‘Employee Appreciation Day’ was the beginning of March and presented a perfect opportunity for all employers to recognise their teams for working hard and their valued contribution to your business.
We believe a day, although a positive step to give focus, is insufficient to highlight the amazing work all of your employees. It doesn’t matter what role they perform; everyone has a part of your operation, everyone a cog in your machine. A little recognition can go a long way, a happy employee is a productive employee. Those who feel that their work is valued tend to be more motivated.
By showing your appreciation on a regular basis, you will retain more of your talent and foster an environment of excellence. We all know that people tend to do their best work when they’re happy and in good spirits.
Showing your appreciation doesn’t have to come at a high cost. However, the average cost of replacing an employee, if they are not engaged is high! If you use an agency to recruit someone on £30,000 per annum, you may pay a 15% fee of £4,500. Even if you don’t use an agency, there are still your time, the whole recruitment process and training costs!
Why not take the opportunity, at this time, to take a step back, to look at your people strategy, perhaps your reward package. Here at advo we take time to ask and to listen to what is important for our diverse range people and have created a benefit package that is broad in scope that aims to support and reward. Why not take time to look at your working practices, is there something that benefits people which in turn benefits your business. Take a look at your working environment, what changes can make the time spent at work more comfortable. A big step forward for some could just be a staff survey, to take the time to ask.
Whatever you do does not have to cost a lot, a little spent now could lead to worthwhile rewards! Lunch out or in now and again – food is one of the simplest and most effective ways to reward your employees and show your appreciation. You may just want to surprise your team with a box of tasty snacks, and these can be sent to home workers too. You can also encourage wellness at the same time by providing delicious healthy treats or taking an outing to a restaurant that provides healthy options. If you have team members working from home, be sure to send them a voucher to order-in lunch or to enjoy a special treat. Please don’t forget to consider different dietary requirements or allergies as if you get this wrong, you plan to show appreciation can quickly go awry!
Regardless of the type of recognition, appreciating employees motivates them and increases their performance and engagement. There are so many ways to show your thanks and appreciation to your employees. You can create personal thank you videos, social media posts, emails, thank you cards and so on. However, there are times when just a phone call or a catch up, just to say a genuine thank you and not to give them more work at the same time, is exactly what an employee wants and needs.
The advo team is here to help you on this. As employee benefit experts, as HR experts, we have seen and done most everything that you will face as an employer, why not reach out and see what value we can add.