The Elvis Award: ControlTek's Employee-Nominated Recognition Program

When two ControlTek VP's needed a new name for the quarterly employee-nominated recognition program, they didn’t want something ordinary.  After all, a special employee deserves a little better than an “Employee of the Month” photo hanging next to the refrigerator in the lunchroom. ControlTek wanted an unique award with a catchy name - something fun to give and receive for a job well done.

So in trying to capture the essence of this award, the VP’s thought about the people who would ultimately receive it.  Words like “hardworking” and “innovative” came to mind, as well as “reliable” and “generally cool to be around.” So the next question was, who or what could they name the award after?  In considering who was cool and hardworking in our culture, many names came to mind (and many were discounted) but ControlTek finally settled on the one American pop-culture icon that was the ultimate in cool: Elvis Presley.  Thus, the Elvis Award was born.

The coolest thing about the Elvis Award is not the name.  It’s the way in which the award is given.  For several years now, ControlTek employees have nominated their fellow employees for going above and beyond the call of duty, consistently performing well and having an overall positive impact on their work environment.  Despite the name, the award has nothing do with great hair and a white jumpsuit. 

The last Elvis Award was actually given to an entire group.  The Mechanical Assembly Department was nominated and selected for their hard work in getting things out the door and organizing their area into a neat and functional workspace.  Way to go Elvis recipients!