Hopefully this is an easy question. I am having trouble figuring out how to give my incredible admins a thank you via gifts. They have said no to homemade desserts, which is my usual go-to, and I am having serious trouble thinking of what else to do that's considered appropriate and also just helpful in mind of how much work they do for us professors. I am new at this, so I figured I would ask here as well as quietly solicit suggestions from my colleagues.
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3Gift card for a local lunch spot?A rural reader– A rural reader2026-04-15 23:05:59 +00:00Commented Apr 15 at 23:05
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1Did they go out of their way to do something that is actually not their job? Or did they just do their job, that happens to include "incredible" tasks? I always find it weird to give someone a gift for something that they are already being paid for (after all, they are employees, too, aren't they?). And while that might be a cultural thing... I wonder if your admins feel the same?Sabine– Sabine2026-04-16 15:29:37 +00:00Commented 2 days ago
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4Don't ask. Just turn up with cake. (bear in mind if someone is vegetarian or gluten or whatever restrictions)Criggie– Criggie2026-04-17 00:23:42 +00:00Commented 2 days ago
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1@Criggie I do turn up with cake for the math tea times; I know our admins just bring stuff they often make for the tea times as there is not established system for tea time snacks. So I try to take some of that off their plate once in a while. It's not the same as doing it for them, though, it's a bit more subtle.mathishard.butweloveit– mathishard.butweloveit2026-04-17 01:52:54 +00:00Commented yesterday
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1Bring chocolate from your next foreign trip. Nobody ever rejected chocolate.Wolfgang Bangerth– Wolfgang Bangerth2026-04-17 01:58:18 +00:00Commented yesterday
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2 Answers
In my department, we give them Amazon Discover Gift Cards. I don't think we would do as Ben suggests and invite them out to a meal because they would feel compelled to say yes, even if they don't really want to spend time with us professors in their off time. But the gift card seems to go over well every year. And a physical card that the professors sign with little messages. We do this for the department administrative assistant, for the sysadmin (IT guy), and for the person who cleans our academic space. The department chair takes care of collecting money ($10 per professor for each of the gift recipients), buying the gift cards, and buying the physical cards. We present them during the work day at some pre-determined time where we all say thanks in person.
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5Although I didn't initially specify in my post, I've now specified - any restaurant excursion should be in work time (not off time) so that it is an actual reward that substitutes labour time, rather than being an additional work activity that substitutes leisure time.Ben– Ben2026-04-16 03:49:41 +00:00Commented 2 days ago
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17No, no, no no. Loads of us admin have brains and souls. (I am admin and academic too) and we don't appreciate Jeff Bezos and Amazon and don't want to fund their activities. Do NOT do this.user264330– user2643302026-04-16 07:53:24 +00:00Commented 2 days ago
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4I can only second what @user264330 is saying. Amazon is evil and if at all possible you should not support them. Try a gift card for your local department store or similar instead.Sursula– Sursula2026-04-16 09:56:33 +00:00Commented 2 days ago
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5@Sursula Now that I think about it, it might be a Discover Gift Card, which I think can be spent anywhere that a credit card can be spent. Fortunately, the dept chair handles this every Christmas and every end-of-year. Every member of the department gives $10. We also do gift cards and physical cards for the sysadmin and for the cleaning staff.David White– David White2026-04-16 12:05:14 +00:00Commented 2 days ago
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Depending on the size of the admin pool, it might be worth the person managing the gift cards to provide a list of several options, and let each admin (or other recipient) decide themselves what they'd like. This does put more overhead on the managing person, but would give the recipient a choice. This is under the assumption that these won't be surprises to the recipients, as you said in your original question that they have already rejected homemade desserts so giving them a choice of several "thank you" options could be a way to let them get what they'd like.Milwrdfan– Milwrdfan2026-04-17 20:34:22 +00:00Commented yesterday
Many people have particular things they like to eat and not eat (e.g., some people avoid deserts for health reasons) so perhaps a better option is to take them out to a restaurant and let them decide what they want to order. That has the dual benefit of giving them something they like to eat and it also functions as a team-building exercise where you can all socialise in a recreational setting that is a reward for hard work. (In case it is not obvious, the suggested restaurant outing should occur in work time so that it is a substitute for labour time rather than leisure time.)
Other potential ideas include gift cards, thank-you cards, congratulatory emails, announcements of thanks in meetings, etc.
