Often overlooked, employee recognition is vital to developing engaged, motivated, and loyal employees. A culture of employee engagement ensures employees know the business values them and their contributions and recognizes they are an integral part of its success. Providing timely recognition is also often cited as one of the improvements many businesses can make. It is therefore important to make recognition part of your core value, business culture and talent management. So, how can your business build a culture of recognition?
Start with the Management
Workplace culture has to be modeled from the top, meaning top-level management has to be involved. Any changes to business culture to integrate employee recognition should be fully supported by the management for them to succeed.
Be Specific and Relevant
One of the best ways to make employee recognition meaningful is to tie it into specific business objectives and employee accomplishments. Explaining what it is for when recognizing employees for their efforts and accomplishments helps them relate it to their behavior. This tie-in encourages continuing strong performance. Business leaders should also personalize recognition for it to feel authentic. Generic recognition does not work as well as that which is developed based on individual employees’ preferences.
Be Timely with the Recognition
Recognition must come as close to the actions of the employee as possible. Recognition that arrives immediately or soon after is much more meaningful than one that comes a few weeks or months afterward. Additionally, employees are less likely to see the recognition as authentic if managers take too long to provide it. Employers and managers should therefore have a formal recognition system to ensure they can provide it as soon as possible.
Even the Little Things Make a Difference
While employers and managers should recognize all major accomplishments, sometimes a simple “thank you” for smaller accomplishments can go a long way. Handwritten notes and social recognition in front of peers can all help employees feel recognized and motivated.
Consider Different Types of Recognition
Everyone is motivated by different things, which is one of the reasons you should personalize the rewards and types of recognition you give your employees. Before handing out anything, consider what type of appreciation works best for each employee, such as small succulents, personalized notes, or gift cards.
There are numerous types of rewards and ways of showing appreciation that you can choose. For example, in addition to or in place of cash bonuses and similar incentives, businesses can hand out digital or physical Walmart gift cards for exemplary employee performance. Businesses can also provide personalized gifts such as rechargeable credit cards or thoughtful gifts like taking employees out to dinner.
Be Consistent
Businesses should also be consistent with their shows of recognition. Business owners and leaders should keep recognition at the forefront of their minds and ensure everyone in the leadership team embraces it. Recognition should be encouraged so much that it becomes a habit. Employee recognition is crucial in today’s business environment, especially for businesses that hire millennials and Gen Z employees. Creating an employee recognition program will depend on what your employees respond to. It should include personalized incentives so employees can be more motivated to reach for them and appreciate them when they get them.
