The Importance of Employee Recognition Programs

Corporate awards and recognition programs play an important role in corporate culture. They are an investment in your company that can deliver significant savings over time and improve the quality of work that comes out of your employees. It is a way to show respect and appreciation for your employees for the work that they do and the role that they play in your company.

For recognition programs to have the greatest results for your company, you must make sure that recognition is coming from the right person, that it is sincere and that you are recognizing efforts that are true to your company mission.

While it can be best for managers and upper-level employees to recognize workers, it is also extremely beneficial to embrace peer to peer recognition. Employees who work closely with each other and have similar responsibilities understand the normal in-and-outs of the job, therefore their positive praise is seen as a true acknowledgment of their effort. Setting up a program that makes it easy for peers to recognize each other is a great way to drive employees and to alert upper management of employees to watch and offer new opportunities to.

How Do Rewards and Recognitions Benefit Your Company?

Employee Retention & Loyalty:

Employees who feel appreciated at their place of work are more likely to want to stay at their job. Under appreciated workers do not feel a connection with their workplace and do not care about leaving it for something better. An article in Forbes that reported on employee recognition said that the companies with the top recognition programs had 31% lower voluntary turnover.

Increased Productivity & Drive:

When employees know that their good work will be recognized, they are more likely to work harder in order to get that recognition. Being recognized at work is very fulfilling for employees and it gives them more of a reason to operate with purpose in their position.

Engaged Employees in the Office:

Setting up a recognition program that encourages peer-to-peer recognition or recognition of teams is a great way to increase engagement amongst employees in the workplace. When everyone is engaged, participation in your company initiatives will be higher.

Cost Savings and New Business:

There are many benefits that come from a company whose culture embraces recognition. Increased employee retention saves the company costs of recruiting, hiring and training new employees, as well as lapses in productivity due to changes in the position.

When employees are being recognized and feeling encouraged, it makes them work at their full potential. This also saves the company money because staff can get more accomplished in a shorter amount of time. When employees are confident and driven, they will do better at their job. For those in sales and customer service, that confidence is passed on directly to the customer and their experience will likely be a great one. Great customer experiences equal sales!

How Can You Recognize Employees?

You can choose to recognize employees in any way that works for your company. Host an annual recognition event or recognize and reward employees continuously throughout the year. If you choose to hold an event only once a year, make sure that you are still verbally letting employees know when they are exceeding expectations or solving complex problems.

At Bank Express we participate in peer-to-peer recognition at all times, group recognition on a monthly basis and recognition from higher ups occasionally throughout the year. This great mix keeps employees excited, motivated and a bit competitive (in a good way)!

Common rewards for recognition include plaques, glass awards and trophies that employees can display in their workspace. Other rewards for more frequent recognition may include an engraved pen or a piece of company apparel. And that’s just scratching the surface of what you can do to say thanks.

For more fun employee gift ideas, find out how to Boost Workplace Culture with Company Swag and learn about The Importance of Corporate Apparel.

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