Three Ways That Appreciation Helps Bring Out the Best Work in Employees
As company leadership increasingly shifts their attention towards achieving an outstanding employee experience across the lifecycle of an employee, appreciation and recognition will be two of the largest factors that both increase overall employee happiness and drive engagement levels and ROI.
That’s because appreciation moves the needle on employee engagement and helps bring out the best work in employees.
Here are three ideas to help get you started.
Invest in Career Development
One way to better appreciate your staff is by investing in their career development. In this way, you let them know that you both recognize the good work that they do and that you value their continuing education. Because a lack of career direction is a large source of employee disengagement, provide them with avenues for growth, such as conference attendance, course participation, certification programs, and mentorship. Bottom line: learning opportunities, professional development, and training are critical to giving employees direction, making them feel valued, and bringing out their best work.
Take Interest in Work-Life Balance
Another way that you can better show your office that you appreciate them is to really take an interest in work-life balance. Before, companies would simply bring in doughnuts on Fridays or invest in a break room ping pong table. However, this has proven to be incredibly ineffective, as forceful initiatives for fun in the workplace do not solve a lifestyle issue. Rather, companies would do well in better understanding their employees, their needs, and their lives outside of the office. By increasing efforts to give employees the flexibility to handle work in a way that suits their lifestyles, you demonstrate your willingness to make work-life balance work for them.
Realign Your Focus to Experience
Finally, a third way that appreciation can bring out the best work in employees is through realigning your focus from their productivity to their experience. By finding ways to enable employees to connect with coworkers, you show your appreciation for them as people—ones who are capable of making an impact and deserving of meaningful relationships. Overall, a key indication that your employees are happy (and consequently engaged) is whether their social experiences at work are of value, much of which can be helped by employers willingness to appreciate, support, and care for them.
The workplace landscape is quickly changing, and if you don’t adopt new strategies toward better appreciating your employees, your engagement levels might get left behind. For more information on how to better appreciate your employees, or for help putting an employee appreciation strategy into action, contact O.C. Tanner today.