Recognition, excitement, and celebration. That’s how I’d describe C&A’s recent annual awards event.
Hundreds of C&A employees converged on the Embassy Suites LaVista to recognize outstanding performers, get excited about our future, and celebrate the accomplishments of our organization over the past year. An entire event dedicated to our employees. It was inspiring and a lot of fun.
Everything from the configuration of our meeting room, to décor and hors d’oeuvres played off of our zen-like theme, “Satori: Enlighten & Ignite” (def. “satori”: sudden enlightenment).
Cy Wakeman, a nationally known writer and speaker kicked things off with a dynamic presentation that challenged all of us to consider whether or not we’re ready to use the abilities and talents we have to seize the opportunities presented to us. She pulled from her personal experience running a marathon and delivered it in her trademark straight forward yet humorous style. I know I was motivated and others I talked with afterwards were as well.
After Cy’s presentation a series of individual and team awards were presented, including our President’s Club, Outstanding Team Achievement, and Employee of the Year awards, among many others.
As employees moved to the post-awards reception, we were greeted by a rumbling “fire and ice” sound and light show. For a while I thought I was in Las Vegas. It was also fun just to mingle the crowd and talk with fellow employees and spouses about the event and just catch up a little.
It’s always amazing how many people work for C&A when you see them all together in one room. It was also a perfect opportunity to personally congratulate the award winners and thank those who worked so hard to organize the event.
As I was driving home, I was glad that our senior management team understood the importance of this recognition event. Even in a tougher economy, when many companies are cutting out the frills and extra expenses, they made sure that employees were recognized for their contributions, understood the vision for our future, and had the opportunity to celebrate accomplishments. I can’t wait to see what this upcoming year has in store for all of us at C&A.
__________________________________________
About Bret Williams: Bret began his career at C&A in 2002 as a recruiting manager. He was awarded C&A’s highest honor of Employee of the Year in 2005 and has continued to grow with the company as it has expanded, now serving as the Director of HR, a position he’s held since 2006. Bret has a bachelor’s degree in HR management is an active member of both The Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the local Human Resource Association of the Midlands (HRAM) organizations. Away from work, family, church, and basketball consume most of Bret’s spare time. He serves as an Elder in his church and volunteers for many of its activities and committees. Bret also coaches girl’s basketball and is currently in his third season as head coach for one of Millard West girl’s feeder teams. When he’s not spending cherished time with his wife and two kids, Bret jumps on his Harley Softtail and goes for a ride or grabs a fishing pole and heads for the lake.
The post It’s a Celebration! appeared first on C&A Industries Blog: Parent company to staffing & recruiting firms (Aureus Group, Aureus Medical Group, AurStaff, Celebrity Staff) as well as AurHomes, and AurTravel. Named Best Places to Work in Omaha for five consecutive years.
