Running a successful Long Service Awards Programme is extremely rewarding for any company, but not without challenges. One of the most important decisions you will make is the hiring of the Award Supplier and a Fulfilment Partner. Do you need an LSA specialist or would any gift supplier work just as well for you?
At Pinnacle, we offer a robust system of backend processes. This ensures that our client’s budget is spent well, that their people love the awards they receive and the whole operation runs seamlessly without our clients losing their minds in worthless coordination and follow-ups. Our systems and processes are indispensable to some of our clients, but not everyone needs a specialist.
To help you determine whether you need an LSA Specialist on board or or not, here are 10 questions to ask yourself. If you answer Yes to three or more, then you need a specialist to run your LSA programme.
Question 1: Are you looking to create a unique Long Service Award for your company within your budget?
— Yes — No
It all starts with what you wish to give your people as they complete precious years at your company. Do you want to go an extra half mile to create something special? OR, do you have a lot on your plate and feel that a regular off-the-shelf award would get the job done just as well?
If you belong to the category who wants custom awards but worry whether you have the budget and time for it, then you need a specialist like Pinnacle. At Pinnacle, no matter what your budget, you can get a Long Service Award for your company that looks unique and is loved by your entire team. With our inhouse design and manufacturing, as well as personalised attention, your needs will be more than fulfilled within your budget! We have performed this service for hundreds of companies and are ready to do it for you too.
Question 2: Do you want 100% replacement for broken and/or missing awards, without the hassle of paperwork?
— Yes — No
A bitter fact is that sometimes things happen during shipping. At Pinnacle we have at times witnessed up to 0.3% of our shipments getting damaged or stolen in transit. This is not a large number for sure, however, it is everything for the person who is receiving that award. Despite great care, there are instances where the award is received broken or even missing from the box. Check out our article on In-transit insurance, which may be helpful for you.
If you work with Pinnacle, we offer 100% replacement for awards received broken or missing, when you inform us within three days of receiving the consignment at your location. No lengthy paperwork is required. Just send us an email within three days of receiving the damaged consignment and we will send out new replacement awards in no time, so your celebrations can take place without any hindrance. We take complete ownership for our products.
Question 3: Do you order more than 200 Long Service Awards annually?
— Yes — No
More number of awards means more data sheets and more logistics. If your requirement crosses 200, then you will need a specially trained team to manage your data and ensure that the right personalised award is delivered to the right location.
At Pinnacle, the smallest LSA programme we manage supplies 3 personalised Long Service Awards in a year. Our largest programme ships 12,000 personalised awards annually, for a single company, to individual home addresses. In total, we have shipped 3 million personalised awards and recognition products in our 22 year history.
Question 4: Do your LSAs have to be delivered to multiple locations, in India or abroad?
— Yes — No
Consistently delivering awards, month on month, or quarter on quarter, across multiple locations in India or abroad, needs a whole different level of planning and execution. It is not something a regular gift supplier company is equipped to handle, unless they have built systems and processes for the same.
We are so confident of our timelines at Pinnacle, we are happy to include a penalty clause as a part of the agreement, if the awards don’t reach the destination, as per our agreed Service Level Agreements (SLAs), then you don’t have to pay us for the trophy. We understand that it is not just about the delivery of awards, but about delivering it on time.
Question 5: Do you want continuity in your award design for at least two years or more?
— Yes — No
“Why is your 5 year award better than mine?” These are unnecessary conversations that surface amongst team members when the LSA designs are changed time and again. Successful service award programs continue the same design for 5 plus years, for it sends a message of consistency and equality.
If consistency in your design is important for you, remember to partner with a supplier who can deliver the same award design, year after year. Best case scenario, work with a manufacturer. The second-best option, work with someone who has strong control over the manufacturing and supply process. Someone who can ensure that your particular design will not go out-of-stock for as long as you need it. Usually, suppliers who import awards from other countries cannot commit to this. For them, award design is dependent on too many factors that are beyond their control.
At Pinnacle, we are a direct manufacturer, which helps us ensure that your awards design will change only when you want it to change. For one of our customers, we have an awards program running with the same design for over 10 years. Their design complements the company perfectly and is popular amongst their employees too.
Question 6: Is supporting ‘Made in India’ a part of your values?
— Yes — No
A lot of companies have embraced the ethos of supporting the local economy and buying products that are made in India (with no compromise in quality or design function, ofcourse.)
At Pinnacle, we hire locally and are proud to contribute positively to increased employment numbers in the country. One of our core missions is to create a significant number of jobs at the blue colour level and pay workers fairly for their effort. It is also worth mentioning that Pinnacle is a 100% women-owned business and 70% women-driven.
Question 7: Do you want a price guarantee for the year with no cost escalations?
— Yes — No
In these volatile times, too many factors can change the price of the awards and services. You may well find yourself in a situation where you are forced to pay an increased price in order to continue supply. Revising budgets mid-way is a waste of time and energy.
At Pinnacle we offer a price guarantee for the Long Service Awards programmes, for that is the right way to run them.
Question 8: Do you want an LSA kit, without the headache of creating one?
— Yes — No
When handing the LSA to the award recipients, are you looking for more than just one award? You have the option of an LSA kit, where the award comes in a beautiful box, with a thoughtful gift added to it. The gift could be something edible, it may be a certificate or a voucher, sometimes it is a gadget. Making and delivering an LSA kit does bring in added coordination and logistics, especially when the delivery is required consistently, on time, month after month. In such a case, you need an LSA specialist working for you.
More than 30% of our larger Long Service Awards Programmes use an LSA kit. We create for our clients customised branded gift boxes containing the award and other thoughtful gifts that make the LSA experience even more pleasing. We get reports that the award recipients love opening the box and finding the awards and goodies. If this is the direction you wish to go in, then you need a specialist like Pinnacle. Our design and production teams can create an amazing LSA kit in any budget.
Question 9: Would you like to interact with one person, a single point of contact who will handle all design, production, dispatch and billing for you?
— Yes — No
More the people, more the departments, means more communication and more alignment. Would you like everything to be simple and managed at one contact point?
That is the experience you will get at Pinnacle. At the backend, we have built a robust team to support the one person who answers to you. You are guaranteed a seamless experience. This also reduces the chances of inadvertent errors, delays and missed communication.
Question 10: Could you have last-minute changes in datasheets and/or need shipping information to be changed and still like the deadline to be met?
— Yes — No
In an ideal world, all the moving parts of the machinery will work smoothly, every person would do their part perfectly and on time and there will be not a single hiccup. But that is not how life works! While hiring an LSA supplier, you would be well served to ask how your supplier’s team is prepared to handle last minute changes and requests and if it could delay the delivery.
At Pinnacle, we have over 22 years created a seamless system that is entrenched in ground realities. As a result, we are able and happy to accommodate changes up until the very last minute before your award ships, thereby giving you more control and flexibility.
To wrap it up, let us collate your scores now. How many ‘yeses’ have you collected above? If more than 3, then you need an LSA Specialist who is as committed to making your LSA Programme successful as you are. If you work with Pinnacle you get the added advantage of a partner who will work in your budget and is determined to make a memorable LSA that your employees will be proud to display, online and offline.
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Pinnacle is an industry leader in Awards & Recognition, committed to bringing a culture of appreciation to the workplace, so that every employee feels valued. Since its inception in 2000, Pinnacle has served over 3000 brands, shipping over 3 million customised awards and gifts to 41 countries.
Connect with us for your Awards and Gifting Needs, we would love to hear from you. To learn more about Long Service Awards, please visit our website Or simply Call or Whatsapp us at +91 98105 05171.
For domestic orders please email krishna@pinnacleworks.com
For International orders please email mansi@pinnacleworks.com
