We all know today's employees want more from their employers. Similar to the lifestyle they choose, they want a work style that aligns with their purpose. Being intentional about their experience means more than just platitudes or putting your values on the wall. It means putting together a strategy that includes wellness, communication, development, mindfulness and gratitude.
The role of gratitude in the employee experience is not complex. It is how you align the employee's role in achieving results and sharing successes as a team. Gratitude also impacts the customer experience, and by driving gratitude as a living value, leaders can create a lasting and differentiated experience for employees and customers alike.
The Harvard Mental Health Letter “In Praise of Gratitude” shares how “gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness.” Researchers and psychologists Dr. Robert A. Emmons of the University of California, Davis and Dr. Michael E. McCullough of the University of Miami conducted a study in which participants were asked to write a few sentences on a specific topic each week. “After 10 weeks, those who wrote about gratitude were more optimistic and felt better about their lives.”
Create The New Normal
Expressing authentic and specific gratitude is more than just gratuitous email accolades dispensed at random to check a policy box. Leaders should intentionally express why they are grateful to individuals and teams by giving positive feedback. Managers should value collaboration, new ideas, stretch assignments and any discretionary effort. This is different from group emails naming the people who achieved a goal. Ideally, you want to share gratitude in person (or on video, if your team is distributed) and encourage team members to share this as well. When you develop a culture of gratitude, people will be mindful of saying thank you. By regularly acknowledging team members for their sincerely appreciated efforts, you can achieve the emulation effect, driving an intentional and mindful cascade.
Create Levers
Years ago our team created "Kudos Cards," which were peer-to-peer recognition certificates that shouted out the exemplary effort and from whom, with a Kudos bar. Employees loved receiving them, and the visual of the candy bar reinforced the impact. Get creative and visual with peer-to-peer recognition. Add a segment to your town hall meetings where you recognize the people who drove the extra effort, even if the result was not what you wanted. Use creative and sticky ways to do this, such as a haiku, six-word format or limerick. Empower your managers to give branded spot bonuses. Take advantage of your landing page or video screens to rotate employee spotlights. Use your social media to show gratitude with a name, photo and branded mention for this regular recognition in your stories and pin them. Design a format for all employees to submit peer-to-peer interviews in a short case study format for your intranet or monthly newsletter. Make space in your interviewing approach and review system for how recruits and employees express gratitude. By creating multiple levers, recognition will be part of your culture.
Create Value
This is your opportunity to show how gratitude is good for the employee experience. Every level of employee should feel valued, and if they do, it will improve overall organizational results. Showcase this by recording 90-second videos showing customer success stories featuring the customer and the employee or team who made it happen. Chances are your customers and your employees will enjoy being featured. Share them internally and externally, on your intranet and in all social channels. This "in the customer's shoes" series will engender loyalty from your customers and drive new customers and employees to your organization. The 360-degree view of how gratitude is valued at your organization will drive new business and employee and customer retention. Ask employees to showcase the value they provide to specific customers, create a regular format and see your value increase among stakeholders.
Employees don't want just a trophy, or even a cumpulsory raise because you need to retain them, as part of their employee experience. Employees want to know that their work is valued, and why it is valued. They want to understand how they impact the larger organizational priorities. The benefits of intentional gratitude in your daily work life will pay off in increased retention, increased discretionary effort and decreased turnover, and deliver an authentic, meaningful, mindful, collaborative, healthy and powerful experience for all.
