Thank-yous often depend on which manager notices, and awards drift towards the same visible people. This document sets out how an organisation recognises people fairly: the principles, the schemes from a peer note to a service award, who handles nominations, what it costs and how you will know it works.

The sample follows Lindenhurst Group, a fictional employer with 640 staff and a £38,400 budget, or £60 a head. It shows six award categories, a five-person panel, a quarterly spend chart and a scorecard against a 75% survey target. Replace the categories, criteria, panel, figures and tax checks with your own.