Service Milestones
@Tech
At Georgia Tech, people are our greatest asset. To acknowledge the commitment of our employees and celebrate their accomplishments, the Institute formally recognizes employees’ years of service at one year and then every five-year milestone thereafter.
Service Milestones are Getting a Refresh
The love that Georgia Tech employees have for the Institute is clear in the quality of their work. Now, the way they’re recognized for that service is changing to match employees’ passion.
Milestones Refresh One Pager
Learn about all the major changes to Service Milestones with a one page infographic.
Explainer Article: Why We Stay
Understand changes with an in-depth article, plus a view of three fascinating careers.
Career Milestones Timeline
Explore key events that unfolded throughout the careers of three Milestones recipients.
What to Expect at Each Service Milestone
All full-time benefits eligible employees (staff, faculty, research faculty, and post-docs) who have completed one or five years of consecutive service to Georgia Tech can expect an item of GT memorabilia designed specifically for milestone recipients to celebrate their commitment. It is a token of appreciation for your dedication to Georgia Tech.
Service Anniversary Gift Pickup
Please stop by the Georgia Tech Human Resources building at 500 Tech Parkway any time Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to retrieve your gift. Your gift must be picked up within 3 months of your service anniversary, otherwise it will be forfeited. See the table below for cut-off dates by which you must retrieve your gift.
| Date you reached your service milestone:
If you reached your milestone between these dates, you are eligible to pick up your gift any time until the deadline indicated. |
Deadline to retrieve gift: |
| October 1 – 31, 2024 | December 31, 2024 |
| November 1 – 30, 2024 | January 31, 2025 |
| December 1 – 31, 2024 | February 28, 2025 |
| January 1 – 31, 2025 | March 31, 2025 |
| February 1 – 28, 2025 | April 30, 2025 |
| March 1 – 31, 2025 | May 30, 2025 |
| April 1 – 30, 2025 | June 30, 2025 |
| May 1 – 31, 2025 | July 31, 2025 |
| June 1 – 30, 2025 | August 29, 2025 |
Reception: We look forward to celebrating our 10- and 15-year honorees who have reached their milestone between July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025 at a special reception in the spring of 2025. It is a chance to connect with colleagues, share stories, and celebrate your significant contributions to the Institute. Save the Date notices and event details will be sent to you via email in early 2025.
Service Anniversary Gift:
Our team will provide you with a unique passcode to access the online Georgia Tech Service Milestone Recognition Shop. The shop opens and closes quarterly. See below for when you will be able to select a gift to be shipped directly to your home, or to an alternative address that you provide, free of charge. It’s our way of saying thank you for your years of dedicated service.
|
Date you reached your service milestone: If you reached your milestone between these dates, you will be eligible to select a gift from the online shop between the dates indicated. |
Online Shop Timeline |
| July 1 – Oct. 31, 2024 | Oct. 7 – 27, 2024 |
| Nov. 1 – Dec. 31, 2024 | Dec. 2 – 20, 2024 |
| Jan. 1 – March 31, 2025 | March 3-21, 2025 |
| April 1 – June 30, 2025 | May 1 – 16, 2025 |
Long Service Dinner: We look forward to celebrating our long service honorees who have reached significant milestones between July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025 at a special dinner in the spring of 2025. It is an elegant affair where you can enjoy good company, reflect on your journey, and create lasting memories. Save the Date notices and event details will be sent to you via email in early 2025.
Service Anniversary Gift:
Our team will provide you with a unique passcode to access the online Georgia Tech Service Milestone Recognition Shop. The shop opens and closes quarterly. See below for when you will be able to select a gift to be shipped directly to your home, or to an alternative address that you provide, free of charge. It’s our way of saying thank you for your years of dedicated service.
|
Date you reached your service milestone: If you reached your milestone between these dates, you will be eligible to select a gift from the online shop between the dates indicated. |
Online Shop Timeline |
| July 1 – Oct. 31, 2024 | Oct. 7 – 27, 2024 |
| Nov. 1 – Dec. 31, 2024 | Dec. 2 – 20, 2024 |
| Jan. 1 – March 31, 2025 | March 3-21, 2025 |
| April 1 – June 30, 2025 | May 1 – 16, 2025 |
Employees that retired between July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024 are eligible to attend the 2024 Institute Retirement Celebration on Wednesday, October 16, 2024. More information about what to expect and event details can be found at https://specialevents.gatech.edu/retirement-celebration.
Service Recognition Events
Long Service Dinner
April 3, 2025
10- and 15-year Reception
April 29, 2025
Honorees reaching milestones between July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025 will receive an invitation via email from recognition@hr.gatech.edu.
Digital Swag for Service Milestone Honorees
Frequently Asked Questions
General FAQs
Who is eligible for the service milestone program?
All full-time, benefits-eligible employees who have completed consecutive years of service to Georgia Tech.
How is service measured?
Service is measured with a combination of “institution seniority date” and “benefits service date” job data in OneUSG Connect.
What does “institution seniority date” mean? What does “benefits service date” mean?
Your “institution seniority date” is essentially your hire date at Georgia Tech. Your “benefits service date” is the date you became eligible to receive USG benefits. We use a combination of the two data points to determine consecutive years of benefits eligible service to Georgia Tech.
My original hire date and the month in which I’m receiving recognition aren’t the same. Why?
There are a variety of reasons this could happen, but most commonly it is because an employee started at Georgia Tech as a Tech-temp, affiliate, or part-time employee and were therefore not benefits-eligible.
Example: An employee starts as a Tech-temp in August 2023 but gets hired as a permanent, full-time employee in October 2023. The employee would be recognized for their 1-year milestone in October 2024 instead of August, since that is the 1-year milestone of them being a benefits-eligible employee).
I think my years of service are wrong! Who should I contact?
Contact your HR partner for support. They can work with our job data team to make sure your dates are correct in the system.
I’ve worked in the USG for XX years; why am I only being celebrated for XX years?
We thank you for your years of USG service, but Georgia Tech’s service milestone program only recognizes consecutive years of benefits-eligible service to Georgia Tech.
I’ve worked on the campus for XX years, but I was an affiliate prior to becoming a full Georgia Tech employee (e.g. dining worker, athletics, etc.). Can I be recognized for a higher year milestone?
Unfortunately, we are only able to recognize employees for their consecutive years of full-time employment with Georgia Tech, which would not include time worked as an affiliate. We are aware of the issue this poses for a few departments on campus and are working toward a solution in the future.
Can I get a list of upcoming service recognition anniversaries for my department?
The recognition program manager sends notification emails via Smartsheet on the 26th of each month to managers and HR partners who have employees celebrating a milestone the following month. If your department would like a list further in advance, your HR partner can run the following query in OneUSG Connect so your department may keep track of upcoming milestones in advance: 030_HR_EES_DATES_SERVICE.
I am a manager, and one of my direct reports is reaching a milestone. Am I supposed to do something in person for them? Am I supposed to buy a separate gift for them?
We encourage people leaders to personally recognize the milestone within your department in whatever way is most meaningful to your honoree and fellow colleagues. A shout-out in a meeting or a personalized note are great ideas to get started. Departments do have the ability to develop their own length of service program, but it is not expected or required. Please review the Purchase of Gifts for Employees/Students policy before purchasing gifts.
1- and 5-Year Gifts
How do I receive my gift?
If you recently reached your 1- or 5-year service milestone, you may pick up your gift from the Georgia Tech Human Resources building, at 500 Tech Parkway NW, Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. within the 3-month window communicated to you by email. Please bring your Buzzcard with you so staff can easily find you on our list.
What are the 1- and 5-year gifts?
The 1-year gift is a Georgia Tech coffee mug with a to-go lid.
Five-year honorees may choose between a laptop sleeve or a cooler bag.
I am fully remote or not local and can’t pick up my gift in person. Can it be shipped to my home?
Arrangements can be made to ship gifts to your home if
- You work at an out-of-state Georgia Tech facility OR
- You are a fully remote employee AND live outside of the metro-Atlanta area.
Please contact Mattie Hamilton to make arrangements.
Can someone else pick up my gift for me? Can I pick up a gift for someone else?
Yes, someone else may pick up a gift on behalf of another person. We will document their name, in case there are any issues later.
I celebrated my 5-year anniversary a few years ago (and a 1-year before that), and I never received a recognition gift. Can I come get it now?
Service milestone recognitions may not have existed yet: In 2017, Staff Council began recognizing only staff for their 1-year milestone, and in 2019, 5-year milestone recognitions began. In 2020, the pandemic led to the cancellation of Staff Council’s monthly gift distribution, but staff and their departments were still notified of their honorees regularly.
Gift distribution varied at times: Throughout 2021 and 2022 the Staff Council gift distribution program underwent changes and, ultimately, gifts were distributed at monthly Staff Council Energy Booths, communicated via email to honorees. Gift pick-up rates, however, were low.
The new program and distribution process are underway: In July 2024, GTHR acquired the service milestone program, which did not previously include faculty and postdocs in the 1- and 5-year gifting, nor did it provide tangible gifts for higher years of service until 25 years. The new iteration of the program provides gifts to all full-time, benefits-eligible employees who have completed consecutive years of service to Georgia Tech in 5-year increments. We are, unfortunately, unable to retroactively provide gifts to employees for their previous years of service missed under the old program; however, we look forward to recognizing you at your next 5-year increment!
10+ Year Gifts
How do I receive my gift?
Our team will provide you with a unique passcode via email to access the online Georgia Tech Service Milestone Recognition Shop. The shop opens for a few weeks in October, December, March, and May. The month you reach your milestone will determine when you will be able to access the shop, select a gift, and have it shipped directly to your home, or to an alternative address that you provide, free of charge.
I like the gifts better for milestone levels below mine. Can I select one of those instead?
Yes, your passcode will provide access to view and select a gift from any milestone level at or below yours. Choose the gift option that is best for you.
My passcode isn’t working. What should I do?
Once you’ve entered your passcode on the site, do not exit out of the browser until you have made your gift selection; otherwise, the code will time out and expire. We recommend completing your gift selection in one visit to the shop.
If you encounter any issues accessing the shop or using your personal passcode, please contact Club Colors directly by phone, Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., EST, at 800-249-2582 or by email at help@clubcolors.com.
Can I change my gift selection on the online shop after placing an order?
Once the order is placed, no changes can be made to the order. Be sure the item you select is the one you want.
What is the return policy for the online shop? Can I exchange my gift for something else?
Due to the branded merchandise process and customization, returns will not be accepted, unless products are damaged or logo decoration does not meet the agreed-upon specifications.
What if my gift arrives damaged?
If your item arrives damaged, please reach out to Alexis Bittner at abittner@clubcolors.com. When contacting Alexis, please include images of the damaged item.
What are the delivery options for the Service Recognition Shop? Can I track my order?
UPS Ground will be used to ship your order. Once the order has shipped, you will receive an email with a tracking number, so you are able to track the order until arrival.