Building employee morale is arguably the most important task for a company. High employee morale can boost productivity, participation, retention and opportunities.  Employee recognition is a conduit for employee morale and if done effectively can change the entire culture of a company.

Be thoughtful. Sometimes it is better to give an employee a small token of appreciation that doesn’t involve a company t- shirt or coffee mug.  Putting in that extra thought will not go unnoticed by the employee.

Be intentional. While it is great to recognize all your employees for their hard work, when recognizing individuals or a specific team, make sure you recognize the specific accomplishments that led to recognition. Employees like to know their hard work isn’t going unnoticed. By bringing their accomplishments to the limelight, you are demonstrating that you pay attention to their work.

Be inclusive. When recognizing a team, recognize each team member’s contribution as well as the accomplishments of the team as a unit. As a member of a team, it is easy to feel lost in the group. By recognizing each team member, you are affirming their value to the team.

Be a culture of encouragement.  A great tool to achieve this is to develop a colleague recognition program. Allowing employees to recognize what their coworkers are doing creates camaraderie among employees.

People like to be praised; it’s human nature. By taking the time to recognize employees, you are reaffirming their efforts, thus encouraging them to keep up the hard work.  Encouraging employees significantly build employee morale.