Creative Ideas for Employee Recognition

<h1>Creative Ideas for Employee Recognition</h1>Author: <a title="Marie Adams" href="http://www.articlesbase.com/authors/marie-adams/69194.htm">Marie Adams</a> While we continue to stretch our budgets tighter and tighter, there seems to be less and less room for employee recognition and incentives. Even on a tight budget, employee recognition does not have to suffer. Studies show that simple employee incentive ideas can be just as effective as high-priced alternatives when you're looking to show employees how much you appreciate their work and loyalty. Open communication is the best way to promote employee loyalty, more effective than handing out raises, according to the Management Action Programs Inc. (MAP) Quarterly CEO Survey. Survey respondents listed open communication, employee recognition and involving personnel in decision making as the top three qualities employees value most in a company. Open and effective communication not only boosts employee loyalty, but can benefit a business' bottom line as well. Companies with effective communication programs produce a significantly higher return for shareholders than those lacking communication, according to the Watson Wyatt Communication ROI Study. With effective communication, employee recognition can be simple and cost-effective. Use these creative ideas for employee recognition to improve employee loyalty and productivity: Greeting cards. Greeting cards are a simple, cost-effective way to show employees you care. Leave a greeting card on an employee's desk with a short, handwritten message about what a great job they've been doing and thanks for a job well done. Say "thank you." Call the employee into your office or stop by their desk and deliver a quick "thank you" for something great they've done recently. A small gift card for lunch or coffee. It doesn't have to be to an expensive restaurant or coffee shop, just a little something that says "thank you." Make sure the card is enough for the employee to treat themselves and a friend. A free half-day. Everyone can enjoy some unexpected time away from the office. Let a deserving employee know they've been doing great work and let them leave the office a few hours early this Friday. Chocolate. Does this really need an explanation? Employee recognition doesn't have to be expensive. With a little creativity and determination, your <a href="http://www.trainingtime.com/npps/story.cfm?nppage=254" target="_self" title="Employee rewards">employee rewards</a> and recognition programs don't have to suffer along with your profits. Keep employees motivated and your business will be on top when the market turns around.About the Author: Employee training and overall human resource enthusiast, who strives to learn creative tricks of the trade everyday. Writer and frequent contributor to the <a href="http://www.trainingtime.com/npps/"> 
TrainingTime Learning Library</a> and other article resources. Hoping to learn new ideas and share some of my own knowledge.Article Source: <a href="http://www.articlesbase.com/">ArticlesBase.com</a> - <a href="http://www.articlesbase.com/management-articles/creative-ideas-for-employee-recognition-610830.html" title="Creative Ideas for Employee Recognition">Creative Ideas for Employee Recognition</a>

While we continue to stretch our budgets tighter and tighter, there seems to be less and less room for employee recognition and incentives. Even on a tight budget, employee recognition does not have to suffer. Studies show that simple employee incentive ideas can be just as effective as high-priced alternatives when you're looking to show employees how much you appreciate their work and loyalty.

Open communication is the best way to promote employee loyalty, more effective than handing out raises, according to the Management Action Programs Inc. (MAP) Quarterly CEO Survey. Survey respondents listed open communication, employee recognition and involving personnel in decision making as the top three qualities employees value most in a company.

Open and effective communication not only boosts employee loyalty, but can benefit a business' bottom line as well. Companies with effective communication programs produce a significantly higher return for shareholders than those lacking communication, according to the Watson Wyatt Communication ROI Study.

With effective communication, employee recognition can be simple and cost-effective. Use these creative ideas for employee recognition to improve employee loyalty and productivity:

Greeting cards. Greeting cards are a simple, cost-effective way to show employees you care. Leave a greeting card on an employee's desk with a short, handwritten message about what a great job they've been doing and thanks for a job well done.

Say "thank you." Call the employee into your office or stop by their desk and deliver a quick "thank you" for something great they've done recently.

A small gift card for lunch or coffee. It doesn't have to be to an expensive restaurant or coffee shop, just a little something that says "thank you." Make sure the card is enough for the employee to treat themselves and a friend.

A free half-day. Everyone can enjoy some unexpected time away from the office. Let a deserving employee know they've been doing great work and let them leave the office a few hours early this Friday.

Chocolate. Does this really need an explanation?

Employee recognition doesn't have to be expensive. With a little creativity and determination, your employee rewards and recognition programs don't have to suffer along with your profits. Keep employees motivated and your business will be on top when the market turns around.

Employee training and overall human resource enthusiast, who strives to learn creative tricks of the trade everyday. Writer and frequent contributor to the
TrainingTime Learning Library and other article resources. Hoping to learn new ideas and share some of my own knowledge.

Rate this Article:

4 / 5 stars - 1 vote(s)

Re-Publish

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/management-articles/creative-ideas-for-employee-recognition-610830.html

Article Tags: Motivation, Employee Incentives, Employee Recognition, Employee Loyalty, Creative Ideas For Employee Recognition, Employee Incentive Ideas, Effective Employee Recognition

Related Videos
Related Articles
Ask / Related Q&A

Play

How to Hire the Right Employee for Your Company

Play

How to Find and Keep the Right Employees

Play

How to Evaluate and Choose The Best Employees

Play

How to Layoff Employees

Play

What Employee Benefits Should You Offer?

Latest Management Articles
More from Marie Adams

Business Resources Your Business Can’t Do Without

By: Frank I Locust | 11/12/2009
As your small business continues to grow moderately, your daily tasks will mount slowly but surely. If you’ve been handling the daily routine all by yourself, you may want to consider adding additional resources, both technology and human.

Boutique Christmas Display Ideas

By: John Garvey | 11/12/2009
Ideas for boutique Christmas promotions and marketing. Simple garment rack decorations or putting garment racks out for a sidewalk sale.

Keep the Christmas Spirit in Retail

By: John Garvey | 11/12/2009
Tips for boutique owners and retail workers trying to stay sane through the holiday season. Keeping clothing racks or your clothing rack straight can help.

Successful Boutique Christmas

By: John Garvey | 11/12/2009
Tips for having a productive Black Friday & Christmas season in your boutique. Tips for positioning garment racks and garment rack arrangement to reduce theft.

Dress Up Your Boutique

By: Ron Maier | 11/12/2009
How to use mannequins to sell more than you ever imagined in your boutique. Your mannequin display may be the focus of your plan after you read this!

Gridwall and Slatwall Systems Can Help You Save Space

By: Ron Maier | 11/12/2009
Using your gridwall and slatwall to your advantage can save you on rent and power, but can also make your store or boutique easier to shop in. Grid wall and slat wall panels are so versatile that you won't believe what they can do for you.

Green Your Boutique

By: Ron Maier | 11/12/2009
Ways for boutique owners to show customers that they care about the environment. Use a mannequin or mannequins to help spread the message.

Managing Change With Enterprise Resource Planning Software

By: Arthor Pens | 10/12/2009
Most ERP systems are designed to fulfill the majority of a business's needs - as captured at a single point in time. The inventory of business processes is typically impressive in its complexity and completeness, and the ERP system installed may be counted on to reliably trudge along its pre-determined path for years.

Focus on safety for a healthy bottom line

By: Marie Adams | 01/07/2009 | Training
Maintaining a healthy bottom line seems to be at the top of the list of every business’ priorities these days. However, sometimes protecting the bottom line doesn’t always translate to protecting employees’ safety.

Top qualities of outstanding team building exercises

By: Marie Adams | 19/05/2009 | Team Building
Successful team building exercises can strengthen employee relationships and encourage teamwork within your organization, all at the same time employees are learning something new about themselves.

How to ensure a stress-free summer vacation: Forget work

By: Marie Adams | 08/05/2009 | Stress Management
An important part of having a healthy work/life balance is being able to take a vacation from time to time without being stressed about work. But these days it’s more common than ever to see people bringing work along on a family vacation that should be spent relaxing and recharging. Vacation is a time to relax, so keep work at work. Follow these five tips to ensure that work doesn’t ruin your vacation and stays back at your desk:

How to recession-proof employee training programs

By: Marie Adams | 30/04/2009 | Training
Instead of putting employee training on the chopping block when budget cuts roll around, fight to keep your programs alive. Use the downturn as a rare chance to improve your team from the inside out by offering more employee training and development opportunities.

Training employees to go green at work

By: Marie Adams | 24/04/2009 | Training
By now, going green has proven to be more than just a passing fad. It’s how many businesses are improving the energy efficiency of the buildings they work in, the sustainability of the products they produce and reducing their overall carbon footprint on the earth. Get everyone in your organization on-board and involved in a green movement to save the company money and save the earth’s natural resources by following these steps.

Low-cost employee recognition ideas, the simpler the better

By: Marie Adams | 07/04/2009 | Leadership
The best employee recognition ideas don't have to cost an incredible amount of money. Sometimes the smallest gesture, like a heartfelt message written on a sticky note, can have the biggest impact. It’s been shown that employees who know that they’re appreciated and valued will be more productive and happier at work. During periods of economic uncertainty, it is every manager’s responsibility to help maintain their teams’ morale.

Low-cost Ideas for Employee Motivation During the Holidays

By: Marie Adams | 07/11/2008 | Management
Cutting back on end of the year holiday festivities could be sending the wrong message to employees and could hurt employees’ morale and motivation. Motivating employees doesn’t have to involve lavish and expensive gifts, even the smallest sign of recognition can let an employee know they’re valued. With a little creativity and cooperation your company can still recognize employees during the holidays without draining your budget.