Over the past few weeks we have been looking at some of the root causes of high attrition and employee turnover. You have hired the right people, trained them effectively, communicated and provided feedback and now you’re ready to let your team know how much you appreciate them and their hard work.
Understanding Need and Motivation
Everyone wants to be recognized for work well done, and everyone wants to work somewhere where they feel valued. Psychologist Abraham Maslow offered his Hierarchy of Needs as a way to help understand the needs and motivations of your employees. People are motivated to move from each rung of the pyramid as they search for the next level of needs.
The first three steps are simple for most
- Physiological – food, water and shelter
- Safety – health, financial stability, and personal security
- Belonging – friends, family, social group
The fourth step is where you will get the opportunity to motivate your employees – helping them to meet their need for esteem or recognition.
Providing Recognition
There are a lot of ways to reward your employee and recognize them for the part they play in the success of the company. Recognition does not need to be complicated, or expensive. Taking the time to specifically acknowledge their work and thank them for what they do can go a long way. Make sure your recognition goes beyond monetary or profit goals, acknowledge the employee who always remembers a birthday, or the one who took time to clear snow off of someone else’s car. Recognition encourages employees to repeat and mimic positive behaviours and builds a culture of support and value.
Achievers, an employee engagement and recognition company, explains that there are three steps to an effective recognition message.
- Behaviour – Describe the behaviour you are recognizing and the impact/result it had.
"Joe, I want to recognize you for your help in finding a solution for the issue that came up. You took the time to understand what was going on, and recommended a solution that fixed it."
- Goal or value it impacts – Align the behaviour to a goal or value, and explain how the individual or team contributed to it.
"Your help will ensure that we continue to deliver excellence to our customers."
- Statement of Appreciation – Explain why you appreciate them.
"Thank you for always looking out for your team members. It's people like you that make this a great place to work!"
Rewarding the successes of your employees is also important for helping them feel appreciated and valued. Rewards can take many forms, in many contact centers there are giveaways of free TVs or vacations for the top performers, however there are many ways to reward without breaking the bank.
- Lunch with (or paid for by) the boss
- CEO for the day
- Company Swag
- Impromptu time off (leaving early or coming in late)
- Peer-to-peer recognition
- Flowers or cards to acknowledge work milestones
Just remember, Poet Maya Angelou said it best, “…people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Make your employees feel valued and appreciated and they will reward you with hard work and loyalty.
Congratulations, you now have the tools needed to improve your employee turnover and attrition rates. Hire the right people, invest in making them better, communicate and provide feedback and reward their hard work. Follow these four steps and see the progress in your company.
Are you looking for a job that rewards and recognize their employees? Check out the Bill Gosling Outsourcing Careers page to start a discussion with the recruitment team
