Make-A-Wish Foundation® of America serves many communities across the United States, and its vision is mighty: to grant the wish of every eligible child. Make-A-Wish manages centralized services that enable life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses, while also supporting families, volunteers, and donors across the country.
Phoenix, AZ
100-249 Employees
The Challenge: As a national office supporting a federated network of 58 independent local chapters, Make-A-Wish plays a critical role to enable life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses, while also supporting families, volunteers, and donors across the country. As Make-A-Wish expanded its talent pool beyond Arizona and embraced a remote-first model, maintaining a strong and connected workplace culture became more complex.
The Solution: Rather than treating recognition as a standalone HR program, Make-A-Wish has built Kudos into the way employees experience culture every day, making recognition feel more personal and human. In a remote-first environment where employees cannot rely on hallway conversations or in-person moments of appreciation, Kudos creates a shared space where values are visible, and recognition can travel across teams.
The Results: Since implementing Kudos, Make-A-Wish has seen measurable improvements to their culture:
Make-A-Wish ensures recognition is not a once-a-year event. Kudos is part of monthly meetings, performance conversations, leadership rituals, peer connection, service awards, and the everyday employee experience.
Impact: Make-A-Wish is a testament to when recognition becomes part of everyday culture; the results are stronger engagement, better retention, deeper belonging, and a team united by a shared mission to grant the wish of every eligible child.
Partnering two purpose-driven brands like Make-A-Wish and Kudos is an inspiring way to highlight what’s possible when organizations invest deeply in people, recognition, and shared values.
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