Employee engagement and staff recognition programs are not only about the happiness of your employees.
Just as important, if not more so, are the business results. After all, if there are no measurable improvements to the business, why embark on an engagement program?
Employee engagement strategies measure the energy, effort, and passion employees bring to their work. And that’s important to bottom-line success. Hence, employee engagement is indispensable to the success of any organisation.
Studies by industry expert’s show that engaged employees in an organisation tend to work harder, are more motivated, provide better customer service and have lower turnover and absenteeism rates. The bottom line is that employee engagement can have a profound effect on an organisation’s overall performance.
Employee Engagement studies have shown that when employees feel truly valued and appreciated, they tend to work harder. That’s why one of the best ways to drive engagement is to implement a recognition (and reward?) program in your organisation. The act of giving and receiving employee recognition for contribution and effort is a great way to show appreciation and help improve engagement.
A 2016 Workplace Trends Report shows that in addition to promoting higher engagement, employee rewards and recognition programs can yield higher profits, higher productivity, higher retention rates, and higher sales. Now that’s a great return on investment. With results like this all businesses should take note.
An excellent way to optimise a recognition program is to design one that is consistent, fair and transparent, and represents your organisational values. You could also consider recognising birthdays, anniversary of service, customer feedback, innovation ideas, recruitment referrals and more. You don’t have to associate rewards with all of these (some you might, such as recruitment referrals, as the cost savings could be huge).
When implemented, the program should be customised to meet the unique cultural and generational needs and preferences of your employee base, so keep the following suggestions in mind:
- Implement uniform, company-wide reward and recognition programs that are paired with clear objectives customised to drive your most wanted activities, behaviours and outcomes.
- Be aware of your employees’ cultural and generational preferences. The instant text message or an email that motivates a millennial employee could simply frustrate a Baby Boomer who prefers reward or recognition delivered in person.
- It is also imperative to understand the laws of the country to develop employee compensation plan, both from a tax perspective and a privacy one.
- If you are giving rewards, consider the most appropriate balance between monetary and non-monetary awards. A range of rewards, from e-gift cards, to events and products are ideal to satisfy today’s workforce. Also worth considering are internal rewards such as paid time off, learning and development initiatives, or health related rewards. The great thing about these rewards is that they can be high impact to the recipient, while being lower cost to the employer.
- Implement the right tools and technology platform to ensure that consistent company-wide recognition can be easily customised to your organisation’s need of employee recognition. Ensure that recognition can be given instantly to maximise impact, so a technology that includes a mobile App is particularly useful, especially for staff who are mobile of not desk based. There are numerous platforms on the market that can deliver these benefits, while reducing operational costs when supporting the engagement program, and delivering real time information to management.
Companies have now realised that recognition (and reward) programs for employees encourage desired behaviours, motivating employees to perform at a higher level.
With lower attrition and absenteeism rates, higher productivity, improved customer experience and more, if your organisation does not have employee engagement as a high priority you are not maximising your most precious commodity – your staff.
After all, your employees are your ONLY unique competitive advantage, so protecting them is crucial for your business success, so beware. If you don’t recognise your staff for their positive behaviour and contribution, your competition will!
Brownie Points is now used by thought leading companies around the world to deliver exciting and effective employee recognition programs to drive employee engagement.
To learn how our platform could improve your business, call the team today on 03 9909 7411 or email us at info@browniepoints.com.au to discuss your requirements and arrange a no obligation demonstration.
