The most affordable recognition: A pat on the back from the boss goes a long way

Recognition from “the company” is one thing, but for most employees, their manager and direct supervisors are the face of the organization. Any positive reinforcement from them means something extra special.

That’s why you should encourage all supervisors to take the time to recognize their employees’ daily efforts. Remind them that employees need positive reinforcement and incentives to perform at their best, and that a little recognition goes a long way toward enhancing employee motivation and loyalty.

Here are some suggestions you can pass on to managers and supervisors to get them started:

• Be generous with praise. Every once in a while, send a simple email to individual employees after closing time, commending them on something they did that day and letting them know they’re appreciated. They’ll read the email first thing the next morning and be motivated for the rest of the day.
• Brag about your team. Upon completion of a project, send emails to top management, highlighting which employees worked hard to meet project deadlines, caught a crucial error or found ways to save or make extra money. Pack company bulletin boards with praise for your employees’ above-and-beyond efforts.
• Award “extra credit” points for extra work or success performing the dreaded “additional duties as assigned.” Examples: participating on inter­­depart­­men­­tal committees, making cost-saving suggestions and exceeding daily or weekly production goals. Employees who attain a certain number of points or accumulate the most points in a year get a reward.
• Encourage peer recognition. Desig­­nate a set of index cards as “Peer Award Cards.” Have employees anonymously fill one out and leave it on a co-worker’s desk each time they “catch” someone doing an exceptional job or going the extra mile.