According to WorldatWork, 81% of employees who feel recognized report high job satisfaction, compared to only 7% of those who don’t. Teams that consistently express appreciation experience better collaboration, creativity, and retention.

And organizations that prioritize recognition see tangible results:

• Higher engagement and productivity¹

• Lower turnover²

• Greater sense of fairness and inclusion³

So how can leaders make gratitude a part of the culture?

Start meetings with thanks: A 30-second “who helped you this week?” check-in will reframe the tone of an entire meeting.

Encourage peer-to-peer recognition: Encourage teammates to notice and name each other’s efforts. Yes, at this point you are recognizing recognition!

Can you remember a time that recognition helped you through a rough spot?

Sources:

¹ Qualtrics XM Institute. (2023). 2024 Employee Experience Trends Report.

² Quantum Workplace (2023). The Importance of Employee Recognition.

³ Yang, T., and Jiang, X. (2023) When colleague got recognized: Third-party’s reaction to witnessing employee recognition. Frontiers in Psychology.