6 Ways To Show Employee Appreciation You May Not Have Tried

Company events are great opportunity for you to show your appreciation for your employees. These can range in scale depending on milestones and accomplishments. You may want an annual dinner to highlight all of the goals you reached during the year, or you may want to spring for a company Japan cruise to memorialize a bigger accomplishment. While not an everyday thing, investing in momentous occasions is just one indication that you care about all the hard work everyone does on a daily basis. Dragging yourself to work on a Monday can be rough, but it’s nice to occasionally reflect on what that hard work accomplishes over a nice meal.

If a pizza party is your go-to, pay attention to how it’s received next time you announce one. It’s true that most people love pizza, but when you’ve been working for weeks on a difficult project, a cheese pizza in the break room doesn’t feel like an adequate reward. Instead of spending your money on pizza for the whole office, try taking a brief and relaxed survey to see what people would actually appreciate. Maybe the team to reach all of their quarterly goals first wins some extra time off. If it turns out that everyone actually hates the local Pizza joint, try picking up some gift cards for the local ice cream place.

Little office perks can have a huge impact while costing relatively little. If you noticed that everyone hits a slump in the afternoon, try switching up the brands of coffee available in the break room. Keep some snacks stocked that would work with a variety of diets so that everyone can get a boost of energy when they need it. If someone is doing an exceptionally good job that week, you can give them the option of choosing a new snack to stock.

If your employees don’t feel comfortable giving you honest feedback, any feedback you implement won’t satisfy their needs. Give your employees a way to provide feedback securely and anonymously. This way they can provide feedback confident that you will consider what they have to say and that their words will be taken seriously without being connected to a specific individual.

Maybe doling out promotions every time someone hits a milestone won’t work for your company, but you can still utilize a career-based award system. If one of your employees is doing well in their current position and you know they want to grow with the company, an appropriate award could be sending them to a conference. You could also ask if there are any skills they would like to build and send them to appropriate workshops. Your employees will feel like you are investing in them, and you will reap the rewards of further training.

Pretty much everyone likes to be recognized for their workplace achievements, but it’s important for employers to realize that employees have lives outside of the office. If you have an employee that enjoys community service, congratulate them on their fundraising goals. If an employee was working on their golf game, congratulate them on their improvements. While it’s important not to infringe on their personal lives too much, showing an interest in their hobbies can help establish a connection that further fosters trust and loyalty within the office.

If you’re a busy and growing company, chances are it’s hard to show employee appreciation with everything else going on. However, with a little time and effort you can make your employees feel valued, which in turn makes your company more efficient and a pleasant place to work.