As Sir Richard Branson rightly said, "People flourish when they are praised." While most employers believe that people leave organizations for more money, the ground-level truth is that most employees leave because they feel unappreciated and want to move towards happier pastures. There is an immense need for better employee recognition and appreciation in today's fast-paced workforce.
Company gift cards or other monetary compensation may be the easiest way to recognize the good work of your employees, but they are not necessarily the best ways to show appreciation. It is important to choose the right incentive for employee recognition – one that is personalized and capable of generating value.
Know your employees
If an employee has done something specific in an exemplary manner, it is important to address and publicly recognize that contribution. Offering a general note of praise is unlikely to have the effect you hope for. Choose an incentive that reflects your personal knowledge of your employee's hobbies and interests.
Offer special privileges
Employees need you to see them, see their hard work, and see the problems that they face. Employee recognition incentives need not include monetary rewards, they could also be an offer of better parking space, paid time off, paid training programs, the flexibility of hours, work from home options, or a chance to work with a special team.
Journals to drive self-growth
Show your employees that you care for their physical, mental, and emotional growth by giving them thoughtful tokens such as leather journals. Journaling is a great way to drive daily growth. Choose a journal that looks and feels elegant, and get it monogrammed with the company name, employee name, and recognition for the work they have done, the sky is the limit. Want to look into offering journals for employee recognition? Visit our website www.soothi.com
Recognition in public communications or meetings
Receiving public recognition in front of colleagues and management may mean a whole lot more to employees than one-on-one appreciation. Add their name to the internal newsletter, and give them a shout-out over social media posts, press releases, and on the internal communications platform. Start a wall of praise/fame, and post the recognition there for all to see.
In today's competitive work environment, you risk the chance of making your employees feel like they are just one more person lost in the crowd. The right incentives for employee recognition can motivate your employees to work, perform, and feel better about themselves and you.
