If you are looking for the One Best Way to recognize your employees, may I gently suggest that you are missing the point? There is no cookie-cutter, one-size-fits-all approach that meets the needs of every organization. Nor should there be! Individualization and a custom approach is vitally important, and a personal touch proves the sincerity of the initiator. I’m not just talking about the name on the plaque or the color of the car, either. You want quality, you want meaningful and significant. Right? But how to provide that personal touch? Let’s take a few moments and examine the basics of great recognition. Spoiler alert: there’s more than one!
Ways to Celebrate Years of Service
Individuality:
Annual days (or weeks!) set aside to recognize your entire workforce are great but remember that most people crave being picked out of a crowd and noticed for their own, individual accomplishments. Go ahead and throw an annual employee picnic-- promoting a generally convivial atmosphere and a strong company culture is valuable!-- but don’t neglect to recognize the individual for his or her small, but vital role. It’s a good idea to be organized about this, too, so that the usual largest personalities in the room aren’t the only ones getting noticed.
Personal Touch:
Everyone prefers the name brand to generic, right? Even though on some level we know the generic version is probably identical, there’s something about that ‘swish’ that automatically makes us feel more fit and faster, isn’t there? Apply that idea to your gifts and incentives. You can create a team personality, honor an individual’s personality, or represent your own personality via your gifts, incentives, and recognition programs. Branding your incentives and achievement awards can also contribute towards a stronger company culture and help reinforce the values you consider important for your team.
Variety and Creativity:
Whatever you do, don’t get stuck in a rut. It’s worth the effort to stay fresh and fun. For starters, you can regularly visit this blog for ideas! At C.A. Short Company, one of our goals is to constantly brainstorm new and engaging ways to honor the workers that keep our nation’s industries running smoothly. There are as many wonderful ways to honor your people as there are people on your team! There really is no one best way to recognize and honor your employees-- other than to simply put together a Total Recognition Plan, sprinkle in some effort and actually DO IT.
Do you feel less than confident about your ability to provide creative, varied, and personally significant recognition for your team members? You are not alone. But at C.A. Short Company, our Certified Recognition Professionals have your back! Have no fear, this is what we've trained for and this is what we DO. Give us a call or shoot an email our way today. We can help you get a plan in motion.
