Summary notes of a Recent Gallup and Workhuman article
Industry Insights and Opportunities in Employee Recognition
Nearly every workplace, regardless of industry, can see the value in giving recognition for a job well done: Positive reinforcement to encourage more great work.
Whatever recognition looks like in your organization or industry; we know that when it's done well -- when it's authentic, equitable and personalized to the receiver -- it can help combat employee burnout and turnover while fostering retention, which ultimately boosts business outcomes.
And leaders know this:
The majority of leaders and managers give recognition to team members at least a few times a week.
But even that effort isn't enough, as 40% of employees report receiving recognition just a few times a year or less.
Recognition done well can make a big difference for your employees.
When recognition hits the mark, employees are five times as likely to be connected to company culture and four times as likely to be engaged.
So, how can leaders hit the mark? Thanks to a recent study from Gallup and Workhuman, we now know that recognition done well means different things for different generations, industries and individuals.
A one-size-fits-all approach to recognition is ineffective; instead, it should be tailored to people based on who they are and what they do.
Meaningful Recognition Looks Different by Industry
What each industry has in common is an incredible opportunity to improve the efficacy of recognition, with the ultimate goal of using recognition to address unique employee needs.
Beyond the connection to organizational culture, the impact of recognition in healthcare reaches even further into business outcomes such as patient safety.
A recent Gallup meta-analysis found that receiving recognition or praise for good work in the past seven days is related to a significant decrease in patient safety incidents.
This shows that, all around, recognition moments in healthcare are connected to a better and safer experience for both employees and patients.
When recognition hits the mark, employees are five times as likely to be connected to company culture and four times as likely to be engaged.
Industry Insights: Employees who work in the finance and insurance industry are more likely to say their organization has a recognition program, compared with employees from other sectors, with the government and healthcare services being the next highest.
Additionally, employees working in finance and insurance have the highest rate of receiving monetized rewards with their recognition.
However, this high incidence of recognition programs and monetized recognition in the industry isn't translating to a higher frequency of giving recognition, which indicates that not all recognition programs are equally effective.
Industry Opportunity: The data, both qualitative and quantitative, indicate that recognition matters.
For this industry to take advantage of existing recognition structures, team leaders should make an effort to give recognition more frequently.
Right now, 40% of employees say they get recognition a few times a week compared with the average of 52% across all industries.
That said, recognition always matters, but recognition programs are not always effective, especially if they aren't targeted to the recipients.
Selecting the right program for each organization is key to the efficacy of recognition.
Industry Insights: Manufacturing lags behind other industries in many aspects of recognition.
Only one in 10 manufacturing employees say recognition is essential to their organization's culture, trailing education and healthcare.
Industry Opportunity: Recognition is being seriously overlooked in this industry, which means many employees are missing chances to be recognized for who they are and what they do.
Similarly, these employees lack the benefits of employee recognition that can help bolster a sense of community, connection and collective work toward a common goal.
Regardless of employee type, occupation or industry, recognition done right positively affects everyone.
Industry Opportunity: Recognition can be used strategically to strengthen tech workers' bonds with their coworkers and the larger organization.
When recognition is an important part of an organization's culture, employees are nearly three times more likely to strongly agree that they feel loyal to their organization.
Industry Opportunity: There is extensive research to show how recognition can improve employees' well-being.
But the effects of recognition on well-being aren't limited to retail employees only: Gallup and Workhuman research shows that positive recognition experiences are associated with greater well-being for employees across industries and countries.
The constant, unending pace of turnover in this industry might make recognition seem futile, but data indicate the opposite is true.
Recognition directly affects how these workers feel about their lives, emphasizing the importance of acknowledging and recognizing employees simply for who they are.
When recognition is an important part of an organization's culture, employees are nearly three times more likely to strongly agree that they feel loyal to their organization.
Regardless of the exact approach used to recognize employees, it needs to be holistic -- employees should be encouraged to give recognition freely in ways that are authentic, equitable and personalized to the recipient.
Summary Findings: The results presented in this article show that excelling in one area of recognition isn't sufficient to yield desired impact and recognition return on investment. Organizations need to focus on multiple pillars of recognition -- and incorporate them fully -- to see the maximal impact.
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