If you sense there is little appreciation going around in your organisation, it’s time to get down to work and create a culture of appreciation.
We are introducing this subject now to ensure you are ready with a plan on March 2, which is “Employee Appreciation Day”.
Organisations in the United States and Canada observe it (on the first Friday of March); and there is no reason why those here shouldn’t.
Building a culture of appreciation is a necessity for any organisation. But it is hard, everyday work.
A recent report by O.C. Tanner, which offers employee rewards and recognition solutions, says employees look for six things in their work and workplace. One of them is appreciation. As you must be curious about the other five, here they are: purpose, opportunity, success, wellbeing and leadership.
Vibha Batra, advertisement consultant and author, offers suggestions on how employees could be appreciated. “Have a Wall of Fame or Hollywood star in office. And up goes your picture/name on it. Like the ‘Secret Santa’ concept, choose one employee every Friday and everyone writes a one-line, appreciative, anonymous handwritten note on it. Give ‘Leave for home early’ coupon for employees when they do something exceptional. Offer a ‘Warrior of the Week’ certificate. Or have an ‘applause meter’ placed on the employee’s desk and it applauds and reaches the maximum level.”
Siju John Kuttikat, who heads a shipping and logistic start-up in Visakhapatnam, says for appreciation to be effective, it has to be spontaneous and immediate. “When employees go the extra mile on a project, tell them straightaway how much you appreciate their efforts. Give spot awards,” he says. Of course, when it comes to rewarding employees, cash is king.
“Whenever an employee does work that impacts the bottomline positively, we reward him immediately through a special bonus. We give bonus three to four times a year rather than keeping it for the festival,” says Kuttikat who runs Devi Freightage.
