Developing a Recognition Program

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Introduction and Essential Elements

Best Methods for Nominating and Selecting Recipients
Approval and Implementation
Basic Recognition Program Template
Recognition Award Concepts and Ideas

Introduction and Essential Elements

Motivating and recognizing employees is vital to the development of an effective
and positive work environment. This resource is designed to make creating a
recognition program easy. It will also guide you through the requirements of the
Procurement Service Center (PSC) Procedural Statement: Recognition & Training.
When creating a recognition program there is freedom to be creative within the
guidelines provided, however it can sometimes be daunting to create and design a
program from scratch. This guide provides a variety of recognition award ideas
from which you can choose, as well as suggested methods for nominating and
selecting recipients.
To understand why creating a recognition program is important and how it can be
an effective tool for motivation, we highly recommend reviewing the HR Guide to
Motivating Employees prior to creating a recognition program. This guide provides
a wealth of information to help you seek feedback from your employees in order to
learn what motivates them. Effective motivation enhances the employees sense
of accomplishment, contribution, involvement, and satisfaction. Rewards that
facilitate this usually relate to the mission and values of the organization. The
HR Guide to Motivating Employees can be found on the Human Resources
website.
Second, consider whether the program you envision requires a formal recognition
program in accordance with the PSC Procedural Statement: Recognition and
Training. In general, a formal recognition program is necessary if you intend to
recognize employees with cash, cash-like awards, or some item of value. The
program must be reviewed and approved by Human Resources and the Vice
Chancellor/Provost of your division prior to spending university funds for awards,
rewards, or prizes. The PSC Procedural Statement: Recognition & Training includes
a Recognition Grid for the purpose of helping you determine when a program is
necessary, as well as the criteria that must be outlined in the program and
information on potential tax implications.
The essential elements that must be contained in a recognition program are:

1. The name of the recognition program: The program must have an official
name; this is primarily for tracking purposes so the Procurement Center can
refer to the program when the recognition reporting form is used for
university expenditure.
2. The recognition category: These categories are listed in the PSC Procedural
Statement: Recognition & Training and the appropriate category must be
referred to in your program:
a. Merit (e.g. meritorious performance) The Merit category provides
recognition for excellence, providing exemplary customer service, a quality
deserving praise or approval, or demonstrated ability or achievement. Most
recognition programs will fall under this category. The other categories are
very specific. Merit is broad and as such provides the most freedom to be
creative which is why it is the most commonly used category for recognition
programs.
b. Length of Service Length of Service recognition is given to employees
(including retirees), associates, or other individuals who have achieved
benchmark anniversaries in their years of service to the university. Five years
is the minimum length of service that can be recognized, and recognition may
not take place more frequently than every five years.
c. Safety The Safety category provides recognition for acts intended to prevent
adverse effects related to danger, risk, or injury. Only people in front line
positions are eligible for safety awards. Please refer to the procedural
statement to determine if employees in your department would qualify under
this category.
d. Participation Participation awards are given to employees, associates, or
other individuals because of their involvement in a university activity.
Examples include:
Receiving a door prize for attending a university event
Receiving an award, reward, or prize for completing a university
survey

3. A description of who is eligible to receive the recognition award: A

recognition program is necessary to recognize affiliates of the university,
such as employees or students, as well as those with no affiliation to the
university. Describing who is eligible will require some detail, for example if
students, which types of students: graduate, undergraduate, and/or student
employees? If employees, which employee groups: classified, exempt
professional, and/or faculty? Keep in mind there must be more than one
person eligible to receive an award to meet PSC requirements for a
recognition program.
4. A clear and distinct description of the recognition award criteria: Clearly
defining the award criteria requires the most thought and effort. The

recognition award ideas provided in this guide can be a great place to start as
you define the measures (criterion) for an award. The basic question you
must answer is, what must someone do to receive an award? In the section
on nominating and selecting recipients below, there is more information
about why it is important to clearly understand the behavior, attitude, or
performance youre seeking to recognize and encourage in your employees.
Ultimately, each awards criteria should be explicit enough that employees
know what must be accomplished to earn such recognition and so that its
clear that the final recipient is someone who has met the criteria necessary
to be recognized.
5. An explanation of the selection method: How will the award recipient be
determined? The selection method should be as detailed as necessary, so
that anyone would understand the process being used and it should be as fair
and unbiased as possible. Guidance containing strategies to determine who
will receive an award can be found in the Nominating and Selecting Award
Recipients section of this document.
6. Description of the Award: Describe the award(s) to be given, for example
cash, gift cards, administrative leave, etc. Several types of awards and
combinations of awards can be used, and it can be more motivating to
employees if the awards are tailored to their individual interests. Once you
identify the award(s) to be given, corresponding information about the
individual award amounts or ranges, as well as the total programs aggregate
cost limits or ranges, must be included in the document.
7. Approval: Once youve developed a program that includes the essential
elements outlined above, the program must be reviewed and approved by
the Director of Employment Services and the appropriate Officer. Human
Resources requires that a draft program document be submitted for review
prior to formal submission of a program for approval. This initial review will
ensure the recognition program meets all of the requirements of the
procedural statement and allow for feedback if any elements are missing.
This process expedites the approval process by allowing HR to provide
feedback and obtain appropriate Officer review prior to the submission of a
signed document.
Even with the essential elements outlined above, there is a lot of freedom to be as
creative as possible when developing a recognition program to motivate and
recognize employees in your department. However, having many options can also
make it difficult to know where to begin. In the appendix of this document, 22
recognition award concepts and ideas are provided to help you get started. These
can be modified and altered to fit the needs of your department. Included in the
next section is a description of the best methods for nominating and selecting

recipients. The nomination and selection process is a required element of a

recognition program, so several methods will be discussed.
To speak with someone concerning recognition programs, please contact the
Employment Services front desk at 303-492-6475. If you have questions about
costs associated with a recognition program or tax implications, please call the
Procurement Service Center at 303-837-2160.

Best Methods for Nominating and Selecting

Recipients
Once youve identified the behavior and/or performance to be recognized, you must
determine how employees will be selected for the award. One key to success is to
clearly communicate the criteria for recognition in advance so that those who meet
the criteria, embody that behavior, or have outstanding performance in that arena,
are those who receive the recognition. Below are some ideas on how to nominate
and select those employees who best fit the award criteria, starting with more
formal recognition.
Formal recognition tends to consist of an event where nominations may be read and
final recipients are recognized in front of their peers and managers. The event need
not be extravagant and it may be as simple as a unit or department meeting. What
defines this type of recognition is that it is formally given and the recipient
publically recognized.
Nominations: Who will be considered?
There are a variety of ways to nominate an individual, team, or unit for
consideration of an award, as long as the nominators clearly understand the criteria
necessary for recognition. For each of these examples, a nomination form should
allow the opportunity to describe exactly why the nominated person/team meets
the criteria for the award and even provide specific examples. Providing nominators
an opportunity to describe the particular reason for nomination not only highlights
great performance, but outlines what was done to justify the specific award.
The following are ideas for nominating recipients and narrowing the field before
discussing the final selection of the award winner.
Customer Feedback
This nomination option elicits feedback from the individuals who work with your
employees, teams, and units. There is no better indicator of performance or
behavior, especially for departments or units that are customer oriented than by
eliciting feedback from the customer. There are several methods that may be used
to collect this feedback, such as sending an email to an existing list of customers,
an online form, using a survey tool such as surveymonkey.com, or using a paper
customer feedback form. There should be some form of communication with the
customer in describing the award criteria and any other pertinent instructions or
timelines involved in collecting their feedback.
Peer Nominations

One of the most meaningful methods of recognizing employees is to encourage

everyone in the organization to recognize one another for their achievements.
Coworkers often have the best view when it comes to seeing the efforts of fellow
employees and it is often more significant to receive recognition from the people
around you than from any other source. This is best done by sending out a
communication to all the employees in your department with a description of each
award, the criteria for meeting the award, and instructions on how to nominate
individuals or teams, if eligible. The instructions should include a deadline for
submitting nominations and a nomination template to follow which includes the
award criteria, the nominee and space for an open-ended response as to why the
nominee meets the award criteria. This must be planned in advance with enough
time before any formal recognition ceremony, allowing time for effective use of one
of the selection methods below.
The nomination process should be voluntary, but for this to work most effectively, a
high response rate is optimal. Multiple reminders to employees before the deadline
and encouragement to participate in the program will help make this an effective
nomination process. The Peer Nomination method can be open to anyone in the
department or organization, or if it makes sense, can be limited to smaller groups
such as non-managers or front-line employees.
Nominated by Management
This nomination method is limited to the supervisors and managers in the
organization and they may still choose individuals, teams, or units to be nominated.
This method provides the opportunity for supervisors to recognize the employees
whose performance they are expected to oversee on a daily basis. It may also limit
or even exclude management from receiving the awards and in a large organization
could be a good method for recognizing and encouraging front-line staff and others
in the organization. Keep in mind this is simply for the nomination of award
recipients and it could correspond to any of the following selection methods. The
same considerations for communicating, collecting nominations, and timelines as
discussed above in the peer nomination process also pertain here.

Final Selection: Who will receive the award?

This final selection method essentially falls into three categories: some form of
committee, a single decider, or random chance. In any scenario we must
emphasize the importance of clearly delineating the criteria, behavior, or
performance that is the goal of the recognition. Recognition done haphazardly loses
its ability to motivate and inspire people to do their best. If an individual or team is
recognized for being innovative, for example, and theyve not implemented a
change or made any innovative recommendations, they will wonder why theyve
won such an award and so will others in the organization. That is why open-ended

nominations that list the exact reasons for why an individual or team has been
nominated and how they met the criteria for the award will make the selection
process much easier and effective.
By Committee
When it comes to creating a recognition selection committee, members may consist
of volunteers, they may be chosen by management, or they may consist of previous
recognition winners. There are a variety of ways to form a committee, however it is
much more effective when members are engaged and excited about their
participation. It can also be a good idea to rotate the members for each recognition
cycle. You may also keep in mind that committee members dont have to be
excluded from receiving a nomination or award.
The selection committee will need some time to review and discuss all nominations.
The goal should be to review all nominations and identify an appropriate winner for
each award category where multiple nominations may exist. The committee
members should focus on the nominations, but may also consider in their final
selection process those who are nominated for multiple award categories, recipients
of past awards, and the overall fairness of the program.
Committee types:

Everyone Committee: This is essentially a group that can be made up of

anyone within or even outside the organization that will review the
nominations and determine the final recipient.

Peer Only Committee: This is a group made up specifically of non-managers

who will review the nominations and determine the final recipient.

Management Team: This would be best used in the case of peer nominations
where everyone is involved in the nomination process and then managers
make the final call after their review of all the nominations.

Single Decider
This method, along with random chance described below, may not be the most
effective way to select final awardees in a formal recognition setting, as having a
group selection process can eliminate personal bias. However, there are scenarios
where it may be appropriate or necessary. In a small department there may not be
enough people to form a committee and thus one person would need to make
decisions. Also, the benefit of involving high level management, such as a Vice
Chancellor or Dean in the review of nominations and selection of recipients, may be
more meaningful to the awardees.
Random Chance

This method essentially takes the nominations and uses a random method such as a
drawing to determine the final recipient. This method is the least preferred for
formal recognition, as it does not provide for close evaluation of specific nomination
submissions. Recognition should be a tool to motivate and if the quality of the
nominations is perceived as irrelevant, it will not meet that goal. That is not to say
that random selection cannot be a great tool. It can be very appropriate for a more
informal recognition process when combined with one of the nomination methods
described above. For example, a drawing could be held from all the positive
customer feedback and the winner would receive an award.

Spot Awards and Other Informal Recognition

For informal recognition where there may be no special event or staff meeting, an
organized process of nominating then selecting recipients may not be necessary.
For example, a spot award, which is on-the-spot recognition for excellent
performance or model behavior, is best determined by the immediate supervisor or
higher level manager. While any of the nomination and selection ideas could be
used for such an on-the-spot award, the easiest option is to allow supervisors and
managers the freedom to instantly recognize and reward their employees, teams, or
units. Instant recognition is often most meaningful to employees. In this type of
recognition, the nomination and selection is made at the supervisors or managers
discretion.

Approval and Implementation

Once you have developed a program document that includes the required elements
listed in the Basic Recognition Program Template below, the first step is to seek
initial feedback from the Department of Human Resources, Employment Services.
Employment Services is responsible for the review and approval of recognition
programs for the Boulder campus and requires that a draft is submitted prior to
formal submission. This review process ensures the program meets all necessary
criteria and offers specific feedback as needed prior to departments collecting
signatures. You may contact Employment Services at 303-492-6475 for guidance on
developing a program and for information about having your program reviewed.
Official HR approval comes from the Director or Assistant Director of Employment
Services. Employment Services will then route the program for review and approval
from the appropriate Provost or Vice Chancellor as needed.

The Procurement Service Center may request a copy of the final, approved program
document before approving payments made on the recognition reporting form.
Questions regarding the PSC approval process, taxes and payments should be
directed to the PSC Help Desk at 303-837-2160.
Once the program has been formally approved, it can be implemented. Assuming
youve been working with employees to develop the program now would be the
time to delegate the oversight and implementation of the program to the
appropriate persons in your department. This should be an individual or committee
who are excited to see the program take shape in your department. Their role will
be to make sure the program is communicated, initiate the nomination process,
send out reminders, coordinate the event, acquire the awards, etc. It is essential for
the successful implementation that someone has the delegated responsibility to
ensure that recognition takes place and follows the guidelines that have been
developed for your department.
By following the steps provided in this guide, your departments recognition
program will begin to realize results in the form of enhanced motivation and
increased morale.

Basic Recognition Program Template

Recognition Program Name:
Program Duration: (Is this a one-time program or ongoing?)
Department Mission, Vision, Values: (While including this in the program
document is optional, it is critical that your program align with your departments
mission, vision and values.)
Recognition Awards: (List as many as determined with the following information)
Recognition Category: (May include one or more of the following
categories: Merit (excellence), Length of Service, Safety, or Participation)
Keep in mind these have specific definitions according to the PSC Procedural
Statement: Recognition and Training. Merit (or excellence) is the most
common category for recognition.
Who is Eligible for the Award: (Remember to be specific, e.g. classified
and exempt professional staff, faculty, students, or several types.)
Recognition Description and Criteria to meet: (Criteria should be
specific and easily identifiable. Refer to the PSC Procedural Statement:
Recognition and Training for examples.)
Individual Award to be Given, Individual Cost Limits or Range: (What
is to be awarded, e.g. cash, gift card, etc., and what is the award limit or
range)
How often Award is Given: (Annually, Monthly, as needed. It can be a
combination of several.)
Description of Overall Nomination and Selection Method: (This can be used
for all of the recognition awards, or can be described for each individual award to
allow variation in the selection method.)
Description of Overall Program Cost, Limits and/or Range: (Some VC areas
require description of the source of funds for awards).
Approval:
Departmental Approval:
(signature)
______________________________________
Human Resources Approval: (signature)
______________________________________

Officer Approval:

(signature) ______________________________________

Recognition Award Concepts and Ideas

2030 Implemented
This award recognizes when an individual, team, unit, or department has
successfully implemented one of the specific goals outlined in the Universitys
Flagship 2030 Plan and is designed to promote the goals and mission of the
university towards its future. The specific implementation should be outlined in the
nomination and referenced in the Flagship 2030 Strategic Plan.
Beyond Excellence
This category is designed to recognize not just those who perform their job with
excellence but those who strive beyond what is expected. An employee who meets
the criteria for this award should exceed the expectations of the supervisor and
exceed the goals defined in a performance evaluation. This is for the employee who
stands out above other excellent performers in the unit.
Bright Idea
For departments that value creativity and employee feedback, this category is
designed to reward those who provide a great idea to improve the efficiency,
quality, or advance the goals and mission of the department or the University. To
qualify for this award the idea presented must be adopted and implemented by
management with measurable improvement in the above areas.
Customer Service
This award is designed to recognize service that consistently goes above and
beyond to meet the needs and expectations of customers. This recognizes the
ability to provide a smile and service in challenging customer service situations;
providing excellent knowledge and information to the customer about the
department; working to resolve customer complaints/situations creatively.
Diversity Recognition
This category is designed to award employees or teams that have exemplified
excellence in diversity and social justice work. Recognizing efforts of reaching out
to support and/or advocate on behalf of diverse communities, conveying excellent
knowledge regarding a diverse community and/or promoting a diverse community
to a department or campus community.
Efficiency
This award recognizes efforts made by an employee(s), or others, to identify specific
opportunities to eliminate ineffective policies and procedures and simplify how the
department/work unit does business. Those who meet the criteria should

demonstrate the successful implementation of innovative, cost-effective, measures

that have created business efficiencies.

Helping Students
This category is designed to recognize employees or teams that exemplify an
excellent standard of service of helping students via their advocacy, mentorship,
development support, etc. Examples of work performance or quality of service can
include:

Supporting a student through a difficult barrier(s) in their life with their

recognition to the employees department that this support helped them
tremendously.
Working with a student to excel in a given area such as mentoring them to
develop professionally in an area in which they work.
Supporting a student through their development via their academic, identity
process, etc.

Leading by Example
This is designed to recognize and reward those employees and/or teams that
produce such a high standard of excellence in their performance or in specific areas
chosen by the department such as those outlined below, that they set an excellent
example for others in their department.

Adaptability: Adjusting behavior to work efficiently and effectively in light of

new information, changing situations, and/or different environments
Customer Focus: Providing an excellent level of service to both internal and
external customers, identifying and responding to current and future client
needs
Integrity: Taking personal accountability to uphold ethical standards, building
trusting relationships through honesty, openness, fairness, and candor and
living up to commitments
Respect: Demonstrating a genuine appreciation for others, valuing diversity
by treating everyone with high regard and with consideration for their
individual differences as well as maintaining the highest level of
professionalism when working with others through challenging issues
Teamwork: Working effectively within and across departments, collaborating
with others to achieve common goals, listening and communicating in a way
that respects and supports others

Additionally, managers that are nominated should excel in one or more of the
following areas:

Mentoring: Encouraging employees to be their very best by providing

feedback, development opportunities, positive reinforcement, and
appreciation for their efforts
Modeling: Setting a positive example by remaining calm in a crisis,
encouraging and supporting collaboration and teamwork, exhibiting humility,
helping others achieve success, and being honest and trustworthy
Motivating: Inspiring commitment, providing vision, promoting and ensuring
alignment with departments goals and/or values, and providing coaching and
performance management

Positive Attitude
This category is designed to recognize and award individuals and/or teams whose
positive attitude and enthusiasm promotes a constructive work environment, and
spills over to others, resulting in a pleasant work environment. This recognizes
and awards individuals and teams who make an extraordinary effort to support
others, such as colleagues, co-workers and customers and whose efforts improve
morale in the department. Here are some criteria you can use or develop your own
for your unit/department.

Demonstrates a genuine appreciation for others, valuing diversity by treating

everyone with respect and with consideration for their individual differences.
Works to build a positive atmosphere of trust and mutual respect within the
department and with external customers.
Considers how to make the most of their opportunities to improve morale in
their department.
Takes a special interest in helping co-workers grow in their positions.

Quality Award
This category can be used in departments or units where the quality of the work
performed is valued over quantity. This should recognize high quality work in a
singular instance, in a project with significant importance or impact on the unit, or
the consistency of high quality work performed over a long period of time. This
award recognizes the time taken to do excellent work while maintaining efficiency
and meeting deadlines or time sensitive goals.
Random Act of Kindness
This award is designed to recognize and award individuals who have performed a
random act of kindness that has had a positive impact on the lives of co-workers,
customers, or the community. This award will be presented to employees who have
demonstrated a distinctive service or acts of kindness to another individual, which
positively impacts that person's life. Employees awarded the Random Act of

Kindness Award will have provided an act or service, which may be described as one
of the following:

A special act of kindness or service within or outside of their assigned work

area or responsibilities which have a positive impact on another individual.
Excellent customer service which met a special need of a customer,
employee or fellow staff or faculty member.
An action or behavior which raised the morale of others.
Sincere cooperation, positive attitude and exceptional willingness to assist
others.

Reaching the Goal

This award is for recognizing individuals or groups that have met a specific and
measurable goal that is above and beyond what may be in a performance plan or is
typically expected in a given year. The goal can be set by the individual, a group, or
defined by management and should be met within a specific defined timeline. This
should reward those who succeed in meeting a difficult, challenging, and hard to
reach goal and can be an incentive towards meeting the goal within the given
timeline, with defined or limited resources, and with a high level of quality.
Record Breaker
This category is designed to recognize an individual or team that breaks a standing
departmental record that relates to the departments mission. The record should be
clearly defined and quantitatively measurable.
Note: This should reward hard work/performance to meet a measurable goal
without sacrificing quality or service to do so. Examples could include fundraising,
processing applications, selling subscriptions, getting the best grade, or making
widgets. Records should be clearly defined and may need to be updated on a
yearly basis.
Rewarding Customers
Employees/students/customers outside a department that have provided
outstanding support or services, above their basic job requirements, to a
department which in turn has led to the betterment of the department and its
students, faculty, and staff. For example, an employee in Human Resources who
goes above and beyond assisting an employee in the Leeds School of Business is
recognized by the Leeds School of Business for excellent service.
Ridiculous Work Load

This recognizes employees for setting (or breaking) a work load record. This award
is designed to acknowledge an employee for persevering through incredibly busy
times while maintaining high quality work and service.
Safety Initiative
This award recognizes efforts made by the employee or work unit to reduce
accidents and injuries on the job. This award is designed to stimulate interest in
accident prevention measures and to promote safety in the workplace by providing
an incentive to employees to maintain a safe and healthy workplace.
Skills
This category is designed to recognize individuals with outstanding skills in a variety
of areas that are used to contribute to success and mission of the university,
department, or unit. This is a skill that is uniquely possessed and/or superior to
others in the organization and should be recognized for the positive contribution
made to the organization.
Student Involvement
This category is designed to award students for their superior involvement in
various academic or student support programs, student groups, superior
involvement and contributions at work, such as excelling in student
groups/work/student support programs through excellent contributions; new ideas
and implementations that improve the program; superior mentorship of fellow
student peers, etc.
Supportive Supervisor
This award allows employees to recognize caring and supportive supervisors who
show genuine concern for the interests of their employees in both their personal
and professional lives by: being available for ideas and feedback, allowing
opportunity for employees to meet personal and professional goals, consistently
communicating and recognizing excellent work, allowing flexibility for personal
issues, providing opportunities for growth (challenging assignments or attending
training), and furnishing the resources needed for employees to be successful.
Sustainability/Green Award
This award recognizes employees who have made strides to minimize the
University's/Departments environmental footprint by implementing
energy/resource saving measures. To qualify for this award the idea presented must
be adopted and implemented with measurable success in reducing the impact on
the environment.
Teamwork & Cooperation

This category is designed to recognize and award individuals and/or teams who
exemplify teamwork and cooperation with colleagues and customers by their work
to achieve many of the following:

Works effectively as part of a team to successfully accomplish a task or meet

a goal.
Builds effective collaborative relationships across different groups or
departments within the organization to define and solve problems or reach
agreements on a course of action while considering multiple perspectives.
Creates a team environment that promotes communication, trust,
cooperation and respect for differences.
Contributes to a group effort which has a significant impact on departmental
goals.
Develops a partnership that seeks input and involvement from those affected
by decisions.
Accepts responsibility and accountability in helping to advance the
University's mission or departmental goal.
Places team goals above personal goals while achieving a distinct result or
product.

Volunteer/Community
This category is designed to recognize employees who have demonstrated
excellence in giving back to their community via their volunteer work or
contributions to programs, nonprofit organizations, groups, etc. outside of their work
environment.