Recognizing your employees for the work they produce for your company is a great way to increase their engagement and the overall morale of your organization. No matter the size of your budget, creating special moments for your team members is possible.
Listed below are encouraging, empowering and easy ways to recognize and reward employees at no or low cost to the employer:
- Encourage and recognize employees who pursue continuing education.
- Create and post an “Employee Honor Roll” in break rooms or feature it in the company newsletter.
- When preparing a status report, acknowledge individual contributions by using employee names.
- Send Congratulations cards home or tape them to the employee’s office door.
- Give a copy of the latest best-selling management or business book as a gift.
- Encourage and recognize employees actively serving the community.
- Drop in on the first meeting of a special project team to thank each employee for their participation.
- Thank each employee for their involvement as a team member at the conclusion of a project.
- Call an employee to your office to thank them and recognize them for a recent achievement.
- Ask employees to identify specific areas of interest in job-related skills and have them spend a day with the in-house expert to learn more about the subject.
- Immediately pass along any praise about someone to that person, preferably face-to-face.
- Tape a few gift cards to the bottoms of chairs at an employee meeting.
- Serve refreshments at the next team meeting.
- Encourage the sharing of a team accomplishment by designating that team as mentors or advisors to other teams.
- Ask upper management to attend a meeting when you plan to thank individuals and the group for their specific accomplishments and contributions.
- Make arrangements for a team to present their completed project to upper management.
- Write a letter of appreciation to an employee for his/her contributions, placing a copy in the personnel file.
- Be sure to use positive nonverbal behaviors that reflect your appreciation.
- Remember, a smile is contagious!
People like being appreciated. Simple things, particularly when made public to their co-workers, foster a supportive and productive workplace by openly recognizing employees. If you have questions regarding employee recognition, please contact a member of CAI’s Advice and Counsel Team at 919‑878‑9222, 336‑668‑7746 or advice@capital.org.
Photo Source: Texas State Library and Archives Commission
