Appreciating the workforce has never been more important — here are some simple yet effective ways to do it well.
By Maggie Mancini
Organizations and employees alike are feeling the impacts of an uncertain world. Leaders are grappling with how to navigate a challenging landscape and provide support for employees. One proven way to build community and morale is through a tech-driven employee recognition program.
For organizations thinking of investing in a recognition program, it’s important to first understand the unique needs of the workforce, says Paul Gordon, SVP of sales at Rymax. It’s important to know key demographics like gender ratios, age ranges, and geographic locations, because people in different cohorts want different things.
Once HR leaders have a good understanding of the makeup of the workforce, they should leverage technology to communicate with employees and collect feedback on what they are looking for from employee recognition.
“These are things that any successful company would do anyway when reaching out to a customer, so do it for your employees, too,” Gordon says. Recognition technology often offers an administrative tool that organizations can use to design the platform’s homepage, which controls the messaging. Leaders can communicate with employees about objectives for the quarter, new products, or HR topics, he says.
“It becomes a gathering point for employees to find information, especially if it’s one click away within the homepage of the recognition platform,” Gordon says.
Recognition is also a great recruiting tool. “Candidates are looking for fun, community-driven working environments as they compare different jobs, so recognition can help HR when seeking out talent,” Gordon explains. “We want candidates who are going to stay with the company for a period of time. Showing candidates and new hires the organization’s robust recognition program is a great way to stand out.”
When it comes to getting the most from employee recognition programs without sacrificing the quality of the rewards, there are two things to focus on, Gordon says.
- Include a range of different products. “Product mix is the biggest way you stretch the budget,” he says. “If the perceived value of the product is larger than the actual cost, it’s going to be better for the overall budget of the program.”
- Provide choice in the program. If an employee is coming up on their five-year work anniversary and they’re eligible to redeem a product at a specific value, giving the employee the opportunity to choose which product they would prefer makes it more personal, Gordon explains.
