I talked last time ("What makes you stay?") about making sure that your employees feel both appreciated and valued. I mentioned both a recent article from Press Gainey in the Harvard Business Review ("What makes health care workers stay in their jobs?"), as well as a study published last year in JAMA Health Forum which found that "feeling valued", "good teamwork", and "having values that are aligned with those of leaders" in an organization are some of the strongest predictors of staying with the organization. How can leaders demonstrate to their employees that they are valued members within the organization? Expressing their gratitude is a great place to start.
As Jack Zenger and Joseph Folkman write in another Harvard Business Review article ("Do you tell your employees you appreciate them?"), "Every measure of morale, productivity, performance, customer satisfaction, and employee retention soars when managers regularly provide recognition." They also state that the most common complaint that they hear about managers in organizations is that they don't show their appreciation to their employees nearly enough. According to one survey performed in a health care organization, 29% of employees reported that they had not received any form of recognition within the past year! An additional study using a database of thousands of 360° leadership assessments performed by their company showed that leaders who are rated in the bottom 10% for providing recognition to their employees have employees at the 27th percentile on engagement. Conversely, leaders who are rated in the top 10% for employee recognition were at the 69th percentile on employee engagement!
According to the Gallup Q12 Employee Engagement Survey, a positive answer to one question accounts for 10-20% of the difference in measures of employee productivity, revenue, and customer loyalty: "In the last 7 days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work." Unfortunately, 65% of employees reported that they receive no recognition during the previous year!
Studies consistently show that leaders who regularly express gratitude and recognize their employees are perceived to be better at collaboration and teamwork, being open to feedback, building relationships, and inspiring and motivating their employees. Employees who work for these leaders are more confident, feel better informed, work harder, and are much less likely to leave the organization. Showing gratitude and recognizing employees, if done well, has huge payoffs!
Mike Robbins states in the Harvard Business Review ("Why employees need both recognition and appreciation") that "Recognition is about giving positive feedback based on results or performance...Appreciation, on the other hand, is about acknowledging a person's inherent value. The point isn't their accomplishments. It's their worth as a colleague and human being...In simple terms, recognition is about what people do; appreciation is about who they are." Employees need both.
How can leaders express their gratitude through recognition? Make sure that both recognition and appreciation are specific. Describe a specific event or action and the impact that it had rather than just generally stating, "Good job today." It's important that recognition comes from their immediate manager and that it is timely. The sooner the recognition occurs after the behavior, the higher the perceived value. Personalize the recognition as much as possible - some employees like to be recognized during team meetings, while others prefer something more private. Handwritten notes are a great way to recognize employees!
Leaders can show their appreciation for their employees by listening to them (truly listening - "Put down your phone, turn away from your computer, and genuinely listen to them!"). Leaders should proactively tell their employees what they value about them. As Teddy Roosevelt once said, "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care." Show them that you care by frequently checking in with them, asking them how they are doing (and meaning it), and show them that you care.
It doesn't seem like much, but when it comes to the impact of gratitude through both recognition and appreciation on employee engagement, more is better! According to Glassdoor's Employee Appreciation Survey, 53% of people said that feeling more appreciation from their immediate supervisor would help them stay longer at their organization, even though 68% said that their managers already showed them enough appreciation!
Mike Robbins concludes, "Recognition is appropriate and necessary when it's earned and deserved. Appreciation, however, is important all the time." Tell your employees what they need to hear, and what they want to hear!
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