Cineplex and Achievers Recognized by Brandon Hall Group for Blockbuster Employee Recognition and Guest Satisfaction

Cineplex’s Achievers-powered “Encore” program links frontline behaviors to improved NPS across Cineplex locations

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Achievers, the world’s most utilized recognition and reward software that engages nearly 5 million employees every day across 190+ countries, and Cineplex, a top-tier Canadian brand that operates in the Film Entertainment and Content, Amusement and Leisure, and Media sectors, today announced their joint win of a Brandon Hall Group Excellence in Action Award for driving innovation in recognition and feedback. This award honors Cineplex’s Achievers-powered “Encore” recognition program for building great behaviors across Cineplex’s field team members, ultimately translating into higher guest satisfaction.

Cineplex prides itself on delivering exceptional guest experiences, but this can be incredibly difficult amid seasonal peaks. Rather than accepting these fluctuations as the norm, the Cineplex team addressed this challenge head-on by launching a customized recognition module, specifically designed to celebrate the four behaviors most closely linked to guest satisfaction:

• Auditorium experience
• Cleanliness
• Food and beverage quality
• Speed of service

This approach allowed the Cineplex team to use recognition to set clear expectations for employee behavior, reinforce what excellence looks like, and ensure every worker felt seen, heard, and motivated during the company’s busiest periods.

Across its widespread network of entertainment venues, Cineplex leaders delivered recognition biweekly through a weighted scorecard, praising both top-performing locations and those showing meaningful improvement. By rewarding improvement as well as excellence, the program ensured all teams were working towards the same guest experience goals. As a result, adoption rates across the organization soared:

• Cineplex’s manager activation rate reached 97%
• Employees shared over 375,000 recognitions
• 75% of workers received at least one recognition per month

As recognition increased across teams of all performance levels, net promoter scores (NPS) grew year over year (YoY) at 85% of Cineplex’s location-based entertainment venues, and 64 exhibition locations improved NPS YoY, with top-performing sites achieving NPS increases of up to 40 points. Additionally, nearly every participating location reported measurable improvements in cleanliness and speed of service.

“At Cineplex, delivering an excellent guest experience at scale is always our top priority,” said Jose Halupa, Executive Director of National Operations at Cineplex. “To meet this goal, no matter the season, we realized we needed a recognition strategy that clearly defines and celebrates the many actions and behaviors that add up to an unbeatable guest experience. By recognizing growth alongside top performance, we built a program that not only celebrates great behaviors but fosters healthy competition, ensures no team gets left behind, and reinforces our shared commitment to making our guests happy.”

“Achievers Workforce Institute (AWI) research shows that employees who receive frequent, meaningful recognition tied to specific behaviors are up to three times more likely to feel productive and understand what’s expected of them,” said David Bator, Managing Director of AWI. “Cineplex’s recognition strategy reflects this research in action by creating real connection, linking employees to the behaviors that matter most and aligning teams around a shared purpose. When recognition is embedded into workplace culture like this, outstanding employee engagement and business performance follow.”

The 2025 Brandon Hall Group Excellence in Action Awards™ program recognizes organizations of all sizes and industries that are committed to enhancing employee engagement, fostering a people-centric culture, and enhancing productivity through employee feedback. Entries were evaluated by a panel of veteran, independent senior industry experts, Brandon Hall Group analysts, and executives based upon these criteria: initiatives, measurable impact, key metrics, employee testimonials, and organizational impact stories.

“What sets the Excellence in Action Awards apart is our rigorous, independent evaluation process focused on real organizational impact,” said Mike Cooke, Brandon Hall Group™ Chief Executive Officer. “Our judges assess each entry based on measurable improvements in employee experience, culture, and performance. The organizations recognized this year have set a new benchmark for empowering their people and driving meaningful, sustainable change.”

This win marks one of several Brandon Hall Group awards Achievers recently received. In addition to the Excellence in Action Award with Cineplex, Achievers was also honored in the 2025 Brandon Hall Group Excellence in Technology Awards for Best Advance in Rewards and Recognition Technology. This bronze win recognized Achievers Intelligence, a suite of AI-powered innovations designed to enhance employee recognition and engagement to maximize customer impact. Achievers also earned a second Excellence in Action Award with Center Parcs UK & Ireland. This accolade celebrated Center Parcs for its Achievers-powered RecogniseMe program, which enhanced employee retention, connection, and morale across Center Parcs’ workforce, which operates mostly offline. This helped the iconic hospitality brand build a workplace culture that celebrates excellence at every level of the business. Together, these three Brandon Hall awards highlight Achievers’ commitments to innovation and supporting diverse organizations with recognition strategies that drive culture, engagement, and business outcomes.

A complete list of this year’s winners, along with past recipients, can be found at https://excellenceawards.brandonhall.com/winners-2/.

About Cineplex

Cineplex (TSX:CGX) is a top-tier Canadian brand that operates in the Film Entertainment and Content, Amusement and Leisure, and Media sectors. Cineplex offers a unique escape from the everyday to millions of guests through its circuit of 170 movie theatres and location-based entertainment venues. In addition to being Canada’s largest and most innovative film exhibitor, the company operates Canada’s favourite destination for ‘Eats & Entertainment’ (The Rec Room), complexes specially designed for teens and families (Playdium), and an entertainment concept that brings movies, amusement gaming, dining, and live performances together under one roof (Cineplex Junxion). It also operates successful businesses in cinema media (Cineplex Media), alternative programming (Cineplex Events) and motion picture distribution (Cineplex Pictures). Providing even more value for its guests, Cineplex is a partner in Scene+, Canada’s largest entertainment and lifestyle loyalty program.

Proudly recognized as having one of the country's Most Admired Corporate Cultures, Cineplex employs over 10,000 people in its offices and venues across Canada. To learn more, visit Cineplex.com.

About Achievers

Achievers' recognition and reward software provides powerful tools to help business leaders shape employee behaviors and drive real business results. Visit us at www.achievers.com.