Марія Бровінська 10 November 2026, 10:20

Dinosaurs, corgi towels and an ounce of gold. How IT companies come up with gifts for their teams, and why a multibrand gift card is a brilliant gift idea

A corporate gift can be much more than an item with a company logo on it. It’s a way to celebrate a colleague’s many years of work, congratulate them on an important event or support them through a difficult time. But finding a gift that will truly make an employee happy is only part of the job. It still needs to be purchased and delivered, especially if the team works in different cities and countries.

Ukrainian IT companies are gradually moving away from universal kits. Gift programmes are becoming more personalised, practical and focused on specific occasions. At the same time, businesses are looking for ways to make such initiatives not only enjoyable for the team, but also easy to administer.

In this partnership project with giftmall, we explore what IT professionals receive today, how companies organise rewards and how digital tools can help.

About giftmall

giftmall is an international provider of gift card solutions for businesses and users. Founded in 2013, the company evolved from a single gift card catalogue to an ecosystem of products and services for simple, accessible and effective corporate rewards. After 13 years on the market, led by the principle of win-win partnerships, giftmall has earned the trust of 2,000 clients and 1,000 brand partners.

From a silver coin to a MacBook: how companies celebrate seniority

Everyone is interested in what IT get as rewards. At Railsware, gifts depend on the occasion. On work anniversaries, the company presents certificates and symbolic awards: for example, after three years, a colleague receives a gift card for books, and after five years—a silver coin. For the Christmas holidays, they invent a new concept each year: among the successful formats, the company mentions a corporate Advent calendar that combines physical gifts with digital surprises. For offline meetings, they select gifts based on the event theme or participants' practical needs. For example, for a meeting in Sopot, Poland, the team prepared a bright towel with a hood shaped like a corgi — the unofficial mascot of Railsware. The thing came in handy on the coast.

At Sigma Software, gifts for seniority have a clear gradation. After a year of work, an employee receives a branded sweatshirt; after three years, a hoodie; after five years, a backpack and an umbrella. After that, the company offers not only merch but also a choice of equipment: for eight years, you can choose Sony headphones, an action camera or a player; for ten — an Apple Watch, Garmin Watch or MacBook Neo. For the 15th anniversary, they receive an iPad or iPhone; for the 20th anniversary, a MacBook.

This approach lets them celebrate long-term cooperation not just with a symbolic souvenir, but with something the person chooses based on their needs.

However, what if a company doesn’t want to guess at a gift for each employee or has hundreds of recipients? One option is a multibrand giftmall card.

Multibrand gift card from giftmall

This universal card lets the recipient exchange it for gift cards from over 300 brands in Ukraine. The catalogue has over 30 categories — from electronics and groceries to books, clothing, beauty and entertainment. You can split the amount across several brands, and if it’s not enough for the purchase, you can pay the difference from your own funds. The gift card is available in digital and physical formats. The company can add its own message, logo and personalise the gift and greeting cards. That is, instead of choosing one thing for everyone, the employer leaves the choice to the receiver.

Not just merch: a gift should match the person’s preferences

Personalisation is a notable trend in corporate gifting programmes. For example, SoftServe is gradually moving away from conventional branded souvenirs in favour of practical, durable and eco-friendly gifts. The company has a global Welcome Pack and Anniversary Program. Gifts include technological accessories, gadgets, household items and clothing. More Ukrainian manufacturers are also appearing in the selection: SoftServe cooperates, in particular, with SYNDICATE, Turbat, KEEP and the social brand Vbrani.

Even the usual things may remain in demand. The company says employees continue to choose backpacks, and the Stanley thermocup remains a popular gift. Another option is to direct its value to a charitable contribution to the corporate fund instead of a physical gift.

Ciklum also moved away from giving everyone the same annual gift. Now employees can choose from several options. The company combines corporate merch, commemorative gifts for important anniversaries, themed boxes and digital gift cards. For example, for St. Nicholas Day, they chose books from Ukrainian publishers for their colleagues’ children.

Pingle Game Studio emphasises that gift quantity matters less than relevance. On average, employees receive three to five gifts per year, not including emergency assistance. The company congratulates colleagues on birthdays, professional events, marriages and the birth of children, and also prepares gifts for employees’ children. Options include thin, branded accessories, backpacks, gadgets and digital gift cards. But the company does not consider impractical merch that ultimately sits idle a good solution. “Our goal is not to improve the volume of gifts, but their relevance, that is, compliance with people’s expectations, and to save resources for truly critical situations,” Pingle Game Studio explains.

A similar logic applies to digital gift cards: the company sets the budget, and the recipient chooses the brand and category. giftmall has provided the opportunity not only to send a multibrand gift card, but also to personalise the greeting. The digital card is sent via email, and the physical one can be ordered with delivery.

Gifts are also a process that needs to be organised

At Levi9, Marketing and Talent Management jointly manage corporate gifts. The latter team generates requests — for example, for children’s hoodies or gifts for a work anniversary. Marketing finds contractors, develops concepts, manages production and packs and ships orders. The company celebrates colleagues’ fifth and tenth work anniversaries, the birth of children, Christmas holidays and Levi9’s own anniversaries. Separately, the employer prepares welcome merch for newcomers, prizes for internal event participation, and gifts for colleagues serving in the military. When choosing gifts, Levi9 focuses on feedback in chats and communities — the company’s approach has gradually shifted from mass standard gifts to more unique and thoughtful formats.

When gifting occasions are frequent, and the team is spread across countries, organising gifts becomes a separate operational task. At SoftServe, where about 90% of employees mostly work remotely, the global concept and standards of gifting programmes are combined with local adaptation. At Ciklum, separate managers are responsible for different regions and work with local suppliers. At Levi9, a special service in Poland is used for foreign colleagues, and where physical delivery is not possible, gift cards are sent via available platforms.

At EPAM Ukraine, processes are mostly automated. For new colleagues in other countries, we provide a welcome pack with a backpack and a thermos. Other gifts depend on internal events, recognition programmes and requests from project teams. If the company can’t deliver a physical item, it uses gift cards on available platforms.

For businesses, this means you need to consider not only the cost of the gift itself, but also purchasing, packaging, storage, delivery, re-shipments, and the time the team spends coordinating it all.

From gifts to bonuses: how digital rewards work

A birthday or anniversary gift is just one scenario for corporate rewards. Another is regular incentives for results: meeting KPIs, participating in internal projects, recommending a candidate or attracting a new client. Such mechanics can work not only for employees, but also for partners and distributors.

giftmall has a business account for this purpose, through which a company can send gift cards en masse or earn points for achieving certain indicators. The recipient accumulates them and independently exchanges them for brand gift cards from the catalogue.

One scenario is peer-to-peer recognition. For example, a team leader or employee receives a pool of points, called kudos, every month and can use them to recognise colleagues for their help or collaboration. Another option is to reward participation in internal competitions, hackathons or referral programmes. For candidate recommendations, employees can earn a bonus after the new hire completes a probationary period.

For partners and distributors, the mechanics are similar: the company sets the programme terms, and the reward amount may depend on the result.

This allows you to use giftmall cards not only as a holiday gift, but also as a tool to stimulate sales or fulfil plans.

If a business wants to automate reward issuance, it can connect the giftmall catalogue to CRM, HRM or its own loyalty program via API. Then the gift card is issued once the specified condition is met, without manually placing an order each time. For companies that want to maintain their own identity, giftmall offers white label — a personalised gift card catalogue with selected brands, a logo, a banner and program rules.

How digital gift cards help reduce manual work

The operational costs of gift giving can be much higher than you think at the planning stage. You have to collect addresses, check clothing sizes, purchase items, package and deliver them. If something doesn’t go according to plan, you face reshipments and additional costs.

giftmall cites an example of a Ukrainian product IT company with a hybrid team of 250 people. Before the process change, People Operations spent up to 40 hours per month coordinating addresses, clothing sizes for the welcome pack and deliveries across Ukraine. The company simplified the set for beginners: it left the basic merch — stickers and a notebook — and added a digital multibrand gift card. The company automated birthday and anniversary greetings through its giftmall business account.

According to the service, the HR team’s time spent administering these greetings has dropped from several days to 15 minutes per month.

In another example, an IT company with about 400 employees planned to spend UAH 1,200 per employee on a New Year’s gift. The items included glass thermocups and sets of delicacies. However, repeated deliveries, disruptions, and spoiled products raised the actual cost to almost UAH 1,900.

Another case study cited by giftmall is a financial company with over 1,200 employees across Ukraine. Previously, preparing physical gift sets took three weeks and involved four people from HR and the administrative team. Logistics and packaging accounted for about 25% of the budget.

After switching to digital multibrand cards, the service says time and operating costs have dropped by 90%, and issuing 1,200 gifts takes a few minutes.

giftmall also notes that the business account does not require integration for basic use: the company can independently manage orders, send gift cards and accrue points. If you need to connect the catalogue to internal systems, an API is available. According to the service, the team provides technical documentation within 24 hours, and integration by the client’s technical team usually takes three to seven business days.

How to send gift cards to companies via giftmall: instructions

1. Determine the format and needs. A personal giftmall manager helps the company choose the occasion and type of gift: a multibrand or a single-brand gift card. At this stage, they also determine whether a technological solution for mailings is needed: a business account, API or white label.

2. Agree on the budget and denomination. The company determines the gift card denomination. For a giftmall multibrand card, there can be any denomination. On the technical side, the process involves one contract, one account and communication with one manager.

3. Personalise the greeting. The company can add its own greeting and, if needed, personalise the card. You can deliver it immediately or schedule it for a specific date.

4. Send a gift. We email the digital gift card to the recipient within minutes. Nova Poshta delivers the physical card.

5. The receiver activates the card. They can do this on the website or in the giftmall application. The service handles recipient support: according to the company, response time is up to one hour, and most issues are resolved immediately.

The company can view reports and order history 24/7 through available tech solutions.

Gift budgets and care during war

Gift programmes do not exist separately from a business’s financial priorities. After the outbreak of full-scale war, some companies revised their budgets and redirected resources to other needs.

Sigma Software says the gift budget has decreased because of other priorities, including supporting military and civilian victims of war. EPAM Ukraine has also reduced some spending on gift initiatives, redirecting funds to other needs, including supporting the Defence Forces. Currently, the welcome pack remains the guaranteed gift for new colleagues, while other initiatives depend on events, recognition programmes and team requests.

In difficult life circumstances, EPAM can provide financial assistance, and colleagues can contribute as well. At Railsware, team support is not limited to gifts: the company mentions financial assistance, relocation support and an internal fund for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

At Pingle Game Studio, the overall gift budget remains stable, but it is spread across different occasions. The company tries to save resources for situations where support is truly critical.

In the end, a corporate gift doesn’t have to be expensive or the same for everyone. It can be a piece of equipment, a book gift card, the chance to choose something yourself through a multibrand card, or help at the right moment. For a company, it is important not only to choose the reward format, but also to organise the process so that attention to people doesn’t turn into endless manual work.