Obviously, the key objective of any employee recognition program is to keep the employees motivated and engaged. Hence, enhancing the fun element of these programs can prove to be a simple yet effective way to make the employees feel appreciated and happy. So, here are a few guidelines that can help organizations come up with a great fun awards program: 1. Be as Creative, Innovative, and Wacky as possible Since the entire focus of fun awards is being as wacky and funny as possible; it is important that this is reflective of all aspects of the program. So, from the award categories, to the titles of the awards, the nomination criteria, and even the process of recognition should be innovative and creative. Hence, the awards should focus on recognizing the quirky and interesting traits of employees that only few co-workers might be aware of. 2. Seek the Involvement of the Employees The organization should seek ideas and inputs from their employees while deciding on the fun awards and titles. So, this could be achieved by getting together a group of employees to brainstorm on the ideas for fun awards. Hence, making the process of deciding on the fun awards inclusive in this manner can go a long way in enhancing employee engagement and their involvement in the program. 3. Be sensitive about Cultural Nuances Organizations need to ensure that the fun awards they choose do not embarrass the employees rather than entertaining them. Also, the awards should never make fun of the ethnicity, religion, gender, national origin, or other such aspects. Organizations should keep in mind cultural sensitivities of their employees while deciding on the fun awards program to avoid hurting their sentiments.   4. Use a Digital Platform for Implementation A digital employee recognition platform such as HiFives should be leveraged to make the implementation of the fun awards program easy and ensure a high level of employee experience. Hence, the digital platform should make the process of recognition, communication, and rewarding simple, seamless, and easy. Social features such as a digital wall of fame, likes, comments, leaderboards, etc. can help in enhancing the employee experience. Additionally, reward points given along with the fun awards can be redeemed for electronic gift cards, driving greater participation and engagement. 5. Develop a Calendar for Fun Awards Also, it might a good idea to create a schedule for inviting nominations and announcing the winners for the fun awards. For example, every fourth Friday of the month can be called a ‘Fun Friday’, ‘Freaky Friday’ or ‘Fantastic Friday’. So, nominations could be accepted through the week and the winners could be announced on that Friday. 6. Communicate to Drive Participation Additionally, regular, engaging, and peppy communication can help drive participation for these programs. Digital means of communication such as email, Teams/ Slack channels and WhatsApp groups can be leveraged to build up the excitement for these fun awards.