Appreciation in the Workplace

It’s almost Thanksgiving, so we conducted a brief survey about appreciation in the workplace. We appreciate all the thoughtful responses we got – clearly appreciation is alive and well which was encouraging to hear!

The good news was that a third of our respondents had been appreciated within the past 24 hours and an additional fifth of them had been appreciated within the past week or so (i.e., 55% had received appreciative recognition quite recently). Sadly, a few (about 10%) had to reach back a year or more to identify appreciation in the workplace – sometimes this was linked to a pay raise, performance review, or award ceremony but in other cases this reflected workplaces that simply weren’t recognizing the contributions of employees. One person said “Everyone is looking out for themselves right now, sadly.” Another listed 2006 (5 years ago) as the last time appreciation was expressed; still another wrote, “Can’t honestly remember when the last time was.”

When asked about the most common way to show appreciation, not surprisingly a simple “thank you” came out on top – 50% of the respondents selected this item compared to the next highest choice of letting management know (10%). However, the qualitative answers revealed a variety of approaches (so thank yous don’t become routine) – and many people emphasized the importance of individualizing appreciative feedback, both from the perspective of the sender (it needs to be specific and authentic) and the receiver (it needs to be personally meaningful).

Some people highlighted the personal touch (e.g., in person feedback or a hand written note rather than an email; customized gifts rather than generic gift cards; hugs; home-made food) – but responses were varied. Spa gift certificates were a common theme, as were lunches out, gift certificates for dinner ($100 seemed to be the most common amount for this item), chocolate, flowers, team events, and celebrations. The gift of time was always appreciated – whether time off for birthdays or after a busy project, covering for someone else to give that person a day off (one casual employee does this without compensation to give others a break!), or taking the team out for a special treat.

When asked about creative appreciation strategies, some unique ideas were shared. One organization has a “Cup of Awesomeness” (a golden cup on a beaded cord) that staff members pass to each other to show appreciation for a job well done. Another organization has a Treasure Chest, stocked with cards and small gifts that any employee can use to show appreciation to colleagues or suppliers. And, in one case, an employee’s parents were flown out for a surprise recognition dinner!

However, responses clearly indicated that what works for some doesn’t work for others – one person wrote, “Don’t offer food!! Some cultures keep offering food and you have to eat even if you are not interested not to upset them!!! – I truly hate that!” The consensus definitely was to individualize your approach – take time to learn how the person you appreciate would like to be acknowledged.

Aside from it just being a nice thing to do, respondents identified that appreciation contributes to increasing employee engagement (78%) and productivity (68%), reducing conflict (58%), and facilitating retention (55%). Showing appreciation also models a culture of respect. Some respondents cautioned, however, that appreciation can be a double-edged sword if it contributes to competition or some employees recognized that they aren’t been acknowledged as often or publicly as others.

Appreciation is a core element in both our Let’s CHAT! coaching / communication model and our Employee Engagement model . Don’t hesitate to connect if you’d like to learn more about either of these workplace tools.

Take the Time to Appreciate

As the holiday season is here, it’s important to take time to reflect on the people in our lives – family, friends, and co-workers – and truly appreciate the things they do for us; whether they are big or small. The positive impact others can have is undeniable, and far too often we neglect to say thanks or express our gratitude.

Appreciation is an important component of building positive relationships. It is not only the third component in our Let’s CHAT! coaching model, introduced in previous posts, but it’s also a key factor of employee engagement. Including appreciation into these models helps remind employers and employees to take the time to be grateful for the contributions and commitments of others, rather than focussing solely on the negative or areas that could use improvement.

Take a moment to reflect on who in your office (or life) has helped you. Who’s an un-sung hero in your workplace that could use some appreciation?

See http://humanresources.about.com/cs/rewardrecognition/a/appreciation.htm for some ways to say thanks this season and throughout the year.

The Gift of Help!

A willing helper does not wait until he is asked
~Danish Proverb

Last week we introduced the Let’s CHAT! model with a brief overview of the first step – Communicate. This week we’ll focus on step two – Help.

Within the Let’s CHAT! model there are two components to Help. The first is What help do you need? The second is What help can you offer? In our experience, individuals tend to focus on one or the other – making “Help” a one-way arrangement.

Think about what’s on your plate or “to-do” list right now. What help do you need? For some, the first step will be to ensure they are willing to seek assistance. Karen Rowinsky wrote an interesting piece on why people are reluctant for ask for help. She noted that some people fear appearing incapable while others believe that everyone else is busy too and, therefore, won’t really have time to help. Read more at: Everything you want to know about help

While thinking about what help you need, also reflect on what help you can offer. Who in your life might need some help – especially this time of year? Perhaps pay special attention to those who might need help but be reluctant to ask. Don’t wait for them to get up the nerve to ask. . . think back to Rowinsky’s article, asking for help can be difficult for many people. Think of offering help as the best you can give this year.

To learn more about Life Strategies’ e-course on the Let’s CHAT! model, see
http://lifestrategies.ca/services/courses/lets-chat.cfm

Communication is Key!

The single biggest problem in communication
Is the illusion that it has taken place.

~ George Bernard Shaw

Effective communication on your team, with co-workers and supervisors, as well as your clients, is imperative for successful working and coaching relationships. The Let’s CHAT! coaching model helps to not only facilitate open communication, but also to build empathy, foster appreciation, and prompt a commitment to action. The components of the model are: Communication, Help, Appreciate, and Take Action. Coaches using this model will engage in conversation beginning with Communication and working through to Take Action.

In this blog we’ll consider the first step of this model: Communication.

The focus of communication is to convey/receive a specific message to/from another individual (e.g., performance evaluation, team update). Communication will occur only when the message has been successfully transmitted by the sender and understood by the receiver. This may require a bit of back and forth between the sender and receiver – remember communication is a two-way street. Effective communication requires active engagement in conversation by both parties. Receivers should always be respectful, refrain from interrupting, and listen intently in order to truly hear the message which is trying to be communicated.

As information can be transmitted verbally (i.e., spoken words) and non-verbally, it’s important to be aware of body language cues (e.g., arms crossed may indicate frustration or not being open to new information). Ask probing questions to get to the underlying issue or to clarify points.

To learn more about Life Strategies’ e-course on the Let’s CHAT! model, see http://lifestrategies.ca/services/courses/lets-chat.cfm

Appreciation Makes a Difference!

Appreciation is a core component of two of Life Strategies’ models: Employee Engagement and Let’s CHAT! (a coaching tool). The element was embedded into both models for very similar reasons – many people today feel underappreciated...and appreciation does make a significant difference. According to the Bully Free at Work Blog, Appreciation is one of the top 3 things that leaders can do to minimize the impact of a disrespectful workplace. An article from CIO.com reported a US Department of Labor survey indicating that 64% of people who had left their jobs said they’d left because they didn’t feel appreciated. The same article reported a startling stat from Gallup – 70% of those surveyed said they received “no praise or recognition in the workplace.” No wonder so many leave!

Let’s CHAT! is an acronym for Communicate, Help, Appreciate, and Take Action. When I developed the Let’s CHAT! model to help managers and supervisors with coaching conversations, it was to respond to some of our corporate clients’ in-house surveys indicating that a significant number of employees felt unappreciated. However, there was considerable pushback from managers and supervisors who found the “appreciation” step of the process awkward and forced – they asked if they could replace it with “Analyse” instead. It’s so much easier to engage in problem-solving conversations with our colleagues than it is to show authentic appreciation! Therefore, we stuck to our original model and left appreciation intact. Years later, in Deirdre Pickerell’s research on employee engagement, we weren’t at all surprised to see Appreciation surface as a fundamental component of engagement, also making a significant contribution to employee retention.

Looking for creative ways to show your appreciation? Here are 80 to get you started!

Interested in reading more? Consider Dr. Noelle Nelson’s book, The Power of Appreciation in Business.

Still looking for more? Join me in a one-week e-course to learn more about the Let’s CHAT! model, beginning November 17, 2010. Let’s CHAT! will also be a component of our 3 day leadership training (Keeping Employees Engaged During Business Transformation ) beginning October 20, 2010. To learn more about employee engagement, join Deirdre for a 2 week e-course beginning October 27th (Career Management at Work: Keeping Employees Engaged).