Infographic: Employee Appreciation Can’t Be Optional

March 3rd is Employee Appreciation Day, when companies recognize and appreciate the efforts of their team members. It’s an important day, and if you employ or lead any kind of team, this day should have your attention. 

Check out our infographic to learn more:

Spoiler alert: regular recognition improves employee outcomes, engagement, and productivity across the board.

We’re going to dig into how employee appreciation and recognition rates are lower than you might expect, what employees are expecting themselves, and what kind of impact recognition creates.

Not Getting Recognized

Even if you’re not doing anything for this particular day in March, you should be upping your employee recognition game throughout the entire year. We can all do better, and it turns out the better we do for our team members, the stronger our team gets. The data is pretty irrefutable, in fact. 

As it turns out, the data shows most employees aren’t getting much acknowledgment or appreciation for their work. A recent Gallup poll showed that 65% of employees receive zero recognition in a year. 

That’s almost seven out of ten employees not getting a single “hey, good job” in a calendar year. That’s insane.

When you look at employee appreciation and recognition strategy, it isn’t much of a surprise though. 81% of leaders polled said that recognition is not a major strategic priority for their company. 

What Employees Want

An article in the Harvard Business Review outlined a recent experiment. Stressed-out social workers were sent a letter with just two sentences of positive feedback. A month later, those workers reported significant upticks in motivation, well-being, and belonging, with lower sickness absence rates than colleagues who didn’t receive the letters.

That’s from two sentences. A couple of nice things and a bit of punctuation, that’s it. 

This tracks with what workers are saying about their own expectations for employee appreciation and recognition. 85% of workers want to hear a “thank you” in day-to-day work. 36% of women wanted to see it in writing. 

We’re not talking pizza parties or yachting excursions. You don’t have to spend a single dollar to get huge results. You can hit eight keys on your keyboard to thank someone for their hard work and improve their outlook tremendously. 

Of course, being specific about what you’re thanking employees for works better. It will take a few more keyboard strokes, but it’ll be worth it. When polled by Deloitte, employees wanted to hear “for what” and “by whom” in their praise, not generic thank yous.

So, instead of saying “Oh, thanks Pam,” try “thanks Pam for forwarding that dolphin to my office, that was really unexpected.” 

In our example, “for what” would be “the dolphin surprise,” and “by whom” is “thanks, Pam.” Thanking the dolphin that appeared suddenly in your office would be optional but likely appreciated.

The Power of Appreciation

A little appreciation has a BIG impact. And not just in employee health and happiness. But in money, too. The money the company makes. 

That same Gallup poll we linked to earlier showed a 10% to 20% difference in productivity and revenue in companies that recognized their employees from those that didn’t. 

That is a massive increase in measurable production. All from a simple but firm strategy of recognition and appreciation, from developing a culture of saying “thank you” more often. 

Your employees will also stay longer if they are recognized. When employees feel recognized and appreciated, 73% will be less likely to feel burned out “always” or “very often.” 

Burned-out employees are less productive, turnover is increased, training and onboarding costs skyrocket, it’s a huge bummer. 

Show Appreciation with Experience

As a purpose-driven brand activation agency, Inspira has applied our EQ X IQ philosophy to our culture to create a workplace where our teams and business partners can reach their full potential. Plus, we’ve seen firsthand that employees who feel valued, motivated, and truly love what they do directly carry that over to their dedication and enthusiasm for our clients’ business. 

In the past, we’ve helped companies put together employee appreciation and professional development experiences that let team members know how much they’re valued. These events resulted in record-breaking engagement and positive feedback, all of which helped team members and brands alike. 

Shoot an email to Inspira Marketing today: we love creating these kinds of experiences, and we’re sort of the experts. Let us know how we can help you thank your most valued resource: the people you work with.