Customer Story

Challenges  

As the company expanded and adopted hybrid work models, it became increasingly difficult to maintain visibility into employee contributions, celebrate major achievements, and nurture a cohesive culture across departments. Recognition was inconsistent, milestone celebrations were frequently missed, and corporate teams lacked a platform to showcase progress, impact, and cross-functional wins. Key challenges included:  

• Siloed recognition practices that varied widely across departments  

• Minimal visibility into cross-functional contributions and project success  

• Lack of automated workflows for celebrating milestones and service anniversaries  

• Limited mechanisms to reward innovation and process improvement initiatives  

• Weak alignment around corporate values and organizational culture  

• Difficulty sustaining engagement across hybrid corporate teams  

Personas involved

An effective recognition transformation required alignment across leadership, HR, and all corporate functions. Personas included:  

• Corporate Teams (HQ & remote) – Recipients of recognition, innovation awards, and milestone celebrations  

• Department Heads & People Managers – Nominated teams, triggered appreciation, and reviewed achievements  

• HR & Culture Teams – Program administrators managing workflows, budgets, and governance  

• Executive Leadership – Sponsored quarterly and annual awards to reinforce strategic priorities  

• ESG & Sustainability Teams – Validated sustainability and CSR-related recognitions  

• IT & Systems Teams – Supported SSO, HRIS sync, and compliance requirements  

Solution  

The organization implemented a centralized recognition and engagement platform that unified celebrations, appreciation, innovation awards, and milestone workflows across corporate teams. Empuls’ AI-powered insights, automated triggers, and collaboration features helped amplify achievements and strengthen corporate culture. The solution delivered:  

• A centralized recognition hub with real-time appreciation feeds across HQ and remote teams  

• Automated milestone celebrations for birthdays, anniversaries, and work milestones  

• AI-powered nudges reminding managers to close recognition gaps and celebrate team achievements  

• Custom award categories reinforcing corporate values, innovation, and sustainability commitments  

• Nomination-based quarterly and annual awards with jury workflows  

• Social intranet functionality enabling cross-functional visibility and collaboration  

• Real-time analytics on recognition trends, participation, and cultural alignment  

Impact  

Within the first 9–12 months, the company achieved measurable improvements in engagement, collaboration, and cultural alignment. Quantitative results included:  

• 45% increase in cross-functional recognitions, strengthening collaboration between merchandising, supply chain, and technology teams  

• 52% faster execution of corporate strategic initiatives, supported by structured project completion rewards  

• 37% increase in innovation submissions, driven by visible recognition and automated award workflows  

• 41% improvement in manager-driven appreciation, supported by AI nudges and recognition insights  

• 34% increase in ESG project participation, aligned with sustainability-driven recognition categories  

• 89% milestone celebration completion rate, improving retention and tenure visibility  

• 28% rise in corporate eNPS, reflecting stronger culture and organizational belonging  

Conclusion  

By digitizing recognition, automating milestones, and embedding AI-powered cultural insights, the company transformed its corporate engagement strategy across the United States. Employees felt more valued, leaders gained a structured way to acknowledge impact, and cross-functional collaboration strengthened—creating a unified, motivated, and innovation-ready corporate workforce.