Employee Recognition: A Key to Corporate Success

Corporate success—we all want it. To achieve and maintain long-term success in today’s competitive business world, organizations need happy, motivated, productive and loyal employees. And as more and more Millennials—who put job satisfaction over long-term loyalty to any one company—enter the workforce, retaining top people is more critical for organizations than ever.

Because retaining your top talent is vital to success, employee recognition programs should be implemented to build job satisfaction from the early days of any business. When there are so many elements to consider when starting a business, why should we worry about recognizing employees? By recognizing and rewarding employees for a job well done in relevant and meaningful ways, organizations enjoy greater success by reaping the following benefits:

Greater Motivation

Few things motivate employees more than knowing that their efforts are recognized and appreciated. Employees who feel that their work is valued and that superior performance will be rewarded tend to be more enthusiastic about coming to work each day. They also tend to set higher goals and are willing to go the extra mile to achieve them. In addition, studies show that employees who work in a supportive and positive environment tend to be, not just more motivated, but also more creative in how they approach their jobs than employees who feel underappreciated.

 Better Communication and Collaboration

A powerful benefit of employee recognition is that the process of recognizing and rewarding an employee serves to break down the communication barriers that often exist between employees and management. The act of being recognized shows employees that management is aware of them and that their contributions are valued. This creates an open dialog as employees feel comfortable and encouraged to share their ideas and opinions without fear of management shutting them down. Recognition also helps foster better communication and collaboration between team members as they work together—knowing that both individual and team accomplishments will be acknowledged and properly rewarded.

Greater Opportunities for Advancement

Employee recognition isn’t about a pat on the back. It’s about acknowledging and rewarding employees by providing them with a path for future success and advancement within the company. Employees who recognize that the company they work for is willing to provide them with new challenges and opportunities for growth as they continue to meet and exceed corporate expectations tend to be more satisfied, fulfilled, and loyal than employees who see themselves stuck in dead-end jobs with no hope of advancement.

Better Morale

Nothing boosts employee morale better than the knowledge that hard work is appreciated and that stellar performance is rewarded. As companies get the good word out on their employees through recognition and rewards programs, the congratulations that come, not just from management, but from coworkers and peers alike gives morale and employee loyalty an even bigger boost.

 Increased Employee and Customer Retention

Good employee recognition programs increase employee retention by producing happier, more satisfied and motivated employees. In turn, customers that reap the benefits of doing business with a company whose employees are enthusiastic and motivated to provide a superior experience will be more likely to stay with that company for the long haul.

Increased Productivity

Along with increasing motivation, employee recognition helps to encourage employee behaviors that are more closely aligned with the organization’s goals and objectives, at the same time discouraging those behaviors that are not. As these desired behaviors are consistently reinforced they are more likely to be repeated, resulting in increased productivity.

An added benefit of recognition is that co-workers who see their peers receive accolades for their accomplishments will often adopt more desired behaviors themselves, raising their levels of performance so that they might also be recognized and rewarded.

There are a lot of factors that lead to corporate success. Organizations that implement effective employee recognition programs stand a better chance of achieving and maintaining long-term success by cultivating a positive corporate culture that leads to more engaged, fulfilled and loyal employees.

JP George—Consultant