Blog

Get expert advice on every topic you need as a small business owner, from the ideation stage to your eventual exit. Our articles, quick tips, infographics and how-to guides can offer entrepreneurs the most up-to-date information they need to flourish.

Subscribe to our blog

Accounting & Finance

Approaching Uncertainty

Insurance

Leadership & Growth

People Management & HR

Private Equity

Professional Services

Small Businesses

Startups

Taxes

People Management & HR

Struggling with turnover? Don’t overlook the importance of an employee recognition plan

Posted by Kanika Sinha

July 6, 2021

importance of an employee recognition plan

With employees quitting their jobs at a record pace, businesses across industries are looking for ways to defend themselves against rampant turnover. More than ever employers are looking to devise strategies to retain staff and keep their best-performing teams intact. This is where an employee recognition plan can help.

As recognized employees tend to be more satisfied, they work harder and are more productive. Acknowledging employees and their efforts makes them feel valued and become the best version of themselves at work, and this in turn leads to reduced incidence of burnout, absenteeism and most importantly, attrition.

In fact, research by Deloitte suggests that companies that prioritize recognition have a 31% lower voluntary turnover rate than organizations with poor recognition cultures. Additionally, high-recognition companies have an advantage in the talent wars.

The employee recognition plan

This isn’t a novel idea; employee recognition has always been an important part of building a successful organization. A genuine employee appreciation program fuels the idea that every employee plays a role in building the company’s culture and prosperity. And that's certainly a powerful thing to recognize!

It starts with the company expressing appreciation for its workforce for going above and beyond and celebrating their successes. There are a number of different ways, whether structured or spontaneous and informal, in which a company can recognize its employees' achievements within the workplace. They may comprise:

Weekly or monthly thank-you activities.
Praise for daily activities through virtual high-fives.
“Wow” moments acknowledged on the spot or on bulletin boards.
Peer-to-peer recognition on chat.
Sharing employee success stories internally through newsletters or the brand’s social media channel.
Featuring the accomplishments of the employee in the yearbook or annual report.
Recognition at leadership or department meetings with peers.
CEO shoutouts.
Personalized program wherein the team members choose their reward.

Employees want to be seen, have their efforts valued, opinions heard and aspirations honored. And this is what the recognition plan does. When employers encourage and appreciate the people who make up their organization, they perform better and stick around.

Productivity, loyalty, retention

As the saying goes, what gets recognized gets repeated; what gets celebrated becomes a habit. Knowing that they’re appreciated, employees work harder and put in extra efforts to gain recognition, and they are more likely to engage with the rest of the team. This translates to higher productivity that benefits the business.

Employee recognition also drives engagement, which ushers in loyalty and fosters an emotional bond with the organization — that is, more honesty in selling the brand and its products.

Finally, appreciation lead to increased job satisfaction. Employees are less likely to look for alternative employment and stay longer.

Standout examples of employee recognition

German utility company E.ON introduced an employee recognition program called Buzz that encouraged appreciation through digital and physical thank-you notes. The initiative cut across the organization, with recipients getting messages from managers and peers. The staff’s motivation score increased from 61% to 69% as a result of Buzz.

Apple gave its entire workforce an extended holiday in 2013. Instead of just a single day off for Thanksgiving, the company offered three paid days off in a row. A customized reward based on the employee’s location and job role was also given.

GE Healthcare replaced its regular employee-manager check-ins with creative meetings. The Friday sessions were held in a comfortable environment at the company’s restaurant. Employees’ achievements were highlighted on-a wall-mounted dashboard.

Ecommerce company Zappos came up with peer-to-peer bonuses and HERO awards to recognize its employees and acknowledge their contributions.

Communication Service for the Deaf implemented a companywide employee recognition program that entailed sending recognition to team members on a public social feed. Custom rewards and exclusive corporate discounts were also awarded.

Authors

Kanika Sinha

Kanika is an enthusiastic content writer who craves to push the boundaries and explore uncharted territories. With her exceptional writing skills and in-depth knowledge of business-to-business dynamics, she creates compelling narratives that help businesses achieve tangible ROI. When not hunched over the keyboard, you can find her sweating it out in the gym, or indulging in a marathon of adorable movies with her young son.

Newer Post

Featured Downloads

Private Equity

Blog

Subscribe to our blog

People Management & HR

Struggling with turnover? Don’t overlook the importance of an employee recognition plan

The employee recognition plan

Productivity, loyalty, retention

Standout examples of employee recognition

Authors

Kanika Sinha

Featured Downloads

Private Equity Scaling Accounting Operations and Optimizing Financial

Why Late-Stage SaaS Needs Fractional CFO Services

How to measure a company’s financial strength using the 3 key financial statements

Related Stories

New Federal Minimum Salary Requirements for Employers

Data Analytics in Recruitment and Retention: How Leveraging Data Can Improve Hiring Outcomes