Lack of appreciation can lead to a loss of motivation as well as higher employee turnover. Without taking much time and energy, employee recognition helps your people go the extra mile: BeforeSunset can be of help.
So let's think about a case about employee recognition. Analyze your team for a second, and focus on a high-performing team member: She delivers work ahead of schedule, provides support to her teammates, and takes initiative at the right times.
Recognize Your Employees
Now the tricky part: When was the last time you congratulated her for her efforts? When did she last hear a "Bravo"?
Well, if you cannot remember, you are no exception, since according to one study, 40% of employees believe that employee recognition is not a priority at all in their work environment.
However, appreciation is in fact an incredibly efficient and relatively low-cost means for boosting employee satisfaction. A global study on more than 200,000 employees, by Boston Consulting Group, shows that the major factor underlying happiness at work is appreciation: Interestingly enough, even an attractive fixed salary comes 8th, and interesting job content ranks only 9th.
Here are some examples of appreciation phrases for your employees:
- Your knowledge of X has provided us with vital insight, which has aided in the growth and advancement of our team's goal. Thank you very much!
- You are a real inspiration for all of us! Your impressive performance contributed in the growth of our company's sales. Thank you very much!
- The things you produce never fail to amaze us! You are an essential part of our team's and company's success.
- Thank you so much for your support and assistance. You are a valuable member of the team and the company.
How Recognition Elevates Your Team
Employee recognition has two remarkable benefits for any enterprise. One is enhanced productivity, and the second, lower employee turnover. As for the first, employee engagement, productivity and performance surge by a remarkable 14% in organizations where employees feel appreciated, according to Deloitte. That should not come as a surprise. Being social animals, we humans need to know that our presence and efforts make a concrete contribution to our community, and naturally crave appreciation.
Maslow's hierarchy of needs
It provides the most trustworthy scientific reference on the issue. Human needs, according to psychologist Abraham Maslow, are classified. These predefined categories establish a hierarchy within themselves, ranging from material to spiritual.
According to the Maslow hierarchy of needs, a person must climb the stairs provided by these categories to actualize himself (or figuratively ascend).
There are five key phases/steps in all.
- Physiological needs such as food and water
- Safety needs for one's own and loved one's safety and health
- Belonging needs such as friendship and family
- Esteem needs such as respecting and being respected by others
- Self-actualization needs where one is creative and virtuous.
These steps must be followed by a person to become self-actualized.
For example, a person cannot be virtuous until they have adequate life security (2nd step).
Similarly, someone who is not appreciated by others (4th step) will not go to the fifth step.
Physiological and safety needs are, of course, satisfied in the workplace.
What About the Requirement for Respectability?
Only the necessity of respect will stand in the way of a self-actualized, victorious, and creative employee—an effortless yet frequently neglected practice of motivation.
If you don't satisfy the needs, it may be harmful to the individuals. In the first two steps, the damage is generally physiological, but the damage becomes psychological as the process continues. In the fourth step, unmet needs can lead to unpleasant feelings such as anxiety and disappointment.
As a result, a lack of proper recognition might easily lead to employee turnover.
One study finds that churn reaches 44% among employees who don't feel appreciated versus 26% among those who do. If you factor in the time and money invested in raising a well-experienced professional who knows in-house procedures inside out, the loss here is all too apparent. Indeed the same is true for the veteran employee, who might have invested his/her precious time and energy to learn all the ropes. However, feels obliged to seek an alternative job for lack of credit.
Are employers and supervisors to blame here? Not really, since they already have so much on their plate.
Software such as BeforeSunset can precisely help you step back from the daily grind, and sharpen your focus on individual employees. For instance, BeforeSunset helps you evaluate employee performance. Allows you to set capacities for employees, and access elaborate reports showing how much time employees have dedicated to which task.
So, by sparing a couple of minutes of your time, you can visualize your top-performing employees, and then make sure to appreciate their work.
You may also pinpoint employees who don't perform so well for the moment and maybe sit down with them for a motivational one-on-one chat. By simplifying employee recognition, time management software can help you take your business to the next level.
Try BeforeSunset now!