Showing your employees that you value and appreciate them goes beyond simple politeness. Teams will perform better as a result and be happier and more engaged.
Employees desire to believe that their effort each day is valued and appreciated. And that entails more than simply paying your paycheck at month’s end. There is even a specific “holiday” for this in the United States and Canada, known as Employee Appreciation Day.
However, as an employer, you should extend your gratitude to your staff year-round and not simply in financial terms. While generous bonuses and high wages are helpful, your team longed for more recognition. Therefore, any business should regularly and imaginatively provide its staff with the recognition they deserve, especially during the Holidays.
Don’t worry, however, it needn’t be pricey. A small amount of sincere appreciation shown to staff members can go a long way. Not only for your team, either. Your business will also profit in various ways (more on that in a moment).
Here are some great ways to say thank you instead of words.
What does it mean to appreciate employees?
Let’s briefly define what we mean by that before moving on to some creative ways to show your appreciation for your team members.
Showing appreciation for the time and effort your employees put into their work is known as appreciating (or recognizing) them. This could be a part of a great leadership development program. And all it takes is a quick “Well done” or “Nice job today” on Slack before you leave for the day. However, these brief, insignificant comments should be more frequently addressed.
They are crucial, yes. Additionally, studies have repeatedly demonstrated that workers need frequent feedback—both good and negative—to feel appreciated, respected, and recognized at work. Therefore, the first step in showing your staff you value them is regularly praising their performance by providing your team with feedback.
1. A thank-you note
Let’s start with a simple yet powerful suggestion: send your staff members a thank-you note. It’s okay for something to sound very formal (or dated).
A letter of acknowledgment is a letter of gratitude that acknowledges an employee’s efforts. Working on a particular project or its overall performance can be an example.
Sending a (semi-)formal letter, preferably as a signed Word or Google document, is more traditional to express your gratitude to an employee than sending an email or Slack message.
This makes the message much more powerful and gives the employee a more concrete way to express gratitude. They might even use it as a letter of recommendation for their next job.
2. Gift boxes or basket
Giving employees a basket of treats at the end of the year is traditional in many nations. However, that can be unrestricted during the holiday season. Send gift boxes or baskets to your staff as an alternative on holidays.
Include a (handwritten) note with a particular message for each employee in each basket, congratulating them for their unique effect on the company, to make it even more genuine and authentic.
3. Bonus
Even if this idea for employee recognition isn’t the most creative or unique, it’s nonetheless one of the most well-liked. Employees always appreciate a bonus on top of a wage.
This can become a recurring event, for example, giving your staff members a one-time bonus when they hit a goal, rewarding them monthly, or providing non-material rewards, such as creating a separate room and allowing sleeping at work for better productivity.
4. Write a recommendation on LinkedIn
This concept is comparable to employee thank-you notes. It is a little more formal than other methods of complimenting an employee.
By publicly expressing your gratitude for the employee on LinkedIn, you are assisting them in developing their brand and demonstrating their value as an employee to potential employers.
The best thing (for you as the employer) is that it takes a few minutes and is free! Use some great tool for scheduling your posts if you don’t have enough time.
Be aware that various personality types may react to such public praise differently. For instance, a reserved team member might not care for the spotlight! A thank-you letter, as suggested above, would be more fitting in this situation.
5. Additional Days Off
Let’s say you and your team have spent the last two months working on a sizable website migration. Many team members put in long hours and overtime to finish this project.
You might reward them with more vacation time once the project is finished to express your thanks. Give them Friday afternoons off, or give them an additional day of yearly leave they can take any time they like.
Giving your employees some downtime has the extra benefit of preventing overwork and burnout. However, allowing them to work from home is also a preferable variant; for that, you can get some work from home tips.
6. Award Presentation (with prizes, trophies, and Wall of Fame)
The red carpet should be out, and your best performers should be highlighted. You express your admiration and recognition for a person’s accomplishments by awarding them prizes (and additional gifts).In addition we recommend looking at Gifting Owl’s corporate gifts where you can find best solutions for gifting your employees.
Your employee’s faces will undoubtedly light up when they receive the Best Team Player award, which will also raise their spirits. Additionally, the added incentive provided by this kind of acknowledgment encourages workers to strive for it all year long.
Employee monitoring is also important for organizations to ensure that their employees are meeting expectations and working in a productive manner.Measuring employee monitoring effects can help to protect an organization from any potential risks and can also provide insight into how employees are performing. While employee monitoring is an important part of an organization’s operations, it is important to ensure that it is done in an appropriate manner
7. Coupon
Any business budget can be accommodated by customizing this gift. Your colleagues will nonetheless enjoy this small expression of thanks even though it’s typically not the most thoughtful or elegant suggestion.
You can make it uniform and generic for everyone, or you can personalize it by giving each employee a separate coupon for their preferred retailer or product, like a voucher for the best mattresses for a well-deserved sleep, high-quality clothing, renowned cosmetics, or another.
8. Hire a professional coach
Give your employees a chance to discuss their objectives or career paths with a qualified coach. The coach will also give other valuable materials and up-to-date tools(like Google calendar alternatives), which can significantly impact their work.
Employee productivity and motivation are increased by coaching in the workplace, and many workers yearn for this kind of qualified help and direction. Investing in their education demonstrates your appreciation for your staff members’ desire to advance personally and professionally.
Final thoughts
Employee recognition is an essential part of engaging and motivating your team. Celebrating the holidays with creative and fun recognition ideas can help your team feel appreciated and energize them for the upcoming year. As we enter 2023, there are plenty of new, creative ways to recognize employees during the holidays and beyond. With some planning and creativity, you can create a unique employee recognition program that your team will enjoy and appreciate.