The term quiet quitting has emerged recently as a post-pandemic trend for employees who are burned out and actively choosing to the bare minimum. It’s just a fancy way of saying that employee engagement is taking a nose dive.
Companies that routinely rank high in employee engagement are committed to fostering a great workplace where culture is seen as a business imperative in both good and challenging times. It’s more important than ever that employees feel connected, appreciated, and recognized for their efforts. That’s where a sound employee recognition strategy can make a difference in overall performance and workplace culture.
Employee recognition programs should be a vital component of every company’s employee engagement strategy. It’s a smart retention approach that’s also good for the bottom line.
Studies show that businesses with formal recognition programs have approximately 30% less voluntary turnover than those without them. And they’re 12 times more likely to have strong business results.
But often recognition programs encounter two problems.
A new recognition program may start with hoopla, but as time goes by, suffers from diminishing visibility. Without consistent internal marketing to employees and continuous leadership sponsorship, the recognition program loses participation and effectiveness.
Recognition should be clearly aligned with a company’s purpose and values so that there’s a common language for what success looks like. When behaviors and achievement are linked, it sends a clear message of consistent, visible recognition across the business
It’s a virtuous cycle. When people are recognized for their contributions, they perform better, trust grows and so does workplace culture.
One of the clearest memories of my childhood is connected to Veterans Day. At the end of the church service, the priest asked all current and former military members to stand and be recognized for their service. My father, who never spoke about his military service, would stand up, a little straighter than usual. There were dozens of others who did the same. As they left the church, they chatted and joked with each other about who had the easier tour of duty.
Recognition is meaningful.
Veterans Day, November 11, provides an opportunity to strengthen support for employees who are current and former service members and their families. A simple recognition or expression of thanks means so much to those who’ve served. Within the workplace, consider these actions to show that your company values the service, experience and commitment of military veterans and their families:
Invite employees who served in the military to a special gathering or luncheon.
Establish a military veteran Employee Resource Group.
Make a contribution to a community veteran scholarship program.
Highlight employees who served in the military in company media and websites.
Host a community day of service for employees to give back at local veteran facilities, national cemeteries, or VA hospitals.
Current service members and those transitioning from military life make excellent employees. Recruiting veterans can be a successful component of your diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy.
Connect with non-profit organizations like American Corporate Partners to provide career coaches and mentors to veterans, active duty, and military spouses.
Partner withhiring programs that benefit veterans, transitioning service members, and their families.
Expressing thanks and support makes all of us better leaders, partners, and colleagues. Make a commitment to show appreciation, develop, and hire those who served our country.
Tom Peters was so right when he noted “People don’t forget kindness.” It’s the same with gratitude. The power of a sincere thank you cannot be overestimated. In a recent study on employee engagement, the top factor of job satisfaction was respectful treatment of employees at all levels. Second on the list was trust between employees and management. If you practice the first item, you achieve the second one.
It takes conscious effort to build a culture where every employee feels appreciated. We all like to be noticed for the good things we do. People who feel appreciated believe their work makes a difference. They are more willing to go the extra mile because they know someone notices.
Making gratitude visible is a step you can build into your internal communications. Here are three ways to build appreciation into your workplace culture:
Involve senior leadership– Create a year-end video of the senior management team thanking team members during this extraordinary year.
Be specific– Don’t underestimate the power of a thank you note. It’s low tech, but more effective than a gift card. Be specific about how the individual contributes to the team. Your employees will know that you are paying attention.
Introduce a peer-to-peer recognition program– It feels great to say thank you. That’s why peer-to-peer recognition programs are motivating to employees. They strengthen a culture of collaboration. Tailor the program to your business, align with your company values, and make the recognition defined, public, and fun.
When you recognize people for their contributions, they perform better, trust grows and so does your workplace culture.
Gallup’s latest study on employee engagement revealed the awful truth that only about 3 in 10 American workers are truly engaged in their work and workplace. Following the havoc of the pandemic, leaders are struggling to inspire team members to take initiative, commit to their company’s success, and be more productive.
The long-running survey on engagement has shown that employees are engaged when their deeper needs to feel valued, grow and develop, maximize their strengths and make a meaningful contribution are fulfilled.
The results of Gallop’s studies point to three specific things employees need to feel good about their jobs and be fully engaged. Here are some suggestions communications teams can use to make these three elements work for your company:
Employees want a leader and a company who care about them and their development– When you truly believe employees are the company’s most valuable asset, it shines through in the frequency and manner with which you communicate with them. Let them know specificallyhow the company is working hard to ensure their success. Share information about important changes and initiatives as freely as possible to show employee how their contributions matter to overall business success.
They’re looking for a role that matches their strengths– Every job presents interpersonal and character growth opportunities. Help employees see what mountains they can successfully climb right now and show how they can gain skills and experience on their career journey.
They want to know that their contributions matter– Chances are, your employees believe—or once believed—in your company’s mission and values—what you contribute to the world at large. Keep this purpose at the core of your communications. Be sure you regularly articulate the relationship of the work employees do every day to your mission.
What’s the connection between all of these elements? Proactive, inspiring, and consistent internal communications. It’s the most productive way to get everyone focused on priorities and engaged in their work.
Over the past decade, technology has facilitated a major shift in how we do business. Many workers have moved from office settings to remote working. In 2020 this shift accelerated even more rapidly due to COVID-19 and the need to adopt social distancing for the health and safety of employees and their families. Companies are adapting on the fly in the ways they communicate and conduct day-to-day operations. While this shift has helped businesses stay productive, the sudden change has left some employees feeling less engaged.
Managers are suddenly faced with the question, “How do we support our employees who are now forced to work remotely?” Sudden changes like this can be overwhelming if you don’t have a plan in place. In order to make sure you are doing all you can to support your remote employees here are a few internal communications best practices to keep them engaged:
Keep in Contact
This seems simple but it’s easy to miss the mark. Make sure your employees feel supported and connected to their peers and managers. Host virtual team meeting and check-ins multiple times a month. Keeping employees in the loop about the company’s big picture and their role in it helps them feel valued and included, promotes a healthy attitude toward otherwise stressful changes, and ensures everyone is aligned and headed in the right direction.
Celebrate your Employees
People want to feel that they are valued. Introduce an employee recognition program to celebrate when your team members go above and beyond. Everyone appreciates a pat on the back for a job well done. Also small things like calling out work anniversaries and birthdays will make your employees feel appreciated and let them know that you’re thinking about them.
Ramp up Training
Give your employees the tools to be successful. Employee training in any business is an investment, not an expense. When employees are well trained, they perform with skill and confidence. Make sure your employees feel prepared to work remotely and promote continued growth and development. Implementing training programs for video conferencing, webinars, and any new programs will help employees feel assured.
What is your least favorite thing to do? For some people
it’s cleaning their house, for others it’s going to the grocery store and for
some it’s working out. It’s not that
they don’t like the end result. A fresh
clean house, a fridge full of groceries or the feeling after finishing a workout
are all very satisfying and produce tangible results. They will tell you that they don’t enjoy the
process.
This concept can also apply to business. How does your business engage employees to
share ideas to make the business better?
Involvement opportunities drive engagement, particularly with
millennials. Everyone wants to work
smarter, not harder.
One way to involve employees is by implementing a processes
improvement program. Start with a survey, suggestion request or contest. Employee feedback can help you quickly target
where you can improve and unlock potential.
Ask employees to provide suggestions on how and where the business can grow,
innovate, save money, or do things a different way. Some categories to consider are:
Reducing waste and time
Decreasing costs
Improving efficiency
Enhancing customer experiences
Increasing employee engagement
Promoting collaboration across the business
Once you’ve collected employee ideas and discovered an area
where you can improve, be sure to clearly communicate the new process and
connect it to the process improvement program.
Thank those who participated for their input, describe what is changing
and explain the benefits.
Your employees are an invaluable asset. Give them an opportunity to help improve your processes and the long-term results will benefits your business. Share your your stories with me at: ben.clayton@insight-communication.com
This month as we focus on Thanksgiving, consider the power of gratitude in your workplace. Before your thoughts turn to friends, family and football, spend a few minutes thinking about how appreciation can make a difference to your business.
Tom Peters was so right when he noted “People don’t forget kindness.” It’s the same with gratitude. The power of a sincere thank you cannot be overestimated. In a recent study on employee engagement, the top factor of job satisfaction was respectful treatment of employees at all levels. Second on the list was trust between employees and management. If you practice the first item, you achieve the second one.
It takes conscious effort to build a culture where every employee feels appreciated. We all like to be noticed for the good things we do. People who feel appreciated believe their work makes a difference. They are more willing to go the extra mile because they know someone notices.
Making gratitude visible is a step you can build into your internal communications. Here are three ideas:
Appreciation by senior leadership—Create a year-end video of the senior management team thanking team members for their service this year. Get out of the office and film it with front line workers. Switching the wardrobe from suits and ties to ugly Christmas sweaters and elf ears will create smiles for years to come.
Appreciation by managers—Write a thank you note. It’s low tech, but more effective than a gift card. Be specific about how the individual contributes to the team. Not only will your employee appreciate the gesture, they will know that you are paying attention.
Appreciation by team members—It feels great to say thank you. That’s why peer-to-peer recognition programs are motivating to employees. They strengthen a culture of support, collaboration and achievement. Peer recognition programs should tie to your company values. Tailor the program to your business, but make the recognition defined, public and fun.
The power of gratitude is a multiplier. When you recognize people for their contributions, they perform better, trust grows and so does your workplace culture.
For many corporate employees, this is bonus season. In February, when year-end results are being finalized, the buzz builds. Will we make bonus, and by how much? In March, the anticipation is unmistakable.
Whether the news is good or bad, bonus season gives leaders a spotlight to connect individual performance and business results. While the architecture of bonus plans vary, most include a performance-related reward with a pay out when the company’s financial results and the individual’s performance meet set criteria. For example, when Apple missed sales and profit goals for 2016, Tim Cook saw a cut to his performance-based cash incentive. Don’t worry about Tim. Overall, he still did pretty well.
Whether the news is good or bad, the way you tell the story will impact employee engagement. Let’s look at communication strategies for both scenarios.
When the incentive target is achieved
Explain how it works. The only people who truly understand the bonus system work in Compensation. Prior to bonus announcement, send out a review of the bonus program with visual examples. Provide an online bonus calculator.
Celebrate. Good news should never be buried in an email. Create a brief video from the senior leadership team thanking employees for their contributions last year. An authentic thank you is always appreciated.
Set expectations for the current year. High performance cultures innovate, collaborate and continuously improve. Now is the time to be talking about 2017 stretch goals and aligning performance and priorities so bonuses are achieved in 2018. Create talking points for managers to cascade.
When the incentive target is missed
Explain how it works. See above. Talk through the plan structure. If thresholds were not achieved, clarify how that impacted pay outs. Remind employees that the bonus is just one component of a comprehensive rewards package and it’s performance-based. It’s extra pay for exceptional results.
Pre-announcement preparations. Prepare for this like you would for a customer or shareholder meeting. Compose key messages, draft FAQs and ensure managers are informed and prepared. Set up a channel for employee questions.
Hold town hall meetings. Where did the company fall short? Talk about it. Listen, answer questions, and discuss priorities and opportunities for 2017.
Proactive communications help connect the dots for team members. Businesses win when everyone knows, understands and lives the company’s values. Show them their contributions make a difference.
This time of year, a kind of holiday haze sets in. The breakroom counters are bursting with tins of holiday cookies and flavored popcorn. Employees are focusing on completing 2016 assignments (and scheduling holiday getaways).
December marks the fiscal year-end for many businesses. Help your employees successfully navigate through the many December deadlines with proactive communications that show you care about more than the bottom line. Here are five tried-and-true ways to do it.
1. Clarify year-end deadlines. Start your team meetings with a reminder or checklist of deadlines for invoice processing, Flexible Spending Accounts, finalize expense reports, and other year-end deliverables. This messaging should begin December 1 and continue through the month.
2. Communicate vacation benefits. Paid time off is treasured by employees. If your business has a “use it or lose it” vacation policy, remind team members so they can schedule time off before year-end. If your company allows vacation accrual, communicate the accrual limit. Ensure there are no surprises in January.
3. Come together through service. Studies show that volunteerism increases pride, commitment and employee engagement. Contact a local charity, food bank or civic association for ideas on how your team can get involved during the holidays.
4. Celebrate 2016 achievements. Create a top ten list of your team’s “Greatest Hits of 2016” or ask team members to talk about one thing that helped them be successful this year. Connect the dots to show how every role contributes to delivering performance and your company’s vision.
5. Say thank you. To make a connection that lasts, send a personal note of thanks. Low cost, big impact. Be sincere and make it personal by including a strength or a behavior the individual brings to the team.
