All Branch Topic (ABT) Rewards/Gifts?

[DeadCactus]

I have an NCO who continuously goes well above and beyond. What is the etiquette for appreciative gifts? Is it even done in the military?

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[logos1226]

 

[Monty Python]

Nomination for an achievement medal is great; check with the chair of your local awards committee for criteria and paperwork process. Your department head should know that POC. Another idea is letter of appreciation, signed by a flag/general officer in the chain of command.

 

[DeadCactus]

What about personal gifts? Gift cards, wine, etc.

 

[DrMetal]

What about personal gifts? Gift cards, wine, etc.

Tread cautiously here, you don't want to give the vibe of favoritism. Buying lunch for your entire crew is one thing, giving a personal gift just to one individual might look a little weird.

Recognize him or her with appropriate military award, as suggested above. Make sure you follow the admin trail correctly, it can be cumbersome at times.

 

[colbgw02]

Yeah, there are also monetary caps on how much you're "allowed" to give that are very small. Your NCO would get more out of a ribbon on his/her chest or a 4-day pass than from the $10 Starbucks gift card.

 

[DeadCactus]

Thanks all, this helps a lot.

 

[pgg]

What about personal gifts? Gift cards, wine, etc.

Don't go there.

The only time it's OK to give gifts to subordinates is if all of your subordinates get essentially the same gift at the same time. Always always check with your legal officer on this first. There's a hard (and fairly low) $ limit.

Better options -

1) Submission for awards. Though be aware that there is a perception, at least partly rooted in reality, that a mid-tour award may reduce the odds of the person getting an end-of-tour award of higher rank. Anything you write up in the mid-tour award can't be used for the end-of-tour award. I've known people to ask that they NOT be nominated for an award mid-tour, just that they get bumped up to something better later. This is the Navy/USMC though, where awards are far from universal entitlements. I understand the Army and AF to be a little more free with handing them out.

2) Submission for quarterly local awards like (in the Navy) Sailor of the Quarter. These can be a little easier and faster to get through, and if they don't get selected then 3 months later you can try again. Selection usually comes with a 72 or 96 hour special liberty. As an aside, if you're a dept head, you should be submitting SOMEONE from your dept for these quarterly awards every quarter. It's a fair bit of work but the submission alone demonstrates to everyone that you care about, value, and appreciate their work.

3) Time off. Depending how high up you are in the food chain and where you are, you may have the authority to grant single days of special liberty. Be careful with this too though, because since there's no selection or review board involved it's easy to create the perception of favoritism when you single out people for this kind of reward.

4) If they're getting out soonish, tell them you'd be happy to write references for them, letters of recommendation, etc as they go job hunting or applying for school/training. This is something meaningful and personal you can do.

 

[deuist]

I understand the Army and AF to be a little more free with handing them out.

That is highly dependent upon the commander. When I was deployed doing critical care air transport, the squadron commander decided that no one should receive an award because all of our flying and life-saving was part of the job description and none of us went "above and beyond." There are also some deployed squadrons where it seems like everyone is getting an achievement or commendation medal just for doing their job.

 

[Just Call Me Doc]

I'm not sure how feasible it would be, but how about submitting them for a training course or school which they are interested in attending? (E.g. wilderness medicine, EMT, etc). A motivated NCO may appreciate extra training that could advance their career and increase their qualifications and knowledge.