Written by Pi Wen Looi, Principal, Novacrea.
Our employee survey results consistently show that one of the things employees crave most is acknowledgement and appreciation. The simplest way to acknowledge employees’ contributions is to say thank you, yet this is often overlooked. The following sample employee comments are common feedback we see in our surveys:
“A simple thank you goes a long way.”
“Whenever my manager gives me feedback, it’s about things that I could have done better. It’s like he only sees what went wrong. When I do well and meet targets, I don’t hear good job or any word of praise from him.”
“When I say hello to my director, she doesn’t seem to notice me and walks right by.”
Do any of the above comments resonate with you? If so, it is time to be more deliberate in incorporating the practice of saying thank you and recognizing employees’ contributions on a regular basis. This behavior is important and it is one of the 12 indices in Gallup’s Q12, “In the last seven days, have you received recognition or praise for doing good work?”
In a rush to meet deadlines and production targets, managers and supervisors often focus on the end results and forget to recognize employees’ contributions. This is not an excuse to fail to acknowledge the accomplishments of your employees. While there is always room for improvement, it is critical that you celebrate success along the way and boost employee morale.
Take the opportunity to show your employees some love. Start by saying thank you to your team members.
This article was originally published on the Novacrea blog. Meet the author at the HR Analytics and the Employee Experience conference, August 1-3, 2017 in San Francisco.