In any given work day, many situations arise when you say “thank you” to an employee or co-worker. However, sometimes a more than just a thank you is needed to match the impact of the person’s efforts. In this case, accompanying a thank you with recognition and an award will provide the impression you are looking for. After taking a look at my clients’ employee recognition programs, I formulated these reasons to say thanks with recognition awards.
10. Co-worker takes on your workload while you are on vacation
As I prepare for vacation this year, I am working on a list of things that my co-worker needs to look out for. It has become almost a full page and yet, I will only be out of the office for a few days! Having someone in the office that is willing to cover for me and keep up with my emails makes my vacation much more enjoyable. I will have something special planned for her when I get back and noticed that many of my clients recognize employees who cover workloads while others are on vacation. Covering your job and someone else’s is not an easy task and can result in twice as much correspondence and responsibilities. When someone does it well for you, why not show them your appreciation and reward them with a recognition gift?
9. Employee accepts an extra shift, comes in on a day off
This is a common reason for my clients with incentive programs to recognize and reward employees. I helped contribute to an article a few months ago on SmartMoney.com on this exact phenomenon. Due to the economy, more and more employees are being asked to fill in. However, many organizations are reducing burn out with simple recognition awards and thanks.
8. Employees help decorate the workplace
I have several clients working in healthcare and specifically in nursing facilities where employees pitch in to help decorate for upcoming holidays. Often times, employees are even bringing in their own decorations or buying new ones to help spice things up. This is a fun way to make the place a little more like home for residents. To thank workers for their contributions and assistance, the human resources department hands out wallet-sized award cards entitling people to a small recognition award of their choice.
7. Someone assisted you in a project
How often do you start a project only to realize there is no way to meet a deadline without help? For many clients, this does not happen too often but when it does, a recognition award representing gratitude is in order. Whether a co-worker helps you to do research or finalize your project to meet a deadline, thanking him or her will make it much more likely for you to count on their teamwork skills again in the future.
6. One of your employees implements their idea that improves the workplace or reduces costs
A lot of my clients recognize and reward employees for their ideas that help to reduce costs or make the work place greener. Depending on the situation, my clients have used different levels of recognition awards. One of my clients has given out a recognition award worth over three thousand dollars for a cost savings idea that resulted in savings of over fifteen thousand dollars. Typically, clients will give employees a reward proportionate to the savings or impact.
Check back next week for the next top reasons to say thanks with a recognition award. I will also present a simple solution to help you plan an employee recognition program that will allow you and your employees to consistently thank and reward others.
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