Your employees work hard. Showing them that you appreciate them, and all the work that they do can be important. Everyone likes to feel appreciated. Doing things to show your employees that you appreciate them can be good for them as they will realize that the company that they work for recognizes and rewards hard work. It can also be useful for your business because it may attract more people that want to work for you because they have heard that you are a company that cares about its employees, and it may also help with the retention of the employees that you already have. Here is a list of ways that you can show your employees that you appreciate them.
Table of Contents
Gifts/Rewards
Giving small rewards to your employees can be a great way to show that you appreciate them. For example, you could give them polar camel cups that you can get personalized; this is a useful gift that your employees can use at the office, at home, or bring to and from the office. There are many other rewards that your employees might like, so do some research to see what you can find.
Food
Who doesn’t love free food? To show your appreciation, you can have days where you bring in food that your employees can enjoy. It can be something as simple as having coffee and donuts for a meeting that your employees are attending or celebrating an achievement or someone’s birthday with some cake.
Thank You Notes
Showing your staff appreciation doesn’t have to be hard; it can be as easy as saying thank you and giving them a thank you card. Thank you cards can be a simple yet effective way to show your employees that you recognize their contributions.
Events
Invite your employees to events. You can go out for lunch, host a team-building activity, etc. By hosting events like these, you can show your employees you care. You can also use events/fun activities as a way to celebrate achievements. Having events for your employees can be fun and a great way for people to get to know each other better outside of work.
Pets
It may not work for every office as it depends on how people feel about it, and if there are any allergies, but another fun thing you can do is have a pet-friendly office. People love their pets, and many would like to be able to bring them to the office sometimes. Plus, if everyone else loves pets, then it will probably make their day a little better because who wouldn’t like to have a cute dog wandering around the office?
Showing your employees that you appreciate them doesn’t have to be that difficult, and it can go a long way. Hopefully, this list has provided you with some ideas for how you can show your employees that you appreciate them. Don’t forget to consult your employees on the topic also as asking them what will make them feel appreciated is better than just doing something that they don’t want. If you want to invest in a business people want to work for, then showing your employees that you appreciate them and their work is very important.
Employee recognition isn’t a formality to be filled. Employers should appreciate their employees because it gives them a sense of ownership which helps them go above and beyond their job!
In fact, employee recognition is so important that lack of appreciation is one of the strongest reasons why people quit their job.
A thing to keep in mind: do not go for a one-size-fits-all approach when appreciating employees. Every employee may expect a different way of appreciation. It also helps increase their productivity.
So, what can be done to retain all good people in business?
Let’s explore a few cost-effective tricks:
-
Praise Employees For The Job Done Well!
Sometimes you just don’t need to spend a huge sum of money to make your employee happy. They need to know their work is being noticed and appreciated. Therefore, just praising their work would make them glad!
So how often can you start praising your employees? It can be weekly or may be even daily as per Jim Harter, Gallup’s chief scientist.
-
Implement Peer Recognition Culture
Recognition shouldn’t only be boss-to-employees. Peer recognition goes a long way in making employees feel valued.
Peers at work have a better understanding of our work and when they appreciate it, we feel more valued. Besides, the praise from employees also sounds more authentic than that from high-authority managers, which may come across as forced.
-
Be Social
We don’t just mean it for being more open and social with employees. We mean it for using social media.
From posting photos of ‘Employee of the Week’ on your company’s Facebook Page to appreciating your employees’ hard work by endorsing their skills on LinkedIn, the company’s social media account can be a powerful tool to communicate to them how you value them.
-
Create More Opportunities
That can mean training and cross-training. You can have them enroll for a masters in communication or MBA to develop a sustainable professional growth. Employees love to hone their skills and to work at exciting and challenging tasks. You can make them feel recognized by giving them new opportunities to work instead of letting them carry out the same, monotonous tasks.
How about asking them to volunteer in your company’s upcoming corporate social responsibility event? This way, they’ll think that their efforts are worthwhile enough to be considered.
-
Appreciate Employees For Productive Job
Another good way to appreciate staff is to recognize the more productive and efficient employees and reward them for it. Time tracking spreadsheets are one way to keep on top of it.
-
Give Them A Treat
As an entrepreneur, do you believe in “There is no such thing as a free lunch?” Well, don’t think of it as a free lunch! Thank your staff for giving their best to the company.
-
Surprise Them With A Gift
Who doesn’t love a gift? Everyone does.
You could go with gift cards for your company. They can get gift cards for any local restaurant, coffee shop, or even a spa. It doesn’t have to be the same for all.
Want to feel them more special? Ideally, you can choose a gift that specifically matches each of the employees’ tastes and preferences. Have an employee with a laid-back, casual style? Gift them a WearSaga fleece jacket. Have a sports enthusiast on your team? Gift them a ticket to the match of their favorite game.
These little things that reflect how you consider the likes and dislikes of your staff, go a long way!