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Recognizing the achievements of employees is important for organizations of all sizes, but small businesses stand to benefit most from improving morale and encouraging company loyalty through the use of well-timed recognition.
Of course there are lots of ways to deliver praise and show team members that they are appreciated, so here are just a few impactful ideas to put into use in your own business.
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Provide tangible rewards when milestones are reached
Rather than giving employees a pat on the back when they have reached a goal or completed a project, you can double down on the effectiveness of your recognition efforts by handing out perks to those that deserve them.
Whether you provide workers with physical gifts, such as branded merchandise, or offer experiential bonuses, like spa day discounts, giving real rewards on top of kind words is sensible.
Of course tracking employee performance and ensuring that recognition is delivered consistently can be tricky, which is why more businesses are embracing employee recognition software to handle this for them. Some of the best platforms include integrated rewards and incentives, which makes them even more appealing.
Spread the word on social media
Publicly praising employees within the organization itself is obviously a good way to show that you appreciate all that they have done, but you can also go one step further and celebrate their successes via social media.
Sharing the details of whatever big win an individual employee or entire team has been responsible for with your followers will not only indicate internal support, but also broadcast the values and ethos of your business to a wider audience.
Embrace flexible working
Allowing employees to work flexibly is not possible for every business, but for those that do have the option to allow workers to choose their own hours and get a better balance between their professional life and their time outside of the office, it makes sense to pursue this.
This can be done explicitly in response to the reaching of some high watermark, or implemented more broadly in order to reward the entire organization for its efforts, while also indicating that you understand just how much the working world is changing at the moment.
Remember those who are under the weather
Recognition is not just about singling out achievements; it is also focused on demonstrating that you are interested in the general wellbeing of your employees.
So, if an employee is off sick, rather than this becoming a stressful experience, you can cheer them up by sending out a care package containing the goodies they will need to ride out the illness.
Lay on refreshments
Something as simple as setting a day each week when you will buy lunch for the entire team or the whole organization can go a long way to putting a smile on employees’ faces and making them feel valued.
And of courses you do not have to only adopt one of these strategies; a combination of as many as you can justify financially will lead to the best results and even boost retention rates.
