Darcy Jacobsen

Senior Search Marketing Manager

Congratulations on Not Quitting: Work Service Milestones Deserve Better

Your years-of-service program is sending a message. The question is whether it's the one you intend. Most milestone moments land somewhere between "congratulations on not quitting" and a gift catalog that feels like it was curated in 1975. But work anniversaries are actually some of the most psychologically loaded moments in an employee's year — the exact moment they're quietly asking whether the next chapter happens here or somewhere else. This piece makes the case for doing something more with that.

How to Prove Culture ROI in Terms Your CFO Will Care About

Culture ROI isn't one magic number. It's a composite of contributions to outcomes your CFO is already tracking — alignment, productivity, workforce capability, strategic execution. Recognition data makes that connection measurable. Here's how to walk into that meeting with a better map.

52 Reasons to Celebrate Your People This Year (One for Every Week)

The organizations that make people feel most valued aren't waiting for the right occasion. They've figured out that every week holds a perfectly good excuse to say thank you — and they use it. So here's your cheat sheet: 52 real, documented occasions to celebrate your team, from the globally meaningful to the delightfully absurd. One per week. All year long.

Before You RIF: 7 Alternatives to Layoffs in the Age of AI

Boards want to see AI's promise in the OPEX numbers. HR is being asked to deliver. But before you reach for the RIF, there are seven smarter, more human, and more durable ways to realize those efficiencies — drawn from research, from practice, and from a few late-night thoughts about toy boxes and telegraph operators.

15 Ways Recognition Builds A Better Employer Deal

Most organizations think their employer deal is their compensation package. Their employees know better. The deal that actually determines whether people stay, engage, and give their best is lived in thousands of small daily moments — and recognition shapes more of them than almost anything else. Here are 15 ways it does exactly that.

The Case for Flexibility in Volatile Times (and 6 Ways to Spot it in Your Recognition Platform)

When a platform can't adapt to your reality, HR becomes the workaround department. This is the guide to evaluating recognition platform flexibility before you're stuck in the middle of a reorg wishing you'd asked better questions.

The Employee Benefit That Gives Back: Why Recognition Belongs in Your Benefits Strategy

Recognition has a categorization problem. It gets filed under culture, funded like a perk, and cut when budgets tighten – even though the evidence for what it actually does is considerably stronger than most benefits conversations give it credit for. The returns go beyond retention. They go beyond engagement. And unlike almost every other item in your benefits portfolio, recognition gives something back. Here's the case for treating it that way.

Leading Organizational Change Without Losing Your Team

Most leaders approach organizational change by perfecting the what – the strategy, the structure, the communications plan. What they underestimate is the why people move. Neuroscience tells us uncertainty triggers a threat response. Psychology tells us psychological safety is what overrides it. And Workhuman's latest research tells us that recognition – frequent, specific, and tied to strategic priorities – is one of the most reliable ways to build that safety, even in the middle of disruption.

Finding the Leaders You Might Promote Too Late (A Cautionary Tale)

Most organizations assume leadership begins with a promotion. History—and most workplaces—suggest the opposite. Future leaders often start doing the work long before the title appears. The risk? If you don’t recognize those signals early, someone else may.

Your AI Strategy Has a Feelings Problem

In a recent webinar with Eric M. Bailey and Jeff Harry, we talked in part about why so many AI rollouts stall. Not because of the tech, but because employees can’t emotionally invest in the change. Here’s what psychological safety, recognition, and alignment have to do with real AI adoption.

If 10 Historical Leaders Ran Your Recognition Program

What would Julius Caesar, Queen Elizabeth I, Marie Curie, and Harriet Tubman reward if they had Workhuman-level recognition tools? This cheeky thought experiment imagines ten historical leaders running a modern recognition program—and pulls out the surprisingly practical lessons they’d teach us about making recognition specific, credible, inclusive, and useful.

5 Ways Recognition Can Turn Your People into AI Power Users

AI adoption doesn’t fail because people hate change. It fails because the new behaviors never become normal. If you want employees to use AI well (and keep using it), you need more than tools and training — you need reinforcement. In this post, we break down five practical ways strategic recognition turns curiosity into capability: rewarding the right behaviors, building psychological safety, tying AI effort to real business priorities, scaling peer learning, and using recognition as a live signal of what’s actually spreading.

Moving From Taxonomy to Talent Signals: What It Takes to Be a True Skills-Based Organization

Most companies start their skills-based journey the same way: build a taxonomy, map roles to skills, and ask people to update their profiles. It’s a good start — but it’s also where a lot of efforts stall. Because listing skills isn’t the same as proving they exist, are current, and show up in the work that matters. Let's talk about how to move from taxonomies to trusted talent signals by triangulating skills from multiple sources — including peer-observed skill-in-action through recognition data.

Spark to Signal: How an Impactful Recognition Message Becomes Workforce Insight

Impactful recognition isn’t “thanks for all you do.” It’s a specific, honest snapshot of work: who did what, why it mattered, and how it ties to values and goals. In this post, you’ll see how one well-written recognition message can lift a person in the moment, teach a team what good looks like, and—at scale—turn into real workforce insight leaders can act on.

Why Recognition Is the Missing Link in AI Adoption

AI adoption stalls when trust, safety, and alignment are missing. Here’s how HR can use recognition to reinforce behavior – and measure whether it’s spreading.

5 Famously Disengaged Employees in History and the Lessons They Can Teach Us

History is full of “disengaged employees” who didn’t just quit quietly. From Benedict Arnold to Nikola Tesla, these famous malcontents show what can happen when leaders ignore contribution, mishandle talent, or punish good ideas. This lighthearted look at five historical workplace breakups turns their stories into modern lessons on recognition, culture, and talent management—before your own top performers start plotting their exit.

100+ Effective Employee Recognition Words That Work in 2026

Coming up with the right phrasing is often difficult. Here are 101 words to use in recognition when you’re trying to inspire.

6 Famous Thank You Letters: Creating a Culture of Language Appreciation

Creating a culture of appreciation in any workplace is important. Here are six famous letters showcasing the beauty of giving thanks.

Beyond Compliance: How HR Can Help Build a Best-in-Class Safety Culture

Outstanding safety organizations create true commitment among employees and generate a real passion for a culture of safety.

6 Big Mergers That Were Killed by Culture (And How to Stop it from Killing Yours)

Many mergers have failed due to work culture. Here’s how to avoid this fate for your own company.

Recognizing Across Cultures: Scandinavia

Do you know the Law of Jante? Are you schooled on lingonberries and lagom? Do you know how recognition is unique in Scandinavia?

Boundary Theory, Work/Life Balance and Mindfulness

Boundary theory tells us that employees often need help drawing a line between work and life. Mindfulness can help to reduce employee stress.

Social Capital: What It Is & Why Your Employees Need It

Higher social capital results in more access to the resources we need to feel supported, be productive and to have better flow in our work lives.

The Dangers of Employee Silence

Are quiet employees happy employees? Or is employee silence a dangerous sign? How to encourage employees' voices in your culture.

The Advent of the “Social Workplace”

Social platforms are no longer a novelty or distraction in the workplace. They are becoming fundamental to building organizational excellence.

Recognizing Across Cultures: India

How can we recognize and motivate employees most effectively in India?

Recognizing Across Cultures: China

How can we recognize employees most effectively in China?

Is Your Culture Holistic, Monochronic or Collectivist?

Critical things to know about managing employees globally: Are you holistic, specific, monochronic, polychronic, individualistic or collectivist?

10 Questions to Ask Before Building a Recognition Program

Key questions to ask when you are deciding whether to use a recognition vendor or build a DIY recognition solution for your company.

5 Ways to Turn Employee Conflict into a Good Thing

When managed well, the inevitable workplace conflict can be a good thing for an organization and a source of creativity and growth.

The Secret to Respect in the Workplace

Respect is top of mind for today’s workers. Everyone is looking to be recognized and respected for their individual contribution.

Why the Future Isn’t as Scary as You May Think

The future of talent management, and performance reviews in particular, lies the awesome power of crowdsourcing.

Self-Efficacy, Optimism, Resilience and Hope

Self-Efficacy, Optimism, Resilience and Hope are proven drivers of success. What are you doing to build them in your company?

5 Ways to Improve Patient Satisfaction through Recognition

Reasons that the pursuit of excellence in patient satisfaction has become one of the top goals for hospitals, and employee recognition can help.

I am a Special Snowflake

We are all unique, so a one-size-fits-all approach to recognition is rarely effective.

How to Create a Positive Service Climate for Customer Satisfaction

Creating a positive service climate through enablement, training and reward will result in higher employee engagement and boost business results.

Negative and Positive: Finding The Right Balance

Good management will employ negative reinforcement when circumstances are right, and negative feedback when it becomes necessary.

How Written Words Drive Behavior

A look at the history of the written word and how it affects us more than face-to-face communication.

Firing Employees to Improve Culture

Zappos hires for cultural fit. No matter how great candidates are or how much of an impact they might make—if they don’t fit, they’re out.

The Science of Gratitude and Well-Being

Regularly expressing gratitude is demonstrably good for us—and by extension our colleagues— in more ways than you might realize.

Protecting Employees From Organizational Trauma

How to avoid organizational trauma caused by layoffs, mergers and acquisitions, major reorganizations, turnover and more.

8 Cognitive Biases That Will Make or Break Your Culture

Cognitive biases that affect perceptions, affect objectivity, and affect relationships in both positive and negative ways.

How Bad Performance Management Killed Microsoft’s Edge

We review a recent Vanity Fair piece examining Microsoft's failed performance management processes and how it led to the decline of the company.

5 Famously Awful Bosses and Where They Really Went Wrong

We review some of history's worst bosses and how they were brought down. Avoid these pitfalls and keep your employees engaged.