5 Impactful Tips on Team Appreciation
Administer by appreciation, reap the ripe.
There is no denying the fact that we all like appreciation. Be it my mother appreciating me for keeping my room squeaky clean or my boss appreciating me for meeting the deadlines right on time. Appreciation never fails to bring a hint of joy.
Now, in a professional set up, appreciation does not always mean gifts or monetary incentives. Rather, compliments and moral upliftment can work very well as appreciation. Appreciation plays a very impactful role in keeping the employees happy and motivated.
In this post, we will discuss the power of the right kind of appreciation gestures and how they can give a leap to the overall performance of your company. We will also give you some cool tips on how you can express your regard and appreciation for your employees.
Why is appreciation needed at all?
The answer to the above question is very simple. Appreciation is empowering. It brews confidence and dedication. Acknowledgment gives people a drive to work harder. One keeps going with zeal if one’s efforts are acknowledged. On the other hand, lack of acknowledgment brings resentment.
Appreciation triggers innovation and ideas
“Appreciation is a wonderful thing. It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.”
― Voltaire
The above statement is self-explanatory. Employees are the backbone of an organization. Their excellence and innovation will make the company rise. Appreciate their efforts and touch heights. Happy employees tend to perform better and contribute to the growth of a business.
If as a manager, you give credit to respective employees for their efforts, they will surely do better in the future. The sense of appreciation will increase the urge in employees to bring innovative ideas.
Reduces the turn over rate in employees
Retaining your employees for a long time can be very beneficial. It takes a lot of time and investment to hire and train new people. But why do employees leave in the first place? No, no, not always for money. Research shows that employees leave due to the lack of appreciation for their efforts. The reason why your top talent is leaving you might be because they are feeling ignored and left out.
Making every employee feel that their contribution makes a difference is important. This way, employees feel positive and want to stay.
Equip your team with a tool like ProofHub to show them you care. Get your free trial here.
Appreciation boosts confidence
Once an employee’s performance is acknowledged by higher authorities, he starts believing in himself. Confidence boosts their decision-making abilities.
An employee shows more interest and engagement at the workplace as the authorities show them that they count on them. Appreciation is one of the three A’s in building the self-confidence of an employee.
Appreciation affects company culture
Appreciation builds positive company culture and team collaboration. Appreciation is almost infectious. When you praise one individual, he is likely to do the same for others. As a result of which people will work with a better team spirit. It will cultivate a good culture and environment in the company.
Tips on how to appreciate your employees
Just as I said before, appreciation has very little to do with monetary benefits, it is a lot more about keeping the employees happy by recognizing their hard work and effort. Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs” model can bring insight in business leaders to understand the importance of recognition.
In this model, Maslow represents human needs in the form of a pyramid. The base of the pyramid includes basic human needs like food, shelter, warmth, etc. Once these life-sustaining needs are fulfilled, the needs range from security, love, and achievements leading up to the final stage of self-actualization. The purpose of this model here is to show that recognition and appreciation take place on one of the rungs of this pyramid. Thus appreciation is established as one of the human needs in order to be happy.
Here are a few tips on how you can extend a gesture of appreciation towards your employees.
1. Remember birth and work anniversaries
The simplest of events like a work anniversary or birthday should not be overlooked. Remembering the birthdays and work anniversaries of people will make them feel valued. Your employees will feel that you value their presence in the organization.
2. Respect the individuality of the employees
Every employee is different and unique. Understanding different personality types and catering to their individual needs is the responsibility of a manager. Each employee will have different skill sets, capabilities, needs and preferences. Some people like public acknowledgment whereas others like private applause. Different accomplishments also need different types of recognition. You cannot reward a milestone achievement with a mere well-done remark. You can conduct a survey to understand the preferred feedback channels of different employees and act accordingly.
3. Arm your employees with the right tools for smooth functioning
As a manager, you get what you offer to your employees. We use ProofHub to make the sailing smooth for the employees and reap high productivity rates. With ProofHub, you can save your employees from a lot of useless hustle by keeping all your files in one place, better planning, scheduling, and collaboration.
Gantt charts and Kanban board provide better project management by easily tracking the project progress. Investing in a good project management tool will make your employees feel cared for by the authorities and affect employee engagement and dedication for good.
Apart from this, you can make use of the special feature of “ANNOUNCEMENTS” within ProofHub as a medium of employee appreciation. With announcements, you can not only make important announcements but can also use it as a way of acknowledging people within the organization for their achievements.
4. Encourage feedback from employees
Feedback is one great method of making employees feel that they are heard and their opinion matters. You can frame small questionnaires containing open-ended questions like what they like about their workplace, what they resent there or what changes they expect to happen.
Keep the whole process anonymous, so that people can be honest in their feedback. All the data that you will collect from this feedback can bring a plate full of ideas on your table and you can work better towards employee satisfaction.
ProofHub can be your dedicated space for appreciation and project management together. Try it for free here.
5. Make appreciation a part of company culture
Appreciation should be a regular event at your office. Make sure you say ‘thank you’ to your employees from time-to-time for their effort and hard work. Appreciation should not be limited to annual performance evaluations only. Make it a point to give recognition to your employees when the project is in progress and not only on the completion of the project.
Wrapping up
“Correction does much, but encouragement does more.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
The above quote very well signifies the importance of appreciation as a medium of encouragement in your employees.
Your employees will do some wonderful work. At the same time, they will make some mistakes. You are to decide what you want to concentrate on. Appreciation can not only channelize their strengths but also motivate them to work on their weaknesses.
The right kind of encouragement can make a world of a difference in the engagement and dedication level of your employees. Lower employee turnover rate is another perk of appreciating employees.
We would love to know if you found this article useful. Also, tell us in the comment section if you have more ideas to share regarding team appreciation.
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