Re-inventing long-service awards for today’s workforce

Long-service awards are nothing new. They’ve been part of the rewards framework of UK companies for many years. However, the nature of them has changed, and they continue to evolve to better align with organisational purpose and values, and to meet shifting expectations of employees.

Read on for our insights on what’s new and what today’s service awards should look like.

Traditional long-service awards

Today, “long service” doesn’t necessarily mean the same as it did for previous generations. Being awarded a gold carriage clock after 25 years’ of service was typical 20 years’ ago, but in today’s world that’s not enough. The workplace has changed and it’s now common for employees to switch jobs multiple times during their careers, so more emphasis is being placed on contribution and accomplishment and less on simple longevity.

At the same time, employees are wanting more from their employers. They need an employee experience in which they feel valued, appreciated, have a voice and a sense of belonging. Career awards are a vital part of this. And when organisations get it right, employees are more likely to stay with the organisation for longer. In fact, Cicero Research has found that the average tenure with an employer is 4.7 years without service awards, 6.7 years with service awards and 8.7 years when service awards are done right (a staggering four more years!). So, it’s no longer about rewarding people for simply “making it through another 10 years”, but for their individual contributions and achievements. It’s about celebrating careers.

The career celebration experience

Here are some key ways to make career celebrations special and impactful:

Celebrate early: Don’t wait until the employee’s 10 year anniversary to make an effort, it’s too late! There needs to be an emphasis on celebrating early year anniversaries – one, three and five years.

Make it personal and fun: Focus on creating a memorable, personal experience for the recipient. Service awards need to be about making workplace anniversaries more meaningful, memorable and fun. And don’t be afraid to be creative. A remote, virtual presentation where the recipient has their award delivered to their door can be just as meaningful as gathering the whole department together in the boardroom.

Be inclusive: Remember that recognition has as much of a positive impact on the giver and those watching, as it does on the recipient. So, consider who is invited to the celebration and the knock-on effect, using it as a means for employees to feel a sense of belonging to something much bigger than themselves! And remember that career celebration speeches don’t have to be given by leaders only. Involving friends and co-workers the employee loves the most will turn a boring event into a shared celebration people can look forward to. In fact, O.C. Tanner Europe’s sales director, David Danzig, recently celebrated his one year anniversary over Zoom, and it turned out to be a more inclusive experience than an in-person office event, as colleagues from around the world could join the celebrations.

Make the awards extraordinary: After all, this is to honour an extraordinary event like a 10 year career celebration. And whatever awards you choose to give, make sure they are personal, symbolic and include a keepsake of career highlights. Personalised keepsakes such as ‘year books’ which can include a thank you from the CEO, career highlights and comments and anecdotes from peers and managers, help to make the celebration about the individual.

Reinforce the company’s values: Anniversary celebrations shouldn’t stand in isolation but need to highlight how the people being celebrated support the company’s values and are part of the bigger picture. The celebrations need to be aspirational and demonstrate what ‘great’ looks like, providing inspiration for people just starting out in their careers.

Making every milestone count

Going through the motions of rewarding long service rather than embracing career milestones means the opportunity to engage staff, strengthen loyalty and reaffirm the company’s values, is being wasted. With effective career celebrations leading to higher retention levels and greater engagement, getting it right is certainly worth the investment.

The author is Robert Ordever, MD of workplace culture expert, O.C. Tanner Europe.

This article is provided by O.C. Tanner Europe.