Time flies when you’re having fun, and our time at SHRM in Chicago last week seriously flew by. From walking the show floor and talking to inspirational HR heroes to enjoying evenings out on the town with our team, SHRM was a success.

It’s hard to recap such an amazing week, but I’ll do my best by sharing some of our #SHRM24 highlights.

Building a Culture of Appreciation 

Reward Gateway had a great SHRM 24 conference. See you next year!Ryann Redmond and Sara Gotham stole the spotlight with their presentation “Building a Culture of Appreciation” on Monday, June 24th. Together, they discussed: 

      • The Power of Appreciation: Understanding the impact of recognition and appreciation on employee engagement and productivity.
      • Tools for Wellbeing and Connection: An overview of our suite of wellbeing and experience tools, highlighting how they support employee health, wellbeing, and interpersonal connections.
      • Practical Implementation: Strategies for integrating appreciation into daily work routines and making it a cornerstone of your organizational culture.

Missed the presentation or just want to relive it? Then join their webinar on July 17th. Register here.

P.S. Don’t forget to check out the videos recorded at our Appreciation Station!

Hot off the presses

There is no time like SHRM to release new research.

On Sunday, June 23rd, we launched our newest report Recognition’s role in wellbeing: Fostering a culture of appreciation. In this report, we cover:

  • How recognizing employees improves their overall wellbeing
  • What defines a total employee experience strategy
  • Why recognition is not appreciation, but still a critical element thereof

Make sure to download, read the report and share with your team!

Step-by-step

Our Chicago-themed step challenge received a cumulative 1.8+ million steps throughout the conference. That's over 800 miles!We ran a Chicago-themed virtual race through our wellbeing app during the conference. It was a great opportunity for some healthy competition and friendly banter in the chat. Our top-stepper walked away with a Hatch alarm clock, second prize was a fitbit and third price was a humidifier/essential oil diffuser. We had a total of 42 challenge participants and, as a group, we collectively logged 1,822,239 steps and just over 818 miles! 

Team bonding

Since our team is dispersed across the US, it’s hard to get a lot of time together.

Nothing to cure that like spending 3 days straight together in a 20x20 space.

We enjoyed time together at the expo hall, as well as dinners (and maybe a few drinks) out on the town. Our sales and marketing teams got a chance to learn more about each other, talk to HR heroes together and strategize for the future. 


Thank you everyone for a successful and fun SHRM. If you want to learn more about Reward Gateway and how we can enhance your employee experience, book a demo with our team. And as always, we look forward to seeing you all next year in San Diego!

Talk to an Engagement Consultant »

Kristin Bassett

Kristin Bassett is Reward Gateway’s U.S. Marketing Director and manages a team of specialists to expand our reach and make even more of the world a better place to work. Kristin lives in the Boston area, loves to knit, and is a plant mom to 50+ houseplants.

U.S. Marketing Director

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