The idea is not to create an automatic system for employee gratitude; it's about allowing yourself to express your appreciation in a way that feels natural to you. We found that while bosses have a hard time showing appreciation for their employees, employees think it's quite easy. Use these employee recognition ideas, from everyday chores to special occasions, to show your employees how much you value them.

Why is Recognition Necessary?

Even though employee appreciation is valuable, it is not particularly common in many corporate cultures. Survey results from O.C. Tanner reveal that 40% of employees believe the recognition they receive at work is an empty gesture. Finding employee talent is already half the battle but retaining them is even more essential. In fact, research by Robert Half shows that 66% of employees quit their jobs because of a lack of appreciation.

Research shows that feelings of appreciation increase morale, improve communication, and reduce employee turnover. As stated by Achievers, employees who are motivated and feel valued are less likely to look for other jobs and 90% of employees say recognition motivates them to work harder.

While each employee has different needs for appreciation, your needs can serve as a starting point for you to express appreciation to others. After all, it is your people who drive your growth, and through appreciation, you can empower your people.

Thoughtful Gestures, Benefits, and Rewards

Whether managers offered people the opportunity to work remotely, or even simply suggested that someone be late the day after overtime, employees quickly interpreted this as an important sign of trust and appreciation. For telecommuters, supervisors can take it a step further and send a handwritten note or leave stickers. A physical piece of paper that tells an employee that you value them and thank them for their work can make a big difference in the digital world. Create that same feeling in the office by providing card areas where employees can write notes and leave them in company mailboxes or desks.

Looking to make a bigger impact? Include a gift card in appreciation of their telecommuting or even their hard work. RPG Card Services features star brands like the Shell Gift Card to help your employees get from point A to point B. This small gesture of appreciation can take the stress off your employees and start their day right. We offer individual and bulk fulfillment as well as personalization options. If you want more, we even offer the Shell Refillable Program, which allows you to refill the cards as much as you need from wherever you are. Call us at 888-743-5504 or search www.buyshellgiftcards.com to get started!

Valuing Their Work

When managers emphasize how employees are using each other's work in their department or among others, it sets the stage for the spread of appreciation throughout the organization. Feeling that your work is important and that your input is valuable is a great motivator to increase employee engagement.

Listen to Your Employees

Appreciation can be as simple as giving an employee quality time and showing an interest in their career and personal development. Taking the time to listen to employees' personal interests can unlock talent, innovative ideas, and unexpected benefits. A manager who is motivated to get to know their employees and encourages them to get to work will find untapped potential that all employees are looking for to grow.

Practice Gratitude

Expressing a little gratitude in the workplace can greatly improve employee morale, even more so in today's environment. Expressing gratitude to employees can be as simple as verbally showing appreciation or as complex as an internal reward system that benefits both you and your team. In addition to increasing productivity, expressing gratitude in the workplace can also increase employee engagement and dedication.

Public Acknowledgements

Employee recognition topics that you can use in your meetings include appreciation for extra efforts beyond work, career milestones, innovation, corporate value disclosure, customer service, and excellence. You can tell your coworkers how much you value them and their contributions on any day of the year. In addition, leaders can show their employees by shouting out messages on social media with their permission.

Research also shows that employee recognition improves customer service. According to GlassDoor research, employers will retain half of their employees longer if they show regular appreciation. Feeling appreciated and recognized at work, employees get more pleasure from their work and also increase productivity.

Do it Daily

Remember that while Employee Appreciation Day and Appreciation Week can boost morale for your employees, you will all want to work year-round to create an atmosphere of appreciation that will enable everyone to do their part better. If you want your employees to be happy, dedicated, and productive, you need to let them know that their hard work is recognized and appreciated not only once a year, but every day. Research shows that praising employees on a regular basis increases productivity and self-confidence.

Your people should never feel secondary, and even a fantastic employee reward and recognition program can still benefit from some new tastes of appreciation. Whether you're the CEO, HR executive, or new manager, you can apply these helpful practices to show how much you value your people and create a happier workplace.