Quick Start Guide for New Employees
First-day steps: log in, understand points, give recognition, redeem rewards, and get help.
Who this is for:
Employees who just received a PraisePal invitation and want to get oriented.
Your company uses PraisePal for peer recognition — teammates acknowledge each other's work and, in most workspaces, attach points that can be redeemed for rewards. This guide covers the essentials so you can find your way around and send your first recognition in a few minutes.
What you'll see when you log in
After you accept your invitation and sign in, you land on Home — a unified activity feed with recognitions, celebrations, and program posts from your workspace. You can react to and comment on most posts.
Three things to notice right away:
Header bar (top right) — Shows your Allowance (points you can give away) and Earnings (points you've received and can spend on rewards). These are visible on every page.
Create Post — A button at the top of the Home page. This is how you send a recognition.
Sidebar — Navigate between Home, Incentives, Rewards (Gift Cards, Custom Rewards), and Account settings.
Use the Filter Posts menu on Home to narrow what you see:
Post type — All, Recognitions, Celebrations, or Programs
Relevant to me — Posts you gave, received, or commented on
My Teams — Activity involving people on your teams (when your workspace uses teams)
Two types of points
PraisePal uses two separate point balances:
Allowance is what you give away. Your workspace loads a fresh Allowance at the start of each month. Any points you don't give before the month ends are lost — they don't carry over. You can see your remaining Allowance in the header bar.
Earnings are what you receive when someone recognizes you. Earnings don't expire. They accumulate until you choose to spend them on a reward.
For the full breakdown, see How Points Are Earned and Tracked.
Send your first recognition
Click Create Post on Home. Choose a teammate, write a short message (at least 10 characters) about what they did, optionally attach points from your Allowance, and send. The recognition appears in the feed immediately and the recipient is notified.
For a detailed walkthrough of each step, see How to Give a Recognition.
Redeem a reward
Once you've accumulated enough Earnings, open Rewards in the sidebar. Browse gift cards or custom rewards your company has set up, pick one, confirm the point cost, and you'll be notified when it's ready.
For the full steps, see How to Redeem a Reward.