By Daniel Bobinski
It’s nice when a manager or supervisor notices you went above and beyond the expectations of your job, but sometimes its even better when your work is noticed by a co-worker.
A number of years ago, the 180-person laboratory of a hospital in the town where I live began a “Caught You at Your Best” program. The program allows any employee to acknowledge any other employee for doing exceptional work.
Their program is simple. The laboratory’s Interpersonal Relations Committee placed a small drop box in the break room along with some index cards. When someone wants to thank another employee for going the extra mile, they simply write out the circumstances and drop it in the box. Once a week, people from the committee check for deposited cards and then each acknowledgement gets written onto a thank-you card, which then gets hand-delivered to the employee along with a candy bar.
The program costs only a few dozen dollars each month, and after its inception, esprit de corps in the department rose dramatically. It works well for several reasons.
- All employees are empowered to give recognition
- All employees are empowered to receive recognition
- All acknowledgements provide specific details about the praiseworthy behavior
- All acknowledgements are made soon after the praiseworthy behavior occurred
When employers and employees display attitudes of gratitude in the workplace, several tangible benefits can occur.
1) Improved Workplace Culture. Work environments in which employees feel valued and respected lead to improved collaboration. This can lead to increased employee satisfaction as well as higher levels of productivity.
2) Enhanced Employee Morale and Engagement. Think back over your own career. It’s likely you’ve worked for supervisors who expressed appreciation for your efforts, and other supervisors who would say thank you only if it was embarrassing for them not to. Even your own statistical example of one tells you that employees who feel appreciated are more likely to be motivated and engaged. This can be particularly important for remote workers who can easily feel disconnected.
3) Better Employee Well-being. Gratitude is linked to improved mental and emotional well-being. According to a Wharton Health Care Management study, when nurses received regular gratitude, their overall health and happiness improved. They reported less exhaustion and higher job satisfaction, plus they used fewer sick days.
4) Higher Job Satisfaction and Retention Rates. When employees feel their contributions are recognized and appreciated, not only do they experience greater job satisfaction, they also have higher retention rates. That’s because employees are less likely to leave an organization if they feel valued. Given that replacing employees is more costly than most people realize, this is a huge benefit.
Bottom line, employees are more likely to support one another when they feel acknowledged and valued because attitudes of gratitude foster a sense of unity and teamwork. And, as I mentioned, it’s one thing if a supervisor is saying, “thank you” about a specific action you took, but it’s even more powerful if co-workers are saying it, too.
Daniel Bobinski is the author of the best-selling book, “Creating Passion-Driven Teams,” and president of Leadership Development, Inc. He’s been helping organizations of all shapes and sizes since 1989. Learn more at www.eqfactor.net or reach him at DanielBobinski@protonmail.com or 208-649-6400.
