How do you choose employee of the month?

Publish two or three criteria tied to your values, open nominations to everyone for two weeks, and have a small rotating panel read nominations with the nominator's name hidden. Pick based on what the person did that month, not on popularity or one sales number.

What is a staff of the month award?

A staff of the month award is the same idea as employee of the month: one person recognized each month for specific work, usually announced in public with a small reward. Some workplaces use “staff” so the award covers every role, including contractors and volunteers.

What are good rewards for employee of the month?

Free rewards like a public shout-out, the best parking spot, lunch with a leader or a no-meeting day work well. Under $25, try a framed certificate, a book or a small chocolate box. From $25 to $100, a half day off is often the most popular.

How do you avoid the same person winning every month?

Let past winners sit out for twelve months, thank every nominee by name, rotate the judging panel each quarter, and track winners by team and role. If very different roles keep competing, switch to team of the month.

What do you write in an employee of the month announcement?

Say who won, what they did that month, and what changed because of it, then quote one line from a nomination. Keep it to three or four sentences and end with a thank-you.

How do you do employee of the month for remote employees?

Collect nominations through a form shared in your team channel, announce the winner on camera at the monthly all-hands, ship the reward to their home, and give them a digital badge or custom emoji for the month.

Is employee of the month a good idea?

It works when the criteria are clear, peers can nominate, and winners rotate. It backfires when it turns into a popularity contest or the same people win. Pair it with everyday recognition so it isn't the only time people hear thank you.

Employee Engagement
HR

Employee of the month ideas: 35 rewards and a fair way to pick winners

Criteria, nominations and rewards by budget, plus announcement wording you can copy. And what to do instead when one winner a month doesn’t fit.

KraftyLab TeamUpdated Oct 20269 min read

Employee of the month is simple and it works, as long as people trust how the winner is picked. These employee of the month ideas cover the part most teams skip (clear criteria, open nominations, no repeat winners) and then the fun part: 35 rewards, from free to Employee of the Year.

How to choose employee of the month: the criteria

People accept a winner when they know the rules. Write these down before you open nominations.

Tie it to your values. Name the two or three behaviors you want more of, and judge against those.
Reward actions, not personality. “Rebuilt the onboarding doc” beats “great attitude.”
Keep it to this month. What they did in the last four weeks, not their whole career.
Open it to every role. Ops, support, finance and night shifts, not just the people who present.
Don't make it a sales leaderboard. If one number decides it, the same people win every month.
Write the criteria down first. Publish them before the first nominations open.

Nominations and voting

A monthly rhythm that takes about an hour of anyone's time.

Open nominations for two weeks. A three-question form: who, what they did, and what changed because of it.
Let anyone nominate. Peers see more than managers do. Keep self-nominations out.
Review with a small rotating panel. Three people from different teams, swapped every quarter.
Score against the criteria. Read nominations with the nominator's name hidden, then pick.
Announce in the first week of the next month. Read the nomination out loud. The story is the award.

Keep the staff of the month award fair

The fastest way to kill the award is the same three names on repeat.

One win per person per year. Past winners can be nominated, but sit out until twelve months pass.
Thank every nominee. A short shout-out for everyone nominated keeps the other names in the room.
Track who wins. Check winners by team, location, shift and role every quarter.
Rotate the panel. New judges each quarter stop the award from mirroring one manager's view.
Watch remote and part-time staff. They do great work out of sight. Nudge their teams to nominate.
Go to team of the month when roles are too different. Comparing a nurse to a coder helps no one.

35 employee of the month reward ideas by budget

The award for employee of the month doesn't need to be big. It needs to feel chosen for the person.

Free employee of the month rewards

For many people, the public story matters more than the prize.

1.The story at the all-hands. A leader reads the nomination out loud, word for word.
2.The best parking spot. A sign with their name, for the whole month.
3.Pick the team lunch spot. Small, fun and very visible.
4.Lunch with a leader they choose. Thirty minutes of real access, on the company card.
5.A no-meeting day. One day cleared from the calendar, protected by their manager.
6.A spot on the wall of fame. Photo and one line on why, in the office or on the intranet.
7.A note from the CEO. Handwritten, naming exactly what they did.
8.A LinkedIn recommendation. From their manager, written while the work is fresh.
9.First pick of the next project. Or first choice of holiday shifts.
10.The traveling trophy. One silly trophy that sits on the winner's desk until next month.

Rewards under $25

Cheap enough to give every month without a budget meeting.

11.Their coffee order for a week. Delivered to the desk or covered through an app.
12.A certificate in a real frame. A good frame is the difference between a drawer and a wall.
13.A book they pick. Any book, not a business book chosen for them.
14.A desk plant. A small green reminder that lasts longer than the month.
15.A chocolate gift box. Gift boxes from $22, sent with a note from the team. See gift boxes
16.A desk nameplate. “Employee of the Month” with the month, for a bit of fun.
17.Lunch delivered. Their favorite place, office or home.
18.A snack box. Shared with the team if they like, which most winners do.
19.A funny trophy. A bobblehead, a golden stapler, a tiny crown.

Rewards from $25 to $100

Worth it for awards you run every month, with a clear story behind each win.

20.A half day off. Often the most-wanted reward. Let them pick the day.
21.Dinner for two. A gift card to a restaurant they love. Check with payroll on tax.
22.A premium chocolate box. Larger boxes from $58, shipped to their home. See gift boxes
23.An experience voucher. A cooking class, a massage, a climbing session.
24.A desk upgrade. A better chair cushion, keyboard or lamp, their choice.
25.A few months of a subscription. Music, audiobooks or a meal kit.
26.A donation in their name. To a cause they choose.
27.A premium hoodie. The good kind, not the giveaway kind.
28.Tickets to a game or show. Two tickets, so they can bring someone.

Bigger rewards (over $100)

Best saved for Employee of the Year, picked from the twelve monthly winners.

29.A full extra day off. Paid, and theirs to schedule.
30.A course or conference. Something they've wanted to learn, paid in full.
31.A spa or wellness day. Booked for them, on a workday.
32.A weekend away. A contribution toward a trip they plan.
33.A team celebration in their honor. Their team gets a hosted game or event, and they pick it.
34.An Employee of the Year trophy. Engraved, with their year on it, plus one of the rewards above.
35.A learning budget. A set amount for books, classes or tools over the next year.

In the US, cash and gift cards are taxable wages, so check with payroll before you pick. For more gift ideas, see our employee appreciation gifts, shipped to the office or each person’s home.

Employee of the month announcement wording

Swap the brackets for real details. The specific line about what they did is the part people remember.

Slack or Teams
Please welcome our Employee of the Month for [month]: [Name]! [Nominator] wrote: “[one line from the nomination].” Drop a thank-you in the thread.
Email to the company
Our Employee of the Month for [month] is [Name] from [team]. This month [Name] [what they did], which meant [result]. [Name] was nominated by [number] colleagues. Please join me in saying thank you.
All-hands script
This month's award goes to someone who [short hint]. Here's what their teammate wrote: [read the nomination]. [Name], thank you. Come grab your trophy.
Certificate line
Awarded to [Name], Employee of the Month, [month year], for [one specific achievement].
Remote team
Cameras on for a second: our Employee of the Month is [Name]! [Name] [what they did] from [city], and it made [result] possible for all of us. A little something is on its way to your door.
Team of the month
Team of the Month for [month] goes to [team]. Together they [achievement]. Lunch is on us, and the trophy lives with you until next month.

Employee of the month for remote teams

Remote winners miss the applause in the room. Five ways to give it back.

Collect nominations with a form. Link it in the team channel every month so remote people see it.
Announce it on camera. At the monthly all-hands, with the nomination read out loud.
Ship the reward home. A gift, a meal delivery or a voucher that works in their country.
Give it a digital home. A custom emoji, a profile badge and a pinned post for the month.
Mind the time zones. Rotate the announcement time, or post it in writing first.

Alternatives: peer awards and team of the month

One winner a month doesn't fit every team. These keep the recognition and lose the competition.

Peer award of the month. The team votes, no panel. Less formal, more trusted.
Team of the month. Rewards a shared win and avoids comparing very different jobs.
Quarterly values awards. One award per company value, four times a year.
Spot awards. Small, instant thank-yous managers give the day it happens.
Yearly superlatives. Kind, funny titles the team votes on at the end of the year.

For the team of the month: a hosted game on Zoom, or trivia at your office in 17 US cities.

For the yearly version, try our office superlatives. For the everyday version, start with these employee recognition ideas. To fit the award into a bigger plan with milestones and a budget, see how to build an employee recognition program. Get a free quote for a team celebration.