Pioneering Excellence

Madison is a global leader in employee recognition and incentives, pioneering digital programs since 1995. As an employee-owned company, we deliver recognition, events, and incentive travel solutions that strengthen culture and drive results.

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people in a meeting
Designing Sales Meetings That Drive Business Outcomes, Not Just Attendance
Annual sales meetings often represent one of the largest internal investments an organization makes each...
employee traveling
What Actually Drives a Successful Incentive Travel Program After 20 Years in the Field
Incentive travel has never been about the destination. That may sound surprising in an industry that...
employees working together
Sustainability Without Operational Discipline Is Just Messaging
Sustainability is now standard language in meetings and incentive travel. RFPs reference ESG commitments....

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Employee Recognition

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Blog

What Holiday Returns Teach Us About Reward Offerings

Now that the holiday gift giving frenzy is over, only one tradition remains… the returns! Go to any mall and you will see long lines of people looking to exchange the gifts they got for the stuff that they really wanted. What does the holiday returns process teach us about…

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Blog

The Lesson From a Bagel Shop

There it was in plain sight, right next to the list of cream cheese flavors. A simple sign printed in big block letters. “LISTEN TO UNDERSTAND… NOT TO RESPOND” What the heck is that doing in a bagel shop I wondered? So I asked. “It’s an excerpt from The 7…

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boss showing employee something at work
Blog

Are You Naughty or Nice? (As a Boss That Is)

The quality of bosses (and the impact they have on their employees) is the biggest influence on organizational performance. Lousy bosses create confusion and stress; they contribute to higher turnover and lower productivity. When employees leave a company they often cite poor relationships with their superiors. On the other hand…

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people shaking hands smiling working together
Blog

Don’t Commit “Recognition Malpractice”

I was summoned to jury duty the other day. Or should I say I was called to sit in a room for 8 hours waiting to be called. No cases came up and we were eventually dismissed. It got me wondering though, what would happen if you put your recognition…

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people sitting at a table working together
Blog

Is it Better to Give Than to Receive?

“It is better to give than to receive.” That age old axiom tells us that generosity has its own rewards — especially around the Holidays — and that people on the giving side experience just as much (if not more) satisfaction than those on the receiving end. In the context…

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people collaborating working in an office
Blog

Imagine What the “Mannequin Challenge” Might Show You

Have you heard of the Mannequin Challenge? I’m sure you have. In some chosen setting people freeze in place for a few minutes while someone else shoots a video that records the scene. The results can be a lot of fun. And, I suppose, they can also be pretty revealing…

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employee being rewarded with people clapping
Blog

Tapping Into Our Desire to Acquire

Thanksgiving is upon us. It’s a time to reflect and give thanks for all that’s good in our lives. Oddly enough, it’s also become a time to acquire all of the goods we want in or lives. You can’t open a newspaper, watch TV, or tune in the radio without…

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a team working together at a table
Blog

Anything is Possible With the Right Team

Anything is possible when your team shares the same objective. Just ask the Chicago Cubs and their fans both of whom had been waiting over a hundred years for a World Series championship. When the Indians tied the seventh and deciding game with a late inning homer, it would have…

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people working together looking at devices
Blog

The Secret to More Recognition in Two Words

At the end of my last posting I promised to share the secret to implementing a high-performing, high-touch recognition strategy without breaking the bank. So what’s the answer? How do you involve and influence all of your employees without driving up costs? The answer lies in two words — social…

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Blog

No Debating the Value of Employee Recognition

After three contentious presidential debates (not to mention numerous clashes throughout the primary season), we can all finally agree on one thing — we are sick and tired of debates! Fortunately, there is no debating the value of employee recognition. Organizations that consistently recognize their workers have higher levels of…

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Millennials in the workplace
As the economy continues to ebb and flow, Gen Zers graduate from college, and Baby Boomers keep pushing off retirement, we're seeing something new: a multi-generational workforce that includes four generations. While a mixed-gen workplace is nothing new, having four different generations at one time in the workplace is a...
Gen X in the workplace
2023 was a historic year — ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence (AI) novelties took the world by storm, India passed China to become the most populous country, and the workplace became the most diverse in history. As Baby Boomers continue to retire later and Gen Z enters the workforce, we...
The Top 5 Destinations for Incentive Travel in North America

A shoutout in a team meeting, a Starbucks gift card, a pat on the back—they’re all great ways to celebrate a job well done. But when you want to recognize your team for overachieving on something big, like exceeding lofty sales goals, it calls for something better. Go big or go home, right? When your […]

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