As the head of a company, it can be hard to manage all the things that are put on your plate. Managing urgent tasks becomes your day-to-day, often keeping you from sitting down to take a look at all the things that allow your business to operate well. You can too easily overlook daily processes and the employees that help keep your business afloat. It’s important to acknowledge your employees’ hard work, and while showing appreciation for them may not always be top of mind, it should be a top priority.
The Scarcity of Staff Appreciation
There are a few reasons why employee appreciation has become so scarce in large businesses. One of the main reasons is simply a lack of time. Due to the complexity of creating an effective employee appreciation program and actually implementing it, employee recognition takes time. Many employers are also reluctant to try implementing employee recognition because they are worried about the reactions of other employees. Often times, recognizing some employees for their successes can be met with jealousy, complaining, and dissatisfaction from others. Despite well intentioned efforts, recognition programs are not foolproof. More than 75% of organizations are said to have recognition programs, yet only 58% of employees think their organization actually has a program in place. This shows that some organizations’ recognition programs are not effective.
Importance of Employee Recognition
Even though the implementation of an employee recognition program may be time consuming and expensive, the benefits outweigh the costs. Recognizing employees for their results is shown to improve productivity. In fact,69% of employees say that they would work harder if they believed their efforts would be more appreciated. Companies with recognition programs that are effective at improving employee engagement are reported to have a 31% lower voluntary turnover. Employee recognition has been proven to be a highly effective way to improve employee engagement and morale that tends to inspire greater creativity, productivity and satisfaction.
Guidelines to Follow
In order to create an effective employee recognition program there are a few guidelines to set for yourself. First, decide what you want to achieve through the program. One of the things that many organizations do wrong is take a scattered approach to employee recognition. Without specific guidelines in place that help determine when and how employees are recognized, companies will be inconsistent. In order to avoid jealousy among other staff, you will need to create and communicate specific behaviors, goals, and accomplishments that employees must display in order to be rewarded. Employees need to see that recognition is given out equally for similar tasks and contributions. Be sure to establish criteria for what makes employees eligible for recognition. In order to keep employees from feeling entitled, you will need to remain consistently fair on what will be awarded.
5 Ways to Show Your Employees Recognition
Consider the following strategies as you develop guidelines for your employee recognition program.
- Office ticket drawings are a fun and neutral way to recognize employees. By setting criteria that employees must meet to be given recognition, they are given an easy means of eligibility for regular rewards. Ticket drawings are great in that while merit is involved to be eligible, some amount of the decision is being left to chance, minimizing feelings of favoritism or unfair practices.
- Allow employees to choose what project to work on. By giving an employee the opportunity to choose what project they will work on as a reward for achieving certain goals, you can further increase employee engagement. When given options, employees will typically choose projects they have interest and investment in, helping both productivity and focus. It has also been proven to raise job satisfaction.
- Give employees extra time off. This could be in the form of additional time at lunch, or a Friday afternoon flex day. . In a study by Xylo Inc., 93% of employees said that they believe time off improves their productivity, while 98% believed that time off improves their performance at work.
- Know what is important to employees.. The best way to figure out what an employee finds rewarding is to ask them both individually and as a group. Talk to their supervisors who have developed relationships with them to find out what is important.
- Give a personal touch. . Making that personal visit to someone’s desk to thank them for their work makes a big impact. Taking the time to visit them personally shows how much you see their individual work efforts. Remember to be specific in what you are recognizing and thanking them for. Reuven Gorsht, global vice president of customer strategy at SAP, says that this will add meaning and will inspire the employee to further develop their skills in that particular area.
There are many other ways that you as an employer can show your employees that you truly value them. Creating a consistent employee recognition strategy and implementing it will improve staff engagement, increased productivity, and could lead to better overall work satisfaction.
