Awards Network Blog

10 Fun Days to Incorporate into your Employee Award Program

Written by Alexis Matheny | Jan 12, 2017 3:20:52 PM
 

Who says rewarding employees should only apply to traditional reasons? While recognizing employees for milestones and goal achievement is incredibly important (and should be the main focus of any award program), it's always a good idea to incorporate some fun and unusual rewards to keep employees engaged
 
If you're looking to spice up your employee award program or are searching for unique ways to bring fun into your company culture, consider adding one of the following days to your program's agenda.

 

1.

National Compliment Day 
January 24th, 2017


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A great way to encourage employees to support one another is on National Compliment Day! Ask your employees to make an extra effort on this day to complement their co-workers. Compliments can range from simple thank you to acknowledging someone for going above and beyond! Tie complements to eCards online and you can assign points to each complement that comes through for a little extra incentive.

2.

National Have Fun At Work Day 
January 28th, 2017


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Have a fun day in the office to boost employee morale! Plan a day of food, fun and games for your employees to enjoy a break from the normal work week.  You can further encourage participation by awarding points as prizes to all of the winners throughout the day. 

3.

National Safer Internet Day 
February 14th, 2017


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Find out who your computer and internet safety wizards are in the office on this day. Give your employees a crash course on your company's computer and internet safety guidelines. Quiz them afterwards and incentivize with points for a passing score! It's the perfect opportunity to refresh employees memories on your best practices in a fun and rewarding way.

4.

National Employee Appreciation Day
March 3rd, 2017

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National Employee Appreciation Day is a day we always suggest you take part in! This is a day to simply say thank you to your employees for doing what they do. Plan a special day in the office to recognize everyone for their hard work and reward them for just being great. A little appreciation will go a long way for your employee retention!

5.

National Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive Day 
May 13th, 2017

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This day is a great to way to bring your employees together while helping others in need. Hold a food drive competition in the office the week leading up to this day. You can break the company off into teams (by department, location, etc.) and award the team who collects in the most items for donation at the end of the week!

6.

National Leave The Office Early Day 
June 2nd, 2017

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This is an easy one! Give your employees a nice surprise by letting them leave the office an hour early on this day.

7.

National Swap Ideas Day 
September 10th, 2017

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Hold a creative thinker contest in the office! Encourage employees to pitch their ideas to improve your company in ways such as enhancing the customer experience, saving company time, or improving company culture. Award the top ideas with points and implement the best one!

8.

National Family Health and Fitness Day Day
September 23rd, 2017


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Promote healthy lifestyles this week. Arrange for some fitness activities around the office and award for those who participate. Some examples could include hosting a yoga class in the morning or arranging for a group walk at lunch. Focusing your incentive program on health and fitness throughout the year can also be helpful in cutting costs in the long run too.

9.

National Do Something Nice Day 
October 5th, 2017

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Encourage acts of kindness around the office on Do Something Nice Day. Let employees report back to you when a colleague has gone above and beyond for a client or co-worker and reward their exceptional behavior! Peer-to-Peer nomination forms are a great way to accomplish this in an efficient way.

10.

National Train Your Brain Day 
October 13th, 2017

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Help your employees stay sharp! On National Train Your Brain Day encourage employees to learn something new about your business by posting educational newsletters. You can even quiz them on what they've learned and award points to those who pass.


Incorporating these unique days into your program will surely keep your employees happy and feeling appreciated, while keeping your program's goals front of mind. If you haven't started an employee program yet but are interested in doing so, check out our list of resources to help you get started!