Employee recognition can include great perks like employee vouchers, free lunches or “employee of the month awards” – yet you’re not seeing any benefits?
Businesses can often feel confused when it comes to employee recognition. But it’s not about overhauling your entire HR strategy. Instead, it’s about making adjustments to create a rewards and recognition program that suits the individual needs of your employees.
Different people appreciate different gestures so you need rewards that suit them best.
44% of workers are more likely to be “thriving” in their life overall when employee recognition hits the mark yet employee recognition is not universal (1). In fact, you must refine your recognition strategy, tailor it to your people and adjust to your industry to achieve the best results.
What is Employee Recognition?
Let’s go back to basics. What is employee recognition all about, and why do businesses need it to be successful?
Employee recognition schemes are meaningful gestures that acknowledge employees.
Effective employee recognition schemes go beyond just saying “thank you” – they should show genuine appreciation (1).
Why Is Employee Recognition Essential for Business Growth?
Employee recognition is helps improve staff retention rates, motivation and productivity. It also helps improves professional relationships and creates a positive workplace culture (2).
There are two ways to structure employee recognition for business growth. First is top-down, so appreciation and rewards from managers or supervisors. Second, is peer-to-peer recognition, coming from anyone else within the organisation (3). Both structures work interchangeably and as part of an effective rewards strategy.
Business growth relies on the quality of its employees and you want them to feel engaged with their role. You want dedicated and fulfilled employees that grow with the business. And with meaningful employee recognition in place, staff are five times more likely to see a path to grow in your company (1).
Learn About the People You Work With
The best way to create effective employee recognition schemes is by learning about the people you work with.
For example, if you’re offering free train tickets to all staff, but no discounts for fuel expenses, only part of your team will feel genuinely appreciated. The other half could even feel upset or annoyed that you haven’t taken them into consideration. You want everyone to feel appreciated for their achievements and for themselves as a person, unrelated to their work.
Learn how people in your team commute to work, or if they are remote. Find out if they have any dietary preferences or allergies. You don’t want to gift someone peanut butter brownies if they have a severe nut allergy! Factors like this will differentiate and play a part in either creating a successful recognition scheme or one that only serves a few
How to Create an Effective Recognition Scheme
To achieve an effective rewards and recognition scheme, create a set of perks that everyone can use with some tailored benefits. For everyone things such as; employee vouchers, free merchandise, or access to a wellbeing hub work well.
Then incorporate some more tailored benefits, such as the option to take various cultural celebrations as days off. For example, some staff might not want time off at Christmas, but instead take part in Ramadan so would appreciate shorter work days instead.
Put your people at the front of your recognition scheme and ask for feedback to build something genuine and impactful.
By learning about your people in a respectful and careful manner you can serve them as best you can. And at Each Person, we offer unique employee recognition schemes that can be adapted to your business and the needs of your employees.
At Each Person, we are award winning in employee recognition, paving the way for employers and being the go-to for rewarding employees. Sending personalised ‘thank you’Ecards is a very easy process with Each Person, to make it even easier to recognise your people. Get in touch with the Each Person team today and create the culture your employees expect. Email us at [email protected].
By Ellie Pinder, published May 2023
Sources:
1 – WorkHuman – Employee Recognition Statistics
https://www.workhuman.com/blog/employee-recognition-statistics/
2 – Workhuman – Benefits of Employee Recognition –
https://www.workhuman.com/blog/benefits-of-employee-recognition/
3 – Forbes – Importance of Employee Recognition –
https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecastrillon/2022/11/20/why-employee-recognition-is-mor
e-crucial-than-ever/