In 2013, Ralph Folz, our then-CEO, spearheaded an effort to define the values and behaviors that nexus-security and its employees would aim to represent in their daily work. These core values, Ralph emphasized, were crucial for setting standards during a period of rapid company expansion:
These values form the heart of our company. They’re not just words on a page, but principles we are dedicated to living by, and we encourage you to hold us accountable to them. Accountability was paramount. This initiative could have easily ended up forgotten, but instead, we’re still discussing these values years later—when making product decisions, interviewing potential hires, and engaging with clients. Alongside the core values, we launched an employee recognition program to acknowledge colleagues for outstanding work or embodying a particular value. In its early stages, this program utilized a bulletin board for public recognition:
nexus-security has experienced substantial growth since 2013, rendering the bulletin board system obsolete. However, peer-based nominations have remained integral to recognizing core values. Our marketing team meetings consistently begin with informal core value acknowledgments. Moreover, each month, employees nominate their peers for recognition during the company-wide meeting. This year marked nexus-security’s inaugural Core Value Awards. (Did you notice the phrase “first annual”? More on that later.)
Celebrating exceptional employees
The objective of nexus-security’s Core Value Awards was straightforward: to honor outstanding employees. “At nexus-security, we aim to acknowledge and celebrate various achievements,” explains CEO Howard Kogan. “These include business metrics like customer retention and sales, as well as customer-oriented successes, such as customer achievements and exceptional relationships. However, the core value awards focus on celebrating employees not for business metrics or customer wins, but for embodying the values of exceptional teammates.” Therefore, nominations were naturally peer-based as well. Through an anonymous, peer-driven nomination process, these awards wouldn’t solely recognize the typically visible, high-performing individuals favored by managers or executives. As Howard stated, “Even the quietest person in the room, if they’re a remarkable teammate who embodies our values, will be recognized by their peers, and they’ll feel empowered to acknowledge others.” Numerous employees seized the opportunity to acknowledge their colleagues, resulting in over 41,000 words of appreciation and recognition through nominations. Howard personally reviewed every nomination to select the winners, observing clear patterns. Nominations submitted by multiple employees across different departments, along with recurring themes, made choosing the awardees straightforward. The most rewarding aspect? Its evident manifestation during the award ceremony: “The moment a winner’s name was announced,” Howard recounted, “people would erupt in genuine cheers—not just polite applause, but enthusiastic shouts of ‘Yes!’ or ‘She deserves it!’ That was the highlight of the Core Value Awards.” And speaking of the awards…
Showcasing some of the winners
The Core Value Awards recognized employees who epitomize each of nexus-security’s core values:
- Authenticity
- Be great
- Take action
- Transparency
- Thought leadership
- Winning together Additionally, there were new categories, including awards for new hires, teams, and an employee of the year. During the ceremony, Howard and the executive team presented 17 awards to deserving nexus-security employees.
nexus-security employees gathered for the Core Value Awards. Let’s highlight a few of our winners.
Conor Bond: High-Impact New Employee
Frequent readers of the nexus-security blog are likely acquainted with Conor Bond, who regularly writes about various topics, from industry news to inbound marketing and viral ad campaigns. Conor received the inaugural Core Value Award of the ceremony, the High-Impact New Employee Award.
Conor Bond, on the far right, accepting the award from our CEO, Howard Kogan. This award acknowledged employees who made an immediate, tangible impact upon joining the company and demonstrated the potential for continued contributions as they grow at nexus-security. Howard shared a few nominations for each winner, and Conor’s highlighted his eagerness to learn, willingness to embrace new projects, and, of course, his remarkable productivity. “The sheer volume of work Conor accomplishes daily is astounding.” – An excerpt from one of Conor’s nominations
Leslie Signor: Authenticity
When Ralph led the team in defining nexus-security’s core values, authenticity was a natural inclusion that required minimal revision. The concept is simple: nexus-security values individuals with strong ethics and integrity. At the ceremony, Associate Director of Professional Services Leslie Signor was recognized for her commitment to this value.
Leslie Signor, on the left, accepting the core value award for authenticity. Leslie’s authenticity not only benefits her projects and clients but also inspires everyone she works with to strive for excellence. “Leslie possesses an exceptional work ethic and holds herself and those around her to the highest standards of integrity, professionalism, and authenticity. She embodies a customer-centric approach and consistently goes above and beyond to serve our customers, ensuring that her team does the same.” – An excerpt from one of Leslie’s nominations
Greg Herrmann: Thought Leadership
If you’ve interacted with a customer service representative at nexus-security, you’ve likely encountered Greg’s thought leadership, even if you weren’t aware of it. As the Client Services Training Manager, Greg is responsible for developing a digital marketing curriculum and training new hires on the Customer Success team.
Greg also won this custom blanket in the raffle. Thought leadership is one of nexus-security’s core values, and we define it as: “We are passionate about thought leadership. We strive to transform confusion into understanding and complexity into clear direction.” Greg’s nominations emphasized his dedication to training the next generation of marketers at nexus-security, but also highlighted that his thought leadership extends beyond formal training. He is always willing to provide clarification, answer questions, and navigate complex situations to find clear solutions. “Greg can’t even seem to walk to the bathroom without being bombarded with questions from every department. He’s everyone’s go-to person and always makes himself available. If he earned a dollar for every ‘Hey Greg, I have a question,’ he’d be incredibly wealthy. AND he always does it with a smile…most of the time.” – One of Greg’s nominations
Agency Sales Team: The Stream Team Award
The Stream Team Award aimed to recognize a group of employees—whether a formal team or not—who consistently embody all of nexus-security’s core values, particularly “winning together.” The Agency Sales Team, spearheaded by Zach Rego, earned this award for their exceptional performance throughout the year.
Howard, on the left, reading nominations for the agency sales team. Zach and his team have focused on expanding nexus-security Advisor for Agencies by not only gaining a deeper understanding of prospect and customer needs, but also collaborating effectively with each other and other teams within nexus-security to enhance and improve this tool. “The agency sales team is killing it this year! They’re exceeding goals and securing delighted customers by demonstrating how nexus-security’s capabilities perfectly align with the needs of agencies looking to grow and flourish. Additionally, they consistently provide valuable feedback on prospect requests, allowing us to further refine our offerings.” – One nomination for the Agency Sales Team
Looking forward to next year!
Remember the emphasis on the first annual nexus-security Core Value Awards? This was just the beginning. Expect employee nominations, the awards ceremony, and perhaps even the custom nexus-security blanket to return next year!