“We’re living in unprecedented times.” This phrase has been used countless times over the last few months. It might sound cliché at this point, but here’s why it’s actually true in the workplace: Businesses have closed office spaces, the working-from-home population catapulted from 31% to 65%, and people all across the world were challenged to find new ways to live and work in isolation. Individuals are balancing conference calls and childcare activities. Teams have had to change the way they communicate and collaborate without in-person interactions.
The anxiety of these new environments and the unknown future has understandably increased stress levels. According to a recent KFF poll, nearly 45% of adults said that their mental health has been negatively impacted during this time. Clearly people are feeling more isolated, worried, and overwhelmed. These are dangerous factors that can cause people to become disengaged from their work to the detriment of productivity. In fact, actively disengaged employees are 2.6x more likely to feel anxious at work compared with highly engaged employees. Businesses cannot afford to abandon their people in this critical hour, and organizational leaders are making necessary changes to bolster morale.
Business leaders are responding by rolling out strategies — some conservative and others more aggressive — to help their people cope. The strategy that always withstands the test of time is employee recognition. Seventy percent of employees say that motivation and morale would improve “massively” with managers saying thank you more. Providing a team member with genuine recognition for a job well done is one of the most valuable things leaders can do.
No matter where team members are located — sitting next to each other in a conference room or connecting via video — it should be easy for people to recognize others in a timely and frequent manner. Recognizing people in the moment makes them feel as though their contributions, big or small, are seen and appreciated by others. As the pandemic and other factors disrupt our work environment and employees face increased isolation, in-the-moment recognition is even more powerful. This should be true for individual contributors, as well as managers. Sixty-eight percent of managers were already trying to juggle their teams and their own responsibilities.
Fostering these connections across teams makes collaboration visible to everyone. All employees should be empowered to show appreciation for each other. When this takes place, stronger working relationships are developed and there is a greater sense of belonging even when people aren’t in the same physical location. Recognition also has a powerful impact on company culture and can even affect diversity and inclusion efforts. Organizations that are inclusive foster a sense of equity, belonging, and psychological safety for everyone in the company.
Effective employee recognition should also connect to company purpose. This helps people understand what it means to embody the company’s core values and how contributions of all kinds support the mission and impact others.
Private recognition can be meaningful, but with the current isolated environments, being recognized publicly is more impactful. Sharing public praise surfaces work in a way that facilitates learning, collaboration, and positive behavior, especially in a time without casual office chats.
In the midst of a global pandemic, economic crises, and issues of racial injustice, people need to be recognized for big and small contributions. If there was ever a time to boost morale, it is now. Leaders who are successful at fostering employee engagement are the most successful — especially in tough times.
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