‘Tooting the Horn’ of the Awards Guru, now a CRP!

I am usually the last person to self-promote, give myself praise, or anything to that effect.  Believe it or not, it is really quite hard to give myself acknowledgement or recognition for what I do in the world.  I much rather give it to others, in particular my staff, family, friends or customers.  For this article, though, I will break that practice for a few minutes.

I recently completed the RPI (Recognition Professionals International) certification program that allows me to put the initials CRP after my name.  It means Certified Recognition Professional.  Even though the funny side of me wants to find out a cleaver way to drop an A in CRP, I haven’t figured out something suitable…yet.

Besides learning principles, disciplines and best practices, I learned a lot about the rewards and recognition industry.  I am fascinated by how certain businesses apply recognition to a corporate culture and yield tremendous results.  I am also fascinated why, despite a mountain of evidence and ease of application, that more managers and c-level executives are not begging to implement change in their business.  Over the last 4 days (plus several from last year, too), I saw practitioners who were supported by their management and those that weren’t.  Consistently, those who were supported from the CEO on down not only loved their job, but came through with the best effort and results for their company.

I also gained friendships from my fellow classmates that will enrich my life.  Besides the important stuff (food, drinks and laughter), I know feel like I have a support group that will help me when I run into difficulties.  Thanks as well to the RPI staff, instructors, other CRP graduates, and even the staff at the Newport Beach Marriott Resort and Spa.  All of you did a great job in putting together a world-class event.

If your job puts you in the world of practicing recognition or being a resource provider to businesses, please consider the CRP certification program.

If you are looking to partner with an awards supplier who knows far more than the norm, I am your man!  As far as I can tell, I am the first and only retail awards supplier member to become a CRP designee.  My co-workers also know their stuff, too :-).  We are ready to give our best - to serve you with knowledge, tools and products that assist with your recognition needs.

What is the ‘Awards Guru’ doing to change?

Don’t you love referring to yourself in the 3rd person?  As you can image, the ‘Awards Guru’ name is a title - it is not meant to pump up my ego or to make myself look more important to others.  To me, it keeps me centered on the fact that, yes, I am in the awards industry, and yes, I do know quite a bit about awards and recogntion.  Everything?  Not by a long-shot!

To share what is going on in my life to improve my knowledge base, here are a couple of groups that I am involved with:

recognition.org - I am completing my certification in April to be a CRP (Certified Recognition Professional).  I feel this is a great foundation of understanding the essentials of awards programs and their benefits.

ara.org - I am volunteering to be on the education committee for the Awards and Recognition Association.  I feel like there is improvement that can occur in this organization.  My strongest passion is around improving the education of awards and recognition vendors.

Entrepreneurs Association (EO) - Seattle - I will be serving on the EO Seattle board from July 1, 2008 for a 2 year term.  For me, the EO organization fuels my entrepreneurial spirit and helps me maintain a decent work/life balance.

 The new trophies.org.  Ever heard of social entrepreneurship?  Look for good things to come from the new and improved trophies.org in the future!

Hopefully through my energy, desire and expanding knowledge, I will be a voice of positive change for the recognition industry.  I feel like the journey is just beginning…

Announcing our 2nd Quarter ‘Awards for a Cause’ Charity

We are proud to announce this quarter’s ‘Awards for a Cause’ charity - PICC of Kent, Washington.  Each quarter, Trophies2Go.com chooses a charity or cause to rally behind.  This month we are doing so by featuring several products and donating a set amount per item sold to PICC.

To view our current ‘Awards for a Cause’ click http://www.trophies2go.com/charities.

Never heard of Pediatric Interim Care Center (PICC)?  Here is a link and a bit about them.  This is a charity that needs our help today!

The Newborn Nursery, (PICC) is a one-of-a-kind, model program that provides specialized, 24-hour care for drug-exposed and medically fragile newborns. PICC brings babies safely through withdrawal from drugs, including heroin, cocaine, methamphetamines, methadone, and prescription drugs. The pioneering program also facilitates visitation for families, provides caregiver training, follows the babies after they leave, and offers a range of community outreach and education services. PICC is in Kent, Washington, 20 miles southeast of Seattle and is the only 24-hour care center serving drug-exposed infants throughout Washington State.