The importance of keeping your employees emotionally engaged in your organization is a constant theme in our Thought Leadership blogs and more recently in our highly popular wall chart, 35 Ways to Influence Corporate Culture and Increase the Bottom Line.

At C.A. Short Company, we have found ourselves often referencing Gallup’s report, “State of the American Workplace,” as it relates to the need for active employee engagement. As part of our recent informative blog series, we’ve regularly pointed to results from Gallup’s Q12 measurements from employee surveys and how they can allow for such effective solutions to be drawn up.

The importance of employee engagement is a topic of conversation that should be a priority for all organizations. Unfortunately, trying to determine how to boost employee engagement can be as challenging as trying to send a text message with a rotary phone. Employees are not wired the same, so how do you use the same message to reach each employee individually?  

Sometimes, as managers, we forget about the value that even the simplest praise and recognition has to our employees. We forget that it is human nature to need reassurance from people that we look up to and respect. We forget how much people thrive when they feel appreciated. But the real value lies in HOW we show our appreciation, not just that we do it.

So, How Should We Effectively Recognize Employees?

By ensuring that your organization's employee recognition program not only reinforces the organization’s culture but achieves a higher level of engagement includes the following:

• Builds self-esteem

• Reinforces desired behaviors

• Works to create an atmosphere of appreciation and trust

• Promotes empowerment and involvement

• Creates loyalty to a company

• Includes all people and in a form that resonates with them

Hurray, it’s a beautiful day! I’ve been studying intrinsic motivation for 40 years and I’ve FINALLY been asked to write a blog post about it. Thank you Scott Russell, and C.A. Short Company, for this wonderful opportunity. Blog posts are short, and I’ve been known to drone on, so here is a BRIEF definition of intrinsic motivation.

You have been given a difficult, time consuming task. It's time to review your service award provider and you know you need a change.

Oh how you dread that transition! You know that being held accountable for the success of your program is a huge responsibility. Seth Godin's Lizard Brain Principle tells us that sometimes it's easier putting up with an inferior product, than making a needed change. Well, we believe it should be easy and seamless. Don't fear, the answer is near!

What's Your #1 Objective?

Your number one objective is to have an experienced service award provider, right? By experienced, that means more than 15 years in this Industry. You need a provider who works with you to build a program that fits all of YOUR needs, not their's.

You need a vendor who:

1. Is open to suggestions and personalization
2. Is always moving forward with the generational transitions
3. Can lead you with today’s best practices
4. 100% on-time and
5. Complete

Of course, we always turn to Recognition Professional International (RPI ) for our best practice standards. As our workforces change, so do our needs for our service award program.

You submit your Years of Service Award employees to your recognition provider, but that is only the beginning of the Employee Recognition process. You need to make sure your employees are appreciated and engaged throughout the year. Here is where your provider should step in.

Opportunities to Celebrate Your Employees

Employees celebrate Service Award anniversaries every month, and if you don’t have a budget to have a formal event, at the very least, call your department together and present the awards in front of their co-workers. 

If you have a budget to have an event or can combine it with a holiday party, it is best to recognize employees in front of their peers. Come up with a new “theme” each year and design posters, banners, invitations, and eVites. An event should be about those not receiving awards, as well so that everyone in the company feels engaged and appreciated. 

Engaging employees and providing real-time recognition can be a challenge. There are many questions to consider such as, what are the best tools to boost employee engagement? How can you encourage peer-to-peer recognition the most meaningful way? Should you leverage social media to increase engagement? 

It's Not Magic; It's a Software Platform

Fortunately, implementing an employee recognition software platform can alleviate your concerns. Utilizing a recognition platform allows you to design a program that brings total recognition to the forefront of your workforce by adding processes that promote genuine appreciation between peers, in a relaxed and social atmosphere. 

The Importance of Employee Recognition

There are few things in the corporate world that I would consider “fun.” Most days are chock full of meetings, conference calls, and emails. However, recognizing your employees for achieving a service award milestone, is one of those things that should be a highlight of your day. It should be a chance for you to take a moment to show sincere appreciation for all your employees do for you and your organization. What is unfortunate is that many organizations have not created a strategic employee service award program that creates a culture of recognition within the workplace. By not providing employee recognition training, and not having a formal process in place, many times what should be a fun experience for all, is looked at as more of a burden or waste of time & money.

A quick story. I worked at an organization for about 5½ years right out of college. On the anniversary of my 5 years of service, I received an envelope on my desk with no explanation, my name misspelled, and a small coffee stain on the right corner. I honestly thought I was getting fired in the most inappropriate way I could imagine. As I cautiously opened the envelope I saw a letter from the CEO thanking me for 5 years of service and a small catalog of awards to choose from. The catalog consisted of 5 branded trinkets ranging from a stress ball to a hat. To top it off, it was going to take nearly 4 weeks for me to get the hat. I left the office that day feeling less appreciated than I did the day before. I felt defeated and unappreciated for the 5 years and countless hours of overtime I had given that company.

So, the point of the story is, just because your company has a Service Award Program, doesn’t mean that it is well-structured, nor that it is having the impact on your employees that you believe that it is. In fact, it could be doing more harm than good.

A Personal Touch to Employee Service Awards

Here’s the thing. Technology makes all of our lives easier. We couldn’t do business without email, computers, and cell phones. No one is denying that it’s probably a bit more cost effective, and definitely quicker to offer everything via the Internet. However, we think that some aspects of business, including employee recognition, should be more personal than a simple email announcement. Do more than tell your employees they matter — show them. It's all about creating memories that last a lifetime.

The Importance of a Years of Service Award

A Years of Service Award Program is about more than just getting a gift for sticking around. A systematic service award program encompasses the event, the award, and the recognition experience. By providing tangible, personalized presentation options that fit with the organizational culture and budget, you are able to maximize the impact and improve overall satisfaction of the program itself.