When it comes to maximizing the impact of their employee recognition programs, HR leaders are always looking for ideas that are not just new but more efficient as well. That desire to do more with less would explain why the uses of badges—symbols that highlight a worker’s competencies and accomplishments—are growing in utilization.

We have all strived to earn badges since we were children—as girl scouts working toward the next merit badge or as high school athletes striving for that cherished varsity letter. These valued symbols have always conveyed achievement, but in today’s corporate world, badges have taken on a wider motivational meaning.