Product News for Culture Cloud

What’s New in Q2 2025

Now you can do even more to empower employees around the globe with Culture Cloud®, our market-leading recognition platform. We’ve made updates this quarter that will help employees claim awards in exciting new ways, access the platform more easily, and stay connected to a culture of appreciation.

NEW Ways to Earn and Claim Awards

Buy Up

You asked—and we listened. With our new Buy Up feature, employees can now purchase extra points to get the reward they really want, right when it matters most.

When the cart total exceeds the available points balance, users will see an option to buy extra points with a credit card. Any unused points expire after 30 days and will automatically be refunded.

  • No transaction fees
  • Secure third-party payment processor
  • Fully scalable for global teams
A gif walking through the buy-up points process on O.C. Tanner's Culture Cloud

Multiple Stores and Point Banks

Create tailored award store experiences for different programs, groups, locations, or events. With Culture Cloud’s multi-store functionality, you can segment recognition by wellness programs, safety initiatives, onboarding, sales contests, and more—all while managing budgets more precisely with dedicated point banks.

Integrate Your Wellness Program/LSA with Recognition

Now you can connect wellness programs and Lifestyle Spending Accounts (LSAs) directly to recognition. Use multiple stores to curate wellness-focused catalogs or integrate with trusted partners like Personify Health. Our ‘points for service’ model supports both engagement and wellbeing.

External Recognition (Beta)

Customer-facing employees are critical to many businesses but often don’t receive the recognition that would help them feel more appreciated and engaged in their work. This can contribute to high rates of disengagement and turnover in these jobs.

With External Recognition, customers, patients, and clients can recognize your frontline employees for outstanding service. Positive feedback for your employees also becomes a valuable source of customer testimonials and insights.

  • Easy for customers to use
  • Boosts employee morale
  • Offers valuable insights into service delivery
  • Strengthens your brand
  • Secure AI message enhancement (optional)

‍

Easier Access for Deskless Employees

We have new tools to reward deskless employees, who don’t have regular access to computers and who represent nearly 80% of the workforce. These employees are often underserved in accessing company recognition programs.

Easy Redemption with Offline QR Codes

Redemption is now just a scan away. Use offline QR codes to let employees redeem points instantly from their phone in the Culture Cloud Mobile App. Codes auto-populate, for a smooth, intuitive redemption experience that reduces errors and helps deskless employees feel appreciated and rewarded.

‍

Non-Federated Login (Beta)

For teams without Single Sign-On, our Non-Federated Login makes it easy to access Culture Cloud securely. Employees can log in with just a username and password—whether they have an email account or not—no other authentication system is required. It’s a great solution for deskless employees.

Enhanced Integrations

Culture Cloud is easier than ever to access within the natural flow of work. We’ve improved our integrations with Slack, Microsoft Teams, and SharePoint, all of which can be accessed remotely.

We are continually expanding our integration capabilities, which include standout partnerships with Zebra’s PartnerConnect, Personify Health & Wellness, and our Workday Gold Partnership. More ways to recognize, seamlessly embedded in your flow of work.

‍

Enhanced User Experience

Social Wall enhancements

New filters and a persistent navigation bar make it easier to scroll and find what you need on the Culture Cloud homepage. Recognition should be joyful, not hard to find.

Other Enhancements to Culture Cloud

  • Clear alerts when givers reach their point limits
  • Easy visibility into point expiration
  • Refreshed eCard library
  • Symbolics and branded Lucite awards now available in Culture Cloud, rings and emblems coming soon

Recognition Coach

Since its launch earlier this year, Recognition Coach, our generative AI tool, has helped thousands of employees around the world craft meaningful, effective messages of appreciation, based on recognition best-practices.

Created by the O.C. Tanner Institute and trained on 100 million recognition moments, Recognition Coach picks up on tone, grammar, and phrasing—offering suggestions that users can accept, edit, or ignore.

The result? Better communication, deeper appreciation, and stronger culture.

‍

To learn more about what these exciting new features can do to support your workplace culture, please reach out to your O.C. Tanner representative or Client Success team.