Think About it Thursday: 15 Years and Counting

Why Employee Recognition Programs Are the Key to a Long-lasting Relationship with Employees

This week, our Director of Creative Services, Dorie Madeira celebrated 15 years with Rymax. This milestone anniversary is a testament to both Dorie’s dedication as well as the positive work environment Rymax provides to its employees.

In light of this special moment, we wanted to share with you some compelling and important statistics to consider.

Each year, $11 billion is lost due to employee turnover. Eleven BILLION.

More staggering is the fact that disengaged employees cost organizations between $450 and $550 billion annually. Further, the churn rate of disengaged employees is 12X higher than highly engaged employees over a one year period.

How to Improve Employee Retention Rates

With that in mind, HR professionals and executive management teams everywhere should be asking themselves what they can do to attract and retain top talent. What can they do to foster the development of these individuals and their advancement in the company in order to ensure longevity and loyalty?

Developing effective employee engagement programs can significantly increase employee retention rates while expanding your business. Organizations seeking to obtain top talent and maximize their performance should create a rewarding and appealing environment that not only allows people to thrive but also compels them to stick around.

Studies show that business units with high employee engagement have 21% higher productivity. Highly engaged employees are:

• 2.5% times more likely to stay at work late if something needs to be done after the normal workday ends
• More than twice as likely to help someone at work even if they don’t ask for help
• More than three times as likely to do something good for the company that is not expected of them
• More than five times as likely to recommend that a friend or relative apply for a job at their company

Now that we have your attention…here’s our strategic approach to effective employee engagement programs:

Communicate Often. Communicate Well.

In business, the two most significant factors that contribute to a lack of employee engagement are failure by management to properly communicate objectives and to clearly provide direction.

People appreciate input. They’re inspired by a strategic vision, yet crave a collaborative environment. People want to come to work with a sense of ownership in their role and the recognition that comes with it.

Further, people want to succeed. So give them the tools to do so. All too often, organizations promote from within but provide little training from management once the person enters their new role. The employee then feels alienated, frustrated and doomed to failure. So they give up. They either leave the company or concede to giving a lackluster performance, which will eventually result in termination.

Suddenly, the person who initially seemed so perfect for the job, quickly becomes the wrong fit for the role.

Don’t Just Take – Give Back

Developing an employee recognition program that rewards employees for their years of service, top performance and continued excellence show them that they’re appreciated and respected and it makes them feel that their efforts are worthwhile. It motivates them to continue to give of themselves and in turn, your organization continues to prosper.

In addition, make sure to incorporate peer to peer recognition programs. The new breed of employees is less likely to seek supervisor guidance and support than that of their peers. In fact, many companies are moving away from annual reviews and instead are fostering employee growth and mentoring in a more informal way.

Be Attentive

An employee recognition program that understands the shifting work demographic and uses stratified sampling to ensure that the program resonates with each participant is critical. Employees will tell you what is important in their work and life. As an organization, it’s important for you to listen.

Once you’ve absorbed that information, re-invest it in the relationship. Don’t just cast it aside. Organizations need to be actively involved from the very top and continuously communicate the objectives and rewards so that employees are motivated to work smarter, reach their goals and achieve the recognition they crave.

Meet Their Needs

Speaking of craving…offer premium product rewards that meet today’s trends. Giving employees access to the latest models from the market’s hottest brands leaves people motivated to meet goals and inspires them to set newer, bigger goals.

By incorporating a carefully crafted employee recognition program in your organization, you will see a decrease in turnover, thereby saving on HR costs. You’ll see a rise in management ascension, creating a strong core that delivers the expectations of an organization. Most companies have the same percentage of employee engagement: approximately 30% are highly engaged and 20% are not engaged, while 50% indicate that the right program can make a significant difference on their engagement.

In order for organizations to obtain and retain top talent, they’ll need to create an appealing work environment where employees are treated as a resource, not a commodity…that means integrating a well thought out, comprehensive, employee recognition program.

If you want to learn more about how to bolster your employee engagement program, contact us today.