Organizations are constantly searching for effective ways to boost employee engagement, increase retention rates, and enhance overall job satisfaction. While grand initiatives and salary increases play a huge role, research shows that meaningful small gestures have an outsized impact on workplace morale and employee loyalty.
You can easily put in place simple processes to acknowledge and reward employees with small gestures. These simple yet powerful actions cultivate a positive work culture that improves performance and boosts retention.
Small Gestures Shape Work Connections
“Research demonstrates that small acts of thoughtfulness, respect, and trust have outsized impacts on employee engagement, satisfaction, retention and productivity.”
Employee engagement is a key element of retention, productivity and success. Engaged employees perform better and are less likely to seek opportunities elsewhere.
A report by Gallup found that employees who receive regular recognition are more engaged in their work. Managers account for 70% of the variance in team employee engagement in surveys. In the United States, where engagement levels have hovered around 33%, companies that integrate recognition programs see a 23% increase in profitability. In Europe, fewer employees report feeling engaged at work, highlighting the need for more recognition-driven strategies.
Studies consistently demonstrate that small gestures—small acts of recognition—such as personalized thank-you notes, verbal appreciation, and unexpected small rewards—can significantly increase engagement levels. And higher engagement leads to higher retention rates.
A “Thank you,” from a direct manager to an employee has a significant effect on employee motivation. A recent Gallup survey of employees found that the most memorable recognition most often comes from an employee’s manager (28%) or from the CEO (24%).
You can you ensure that managers are diligent about awarding praise and making sure that the engagement is memorable by setting up and providing access to incentive management systems. Setting up an incentive program with a variety of incentive options helps remind managers of the vital role of incentives to make gratitude rewarding and memorable.
Offering small tokens of appreciation, along with management praise, makes recognition and engagement more memorable and effective. Incentive management makes it easy to accomplish.
Ten small gestures – specific tactics you can employ to increase employee engagement.
Communicate: Send new employees an email that welcomes them after they have accepted an employment offer and provide details on the onboarding schedule and logistics.
Provide a Gift: Send a digital gift card for a choice of donuts or coffee to welcome a new hire and provide a smile.
Communicate: Have the manager send a note that speaks to the organization’s mission, values, and the role of the new employee.
Provide a Gift: Provide a choice of company branded items or company swag items (e.g., water bottles, desk accessories and logo wear). Incentive Automation from TruCentive allows employees to choose styles, sizes, and preferences, with direct delivery to their home.
Communicate: Welcome and invite new employees to enjoy lunch with the manager and peers, either virtually or in person.
Provide a Gift: Welcome them to the team and send gift cards for local restaurants or Doordash/Gubhub/Uber Eats and let the employee choose.
Communicate: Congratulate employees on their first few weeks on the job and provide an added token and gift to welcome them to the organization.
Provide a Gift: Make branded backpacks, vests, or jackets available to new hires. Deliver digitally and let your recipients choose between your curated sizes, colors and styles.
Communicate: Check-in lunch with the employee’s manager or designated mentor, either virtually or in-person.
Provide a Gift: If the meeting is virtual send a gift card for lunch (e.g., Grubhub, UberEats) for both the new hire and the manager.
Communicate: Encourage a new hire, after they’ve been at the organization for a few weeks to take their own small team out to lunch, either in-person or virtually to encourage teamwork and build relationships.
Provide a Gift: Send a digital lunch gift card via TruCentive to pick up the tab, for all team members taking part virtually.
Communicate: Have managers communicate during casual feedback sessions to check in on employees. Provide feedback on their role. Discuss their progress and discuss their impressions and potential added support they need.
Provide a Gift: As a thank-you for their feedback, send a small gift card or reward, such as a movie night gift card (Fandango, Netflix, Hulu, etc.) to encourage work-life balance.
Communicate: Arrange virtual or in-person “coffee chats” with team members from different departments to provide feedback on areas of interest.
Provide a Gift: Provide digital coffee gift cards so they can enjoy a drink during these meetings, which help foster connections.
Communicate: Managers should periodically thank employees for their contributions. Not all kudos call for a gift, but make sure that gifts are used for important or exceptional praise.
Provide a Gift: Send a gift package via TruCentive, where the employee can choose a merchandise or gift card item, experience, or perhaps provide dinner for the family.
Communicate: Call out department or organization achievements and milestones and highlight employee involvement. This is a great time for a small token of appreciation.
Provide a Gift: Provide an employee-choice merchandise or gift card item, experience, or perhaps a selection of company swag as an alternative.
Pay, benefits and the traditional trappings of corporate life matter. All of the following factors work together to help organizations in fostering a powerful employee engagement culture.
Beyond traditional benefits, organizations can implement the following retention strategies to keep employees engaged and satisfied:
Use incentives frequently and be sure to provide plenty of fun variety over time.
Flexible Rewards: Gift cards provide employees with a choice of incentives that are important to them.
Recipient Choice: Offer recipients a selection of curated gift options that match their preferences.
Books: A curated selection of business books related to your organization. TruCentive provides multiple methods for delivery, including physical copies and downloads.
Swag: Logo wear is proper when used as one of several forms of recognition. Branded backpacks, vests, or jackets are appreciated, if they aren’t the only form of gifts used by an organization.
Office: Accessories for the office, like mouse pads, desk lamps, pencil holder, keyboard and laptop stands, cable organizers and the like are good gifts. Provide a choice of items.
Variety and Options: Gift card options, including merchant gift cards, funds delivery, and prepaid cards are plentiful and varied.
Choices by Theme: Themed gift choice selections, like tech (e.g., Amazon, BestBuy, Apple. etc) or food (e.g., Coffee, Pizza, Donuts) allow you to follow fun themes.
Customizable Designs: Incentive Automation encourages personalized messages and visually appealing rewards, easy to create and accomplish with advanced editing tools.
Engaging Delivery: Design memorable emails and SMS messages using templates or custom designs, ready in minutes.
Small gestures can have a big impact on employee engagement, retention, and satisfaction. While traditional benefits are essential, recognition, thoughtful rewards, and open communication create a more engaged workforce.
Simple actions like a personalized thank-you, digital gift cards, and social check-ins foster a culture of gratitude and appreciation.
Incentive automation tools like TruCentive make it easy to automate and personalize incentives, ensuring every employee feels valued. By integrating regular recognition, professional growth opportunities, and flexible work options, organizations can build a workplace where employees stay motivated and committed. Small efforts, when done consistently, lead to lasting results. Start today and watch engagement soar!
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