3.9 years
Median time with the current employer
January 2024, down from 4.1 in 2022. Ages 25 to 34 sit at 2.7 years. At least half of that group never reaches a five-year plaque.
Service Year Awards · Custom design & personalization
Custom Employee Recognition & Years of Service Awards
Recognition that feels personal.
Thank the people behind the work with service awards, team keepsakes and thoughtful retirement plaques. Build a consistent recognition program while giving every recipient a message of their own.
Giftbit, 2025 employee-incentive value
December is 39.2%. August is 13.6%.
Anniversaries fall in every month. The money does not. Companies batch the presentation into a summer event and a year-end banquet. The engraving date is the banquet, not the work anniversary.
Pull the next ceremony’s anniversaries three weeks before it. A five-year-only program misses the people the tenure data actually describes.
Share of 2025 employee-incentive value
3.2%
Jan
3.8%
Feb
3.6%
Mar
4.6%
Apr
8.3%
May
4.5%
Jun
2.9%
Jul
13.6%
Aug
3.8%
Sep
4.5%
Oct
8%
Nov
39.2%
Dec
28% and 24%
Men and women with 10 or more years in the job
A ten-year piece is a minority object. It should not be a larger copy of the five-year gift.
$177
Merchandise per recognition, 2024
Down from $191 the year before. Annual non-cash spend, gift cards included, averaged $921, down from $1,090. Use $177 as the program budget, not as the price of one plaque.
Giftbit Holiday Rewards Index, 2025Bureau of Labor Statistics, January 2024
Choose for your occasion or project
Choose service plaques for career milestones, individual desk awards for recurring recognition and shared boards when the program needs a visible history.
Years of service
Mark each milestone with the correct dates and a personal thank-you.
Team and monthly recognition
Recognize a contribution while keeping a consistent program design.
Welcome and retirement gifts
Make the beginning or end of a role feel personal.
Find your starting point
The collection
Choose the piece for the occasion, compare sizes and materials, then try your own names and wording. We make each order to the design you approve.
Original design concept · plaque
Service Milestone Plaque
Show the continuity behind a career. The service plaque pairs walnut with brushed metal for a service milestone, with the employee's name and years receiving equal attention.
Walnut and brushed metal
Design starting point: 8 × 10 in
$129–$259 USD / plaquePlanning estimate · final price by quote
Explore & personalize
Original design concept · plaque
Years of Service Recognition Plaque
Turn an employment anniversary into a lasting thank-you. A familiar wall-plaque format gives the employee's name, service period and company message a place together.
Walnut with brushed metal plate
Design starting point: 10" x 8"
$69–$159 USD / plaquePlanning estimate · final price by quote
Explore & personalize
Original design concept · award
Employee of the Month Acrylic Award
Build a monthly recognition tradition people can display on their own desks. The acrylic format keeps the person's name prominent beneath the program title.
Clear acrylic
Design starting point: 7" H
$79–$179 USD / awardPlanning estimate · final price by quote
Explore & personalize
Original design concept · plaque
Retirement Appreciation Plaque
Thank someone for the part of a career that mattered to the people around them. This retirement plaque leaves room for a thoughtful dedication alongside service dates.
Walnut, cherry, or mahogany with plate
Design starting point: 12" x 9"
$69–$159 USD / plaquePlanning estimate · final price by quote
Explore & personalize
Original design concept · award
Team Appreciation Award
Celebrate the group effort behind a successful year, launch or difficult assignment. This shared award centers the team name and the achievement they can take pride in.
Acrylic and metal
Design starting point: 12" H x 10" W
$79–$179 USD / awardPlanning estimate · final price by quote
Explore & personalize
Original design concept · award
Clear Acrylic Milestone Award
Recognize a meaningful step in someone's career with a clear acrylic milestone award. The layout can mark training, advancement, service or the completion of an important assignment.
Clear acrylic
Design starting point: 8" H
$79–$179 USD / awardPlanning estimate · final price by quote
Explore & personalize
Original design concept · nameplate
New Hire Desk Nameplate
Give a new colleague a welcome that belongs on their desk. A personalized nameplate makes the first workspace feel prepared for the person joining the team.
Acrylic, metal, or wood
Design starting point: 8" x 2"
$39–$89 USD / nameplatePlanning estimate · final price by quote
Explore & personalize
Original design concept · plaque
Full-Color Photo Recognition Plaque
Keep a shared moment beside the words of appreciation. This photo plaque combines a team image, project photograph or event portrait with a short recognition message.
Wood with acrylic photo cover
Design starting point: 11" x 9"
$69–$159 USD / plaquePlanning estimate · final price by quote
Explore & personalize
Original design concept · plaque
Perpetual Service Recognition Board
Let a recognition program grow in one visible place. The service board organizes names and milestones on separate plates for a shared office or staff area.
Walnut with metal plates
Design starting point: 18" x 14"
$179–$399 USD / plaquePlanning estimate · final price by quote
Explore & personalizeFrom an idea to your piece
Design around the details that matter
Different pieces for different purposes
Years of Service Recognition Plaque
Agree on whether the award displays years completed or the full start-to-anniversary date range. For a ceremony with several milestones, keep the company wording consistent and make the changing service number easy to distinguish.
Team Appreciation Award
Choose a shared display location before choosing the wording. A team-room award can name the whole group, while individual desk versions can recognize each person's role without crowding the main piece.
Full-Color Photo Recognition Plaque
Pick the photograph before deciding how much text to add. A wide group image needs a different layout from a portrait; names should sit below the picture rather than cover the faces people want to remember.
Which buying guide should you read next?
All buying guidesBuilding a recurring service-award reorder file
Separate the reusable service-award design from each cycle’s approved recipients, quantities and delivery allocations so a recurring order cannot replay stale personal data.
Designing long names into an employee award
Preserve the recipient’s approved full display name and adjust the design around it, using actual-size proofs rather than a character limit as a fit guarantee.
Employee photo plaques: separate photo holders or printed image panels
Choose whether the photograph should remain a separate replaceable component or part of the finished recognition artwork, with a clear image window, inscription area and update responsibility.
Five-year and ten-year award tiers compared
Choose a consistent award family, then give each approved service milestone a clear distinction in wording, presentation or design.
Other ways to use this collection
- Service anniversary plaques
- Retirement messages
- Monthly recognition programs
- New-hire desk plates
Plan the delivery destination
Prepare your delivery and receiving details. Available service and timing are reviewed for each order.
Service Year Awards quote
Start a employee recognition plaque quote
For employee recognition plaques, Service Year Awards prices from the award, headcount by milestone, date style, messages, board plates and destinations. A sketch of the employee recognition plaques is enough to start; details are agreed before production.