The Role of In-house Magazines/Newsletters in Recognition

I noticed something common across a number of companies which have been around for a long time - since the pre-tech era (no computers and internet). They all had and still publish a quarterly/periodic in-house magazine/newsletter. The in-house magazines sit proudly along with newspapers/magazines in the reception area – some even have them available on their corporate websites available for anyone to download. The next common factor in these newsletters is a few pages dedicated to recognizing employees – those who have won internal awards, those who have completed significant milestones (10 years etc.), those who have had significant life events (marriage, kids), those who have won external awards (e.g. chamber of commerce award, a non-work related award such as an award in a significant music competition), those involved in active community work and even those who have joined the company in that quarter.

I asked an executive who was responsible for publishing the in-house magazine for an organization about his thoughts on the importance of the magazine and the recognitions showcased in them. He told me that other than their big annual employee event, the newsletter was the most significant recognition opportunity used in the company. In their employee surveys, they consistently received feedback that over 90% of the employees took the effort of reading the magazine, 85% indicated that they wanted the magazine to be published in print (they specifically did not want an online only version), 90% felt that showcasing employees and their achievements in the magazine was the most critical purpose of the magazine – even more than the corporate updates. Based on this kind of consistent feedback supporting the magazine, the responsibility for the magazine is now rotated among the executive leadership team on an annual basis, the budget available is virtually uncapped and the quality of the paper and printing is of the highest standards.

Based on what he told me and what I have seen in a few other of these old-world companies, I am convinced that a good & highly credible in-house magazine/newsletter, supported by the leadership team, can be a very potent tool in showcasing & recognizing employees. Infact, this needs to be an integral component of a company’s recognition strategy.