How to bulk send an award

Bulk send award lets you send the same award to multiple recipients within a single workflow. You can keep the send simple by giving everyone the same message and point amount, or personalize the distribution with different messages, point amounts, or both, for individual recipients.

Kudos uses your CSV file to determine what information is already defined for each recipient. You’ll only be asked to provide shared information that is still needed before sending. Award permissions, point configuration, recipient eligibility, and point bank funding rules still apply.

• Distributing a company-wide or team award after a major milestone, such as recognizing everyone who contributed to a successful product launch with the same message and point amount.
• Rewarding participants based on individual results, such as giving employees different point amounts based on their placement in a sales challenge while sharing the same congratulatory message.
• Recognizing a group for different contributions, such as celebrating employees after a major project with a personalized message and point amount for each recipient—all in one bulk send.

Start a bulk award send

You can start a bulk award send anywhere you would normally send an award:

1. From the Awards page, find the award you want to send, select the three-dot menu, then select Bulk send award.
2. Admins can go to Awards & nominations, find the award under Awards, select its three-dot menu, then select Bulk send award.
3. If you have delegated access, go to Delegation > Your delegated access and select Send an award beside the person you’re sending on behalf of. You’ll be redirected to the Awards page, where you can select the appropriate award and start a bulk send from its three-dot menu.

Bulk sends support one award at a time. You can use the feature if you have permission to send that award.

Choose a template

On the Bulk send award page, choose the template that matches how you want to recognize your recipients.

1. Choose Same message and points when every recipient will receive the same message and point amount.
2. Choose Personalized messages or points when messages, point amounts, or both need to vary between recipients.
3. Select Download template for your chosen option.

Use Same message and points for a straightforward bulk send. Your CSV only needs the recipient information, and you’ll enter the shared message and point amount later in the process.

Use Personalized messages or points when you need any recipient-level personalization. Message and Points can vary independently, so you can use:

• One message + one point amount
• One message + different point amounts
• Different messages + one point amount
• Different messages + different point amounts

Prepare your CSV file

Every row must contain a valid email address or employee ID so Kudos can identify the recipient.

When using Same message and points:

• Add each recipient to the file.
• You don’t need to add recipient-level messages or point amounts.
• After uploading your file, you’ll enter one message and one point amount for everyone, just as you would with a normal award send.

When using Personalized messages or points, use the Message and Points columns for information that varies by recipient. In both cases, you can leave the entire Message column or Points column blank and enter one shared message or points amount after uploading your file.

Keep these requirements in mind:

• If messages vary, provide a message for every recipient. Alternatively, leave the entire Message column blank and provide one shared message after uploading.
• If point amounts vary, provide a point amount for every recipient. Alternatively, leave the entire Points column blank and provide one shared point amount after uploading.
• Don’t leave individual cells blank within a Message or Points column when that column contains recipient-specific values.
• Enter points using numbers only, such as 10 rather than ten.
• CSV messages support plain text only.
• Messages must contain 1–1,000 characters and meet Kudos profanity requirements.
• The file can contain a maximum of 10,000 rows.
• Duplicate recipients aren’t supported.
• If the award has a locked point value, every point value in the file must match the award’s configured value.

Click on Preparing your file on the upload page for guidance or select View file formatting guide.

Upload your CSV and resolve file issues

1. Drag and drop your CSV into the upload area, or select Select a file.
2. Select Next.
3. Kudos validates the file before allowing you to continue.
4. If an error appears, follow the instructions shown, update the CSV where required, and re-upload it.

File validation errors block the bulk send. Depending on the issue, Kudos identifies the affected rows and explains what needs to change.

Common file errors include:

• Invalid or missing point amounts
• Point amounts that conflict with the award’s locked point value
• Insufficient funds in the award’s associated point bank
• Missing, too long, or otherwise invalid messages
• Profanity in messages
• Duplicate recipients
• Missing or invalid email addresses or employee IDs
• Invalid row data
• An unreadable or incorrectly formatted CSV
• A file containing more than 10,000 rows
• A file with no eligible users

When applicable, the error identifies the first 10 affected rows, with an additional count if more rows have the same issue.

Match users

After the file passes validation, Kudos matches the recipients in your CSV to existing users and surfaces any unmatched users for review. For any unmatched recipient:

1. Use Search for user to manually find and select the correct Kudos user.
2. Remove a row if it shouldn’t be included.
3. Resolve any blocking user-matching errors shown on the page.
4. Select Next when you’re ready to continue.

Unlike file errors, user-matching issues can be corrected directly in the interface without editing and re-uploading the CSV. You can also leave an unmatched user blank and that recipient will be skipped.

NOTE: The sender cannot be selected as a recipient of their own award. This applies to a direct and a delegated send.

Review point adjustments

Kudos may display a Review warnings page when recipients aren’t eligible to receive points. These are warnings rather than blocking file errors.

For each affected recipient, you can review:

• The row and recipient
• Points in file
• Adjusted points
• The reason for the adjustment

When a recipient is ineligible to receive points, their point amount is adjusted to 0. You can continue and send their award with 0 points, or go back, update your file, and re-upload it.

The table displays up to the first 25 affected users. Any adjusted amounts are factored into the final point totals and award send.

Review the summary

The Summary page shows what will be sent before you commit to the bulk award send.

Take the time to review or add any missing information:

• Award details
• Number of recipients
• Whether the send contains one or multiple messages
• Whether it contains one or multiple point amounts
• Selected qualities
• Funding point bank
• Total point cost
• Remaining funds after sending

The fields available on this page depend on what you provided in the CSV.

• If the file doesn’t contain messages, the Message editor appears so you can enter one shared message for all recipients.
• If every recipient has the same message in the file, the Message editor is available and pre-populated with that message.
• If messages vary by recipient, the shared Message editor isn’t shown.
• If the file doesn’t contain point amounts, Points per recipient appears so you can enter one shared amount.
• If every recipient has the same point amount in the file, the point field is available and pre-populated with that amount.
• If point amounts vary by recipient, a single point-value field isn’t shown.

Confirm how award posts will be created

Messages determine how many award posts are created. Point amounts do not.

Recipients with the same message are grouped into one award post even when their point amounts are different. Recipients with different messages are separated into posts according to the message they receive.

For example, if 100 recipients receive one message and another 100 recipients receive a different message, Kudos creates two award posts. If 100 recipients are being sent 100 different messages, Kudos will create 100 different award posts.

When personalized messages will result in many individual posts, the Summary page displays the number of posts that will be created. Consider setting the visibility to Private so that each personalized post isn't displayed in the public wall feed.

Send the award

1. Confirm the award, recipient count, messages, point amounts, funding, and remaining point bank balance.
2. Select qualities where applicable.
3. Review the post visibility where applicable.
4. Select Send.

The bulk award is sent using the award, user, sender, and recipient configuration in place when the bulk-send process was started.

• Choose Same message and points whenever everyone receives identical recognition. It keeps the CSV simple and lets you add the shared message and points at the end.
• Use Personalized messages or points whenever either value needs to vary. You don’t need both columns to be personalized.
• Treat a completely blank column differently from a few blank cells. Leaving the entire Message or Points column blank tells Kudos that you’ll provide one shared value later. If you use recipient-specific values in a column, provide the required value for every recipient.
• Check locked award values before preparing a personalized points file. If an award has a fixed point value, uploaded values must match it. An admin can unlock the award’s fixed point value if different point amounts should be allowed.
• Remember that different points don’t create different posts. Distinct messages determine how recipients are grouped into award posts.
• Review funding before sending a large distribution. The Summary page shows the point bank, total cost, and remaining funds after sending. Awards funded by point banks don’t impact your monthly point balance.

Q: Who can use bulk send award?
A: Anyone with permission to send the selected award can use bulk send. Delegates can also bulk send on behalf of someone with award send permission.

Q: Can I send different awards in one CSV?
A: No. A bulk send is started from a specific award, so every recipient receives that same award.

Q: Can recipients receive different point amounts?
A: Yes, provided the selected award’s point configuration allows those amounts. Add each recipient’s amount to the Points column of the personalized template.

Q: Can I use different point amounts with one shared message?
A: Yes. Add recipient-specific values to Points and leave the entire Message column blank. You’ll provide the shared message later in the process.

Q: Can I use different messages with one shared point amount?
A: Yes. Add each recipient’s message to Message and leave the entire Points column blank. You’ll provide the shared point amount later in the process.

Q: Why did the Message or Points per recipient field disappear from the Summary page?
A: Kudos only asks for shared information that still needs to be supplied. If messages or point amounts vary by recipient in the CSV, the corresponding shared field isn’t available or relevant.

Q: Do different point amounts create separate posts?
A: No. Posts are grouped by message. Recipients with the same message can appear in the same award post even if their point amounts differ.

Q: What happens when messages are different?
A: Recipients are grouped according to the message they receive. Each distinct message results in a separate award post.

Q: Can I override a locked award point value in the CSV?
A: No. Uploaded point amounts must match the award’s configured value when it’s locked. The fixed point value must be unlocked before different point amounts can be used. Only a Kudos program administrator can unlock the point value configured for an award.

Q: Can I schedule or save a bulk award send as a draft?
A: Scheduling and drafting bulk award sends aren’t included in this workflow.

Q: Can I use bulk send for point adjustments that aren’t associated with an award?
A: No. Bulk award send is for sending a selected award. Contact Support for bulk point adjustments that aren’t tied to an award.

Problem: My CSV won’t upload

• Confirm the file is in .csv format.
• Make sure the file doesn’t exceed 10,000 rows.
• Use the downloaded template and keep the expected structure intact.
• Confirm the file contains at least one eligible user.
• Correct the file and re-upload it.

Problem: Kudos reports missing or invalid messages

• If using recipient-specific messages, enter a message for every required row.
• Keep each message between 1 and 1,000 characters.
• Use plain text for messages entered in the CSV.
• Remove any profanity identified by the validation.
• If you want one shared message instead, leave the entire Message column blank and enter the message on the Summary page.

Problem: Kudos reports missing or invalid point amounts

• Enter numbers only, such as 10 instead of ten.
• If using recipient-specific points, provide a point amount for every required row.
• Check that amounts follow the selected award’s point configuration.
• If the award has a locked point value, make every uploaded amount match that value or have the award configuration unlocked before starting again.
• If you want one shared amount instead, leave the entire Points column blank and enter it on the Summary page.

Problem: The award doesn’t have enough funding

• Review the point bank identified in the error.
• Add the required funds to that point bank and re-upload the file, or change the point bank associated with the award and re-upload.
• Remember that file validation errors must be resolved before you can continue.

Problem: Some CSV recipients aren’t matched to Kudos users

• Review the recipients listed under Match users.
• Search for and select the correct existing Kudos user.
• Remove recipients that shouldn’t be included.
• Leave an unmatched recipient blank if you want that user to be skipped.
• Resolve any blocking user errors before selecting Next.

Problem: Some recipients show 0 adjusted points

• Review the reason shown under Review warnings.
• Compare Points in file with Adjusted points for each affected recipient.
• Continue if you want the recipient to receive the award with 0 points.
• To change the distribution, go back, update the file as needed, and re-upload it.
• Remember that adjusted amounts are reflected in the final point total and award send.

Problem: The Summary page doesn’t show the fields I expected

• Check whether Message or Points values were supplied for recipients in the CSV.
• When values vary, Kudos uses the recipient-level data and doesn’t display a shared input.
• When the entire column is blank, enter the shared value on the Summary page.
• When every recipient has the same value in the file, the corresponding field is available and pre-populated.
• Review the Summary labels for Multiple messages or Multiple point amounts before sending.