The other day I was doing some cleaning out of boxes we still had from when we moved into our house five years ago and I ran across many awards from my newspaper years.

The awards ranged from newspaper design to feature writing and photography. They were a great way for the state association to recognize the work we journalists did and it was a chance for us to see what other newspapers were winning with and push us to do better the next year.

It got me thinking about what types of awards a plumbing company could give out. It would be a fun end-of-the-year way to celebrate your team while acknowledging what they do for your company and the team. 

CLEANEST VAN AWARD

We all know plumbers pretty much live out of their van or truck and we all know they can get messy at times. This award could go to a plumber on your team that keeps his or her work vehicle the cleanest, within reason. 

Are there tools and parts scattered throughout the shelves and rolling on the floor or are they all stored in bins and labeled. Don’t forget to make sure the bigger equipment (cameras, jetters) are put away nicely too and cleaned. How would this benefit your company? 

The clean vans — especially the outside — get customers to notice them better.

CUSTOMER INTERACTION AWARD

Getting positive feedback from customers is something every plumbing company strives for and you could make it an award for your team. Which plumber on staff has received the most positive reviews from customers. 

This would encourage your crew to step up their game when it comes to customer interactions and pushing for reviews after a job is complete. It helps both them (getting the award) and the company (getting the reviews).

SELLERS AWARD

Does the company track how your plumbers do on additional sales? Encourage your team to offer customers maintenance programs or improved fixtures. Whichever plumber has the most sales at the end of the year would get this award. 

It helps your team get more comfortable on the sales side, but also a good boost to the revenue stream for the business. 

OTHER BASIC AWARDS

There’s always ways to acknowledge your team. One easy one is with tenure awards. Honor employees who are reaching milestones with the company — five years with the company, or 10, 15, 20, etc. Those are always great ways to acknowledge the team.

Or recognize anyone who has moved on from an apprentice to journeyman or journeyman to master. 

FOR YOUR TEAM

You don’t have to present big trophies in any of these presentations. Just something as simple as certificates or gift cards to local shops/restaurants, or extra time off, will go a long way in showing your team how much you appreciate what they bring to your company.

Does your company already do something like this? I’d like to hear your ideas. You can email me at editor@plumbermag.com.

Enjoy this issue!