples provided above aren’t a perfect fit for you, not to worry. Just spend some time browsing our website and you’ll find plenty of other options designed to fit every taste, preference and budget, so you’re sure to find exactly what you’re looking for!