The Results Are In: Recognition Gestures, Including Recognition Awards, Matter At Work
Recent Gallup polls have put the recognition opportunities that Bennett Awards creates for companies into new perspective. Gallup is a renowned global analyst and advisory firm, whose research expertise is evidenced by the quality of their public opinion surveys. Re-entering the post-lockdown world after the height of the coronavirus pandemic has certainly created workplace conditions and a workforce worth examining, and new reasons to consider if a recognition award or custom award could be beneficial for a company.
Can Corporate Recognition Awards Help Employee Retention?
The first Gallup poll which provides context for the latest employee retention trends was conducted in May of 2024, and reveals that over half of U.S. employees (51%) are not committed to staying in their current jobs long term and are actively watching or seeking a new job.
This is the highest these statistics have been reported by U.S. employees since 2015. While many experts claim we are exiting the period immediately following the pandemic lockdowns known as “The Great Resignation,” these recent numbers show that there is still work to be done preventing employee turnover and the costs and complications associated with it.
However, another statistic from a Gallup poll provides more information about these voluntarily transitioning employees:
42% of employees who left their job in the past year reported that their manager or organization could have taken some kind of actions to prevent them from leaving. While further investigating reveals the importance of compensation and career advancement in keeping employees from leaving, another huge piece, evidently, is relationship building.
Former employees say that three of the ten important changes which would incentivized them to stay in their positions would have involved increasing positive interactions… and this is where Bennett Awards comes in. In findings echoed in the personal experiences shared by former employees, “Make me feel like I mattered” is identified as one of the main positive interactions employees would have preferred from the employers they left. A unique recognition award is an opportunity to do just that, and is a physical representation of the time, thoughtfulness, and gratitude which the recipient employee deserves as their work is being acknowledged and appreciated.
“Make me feel like I mattered” is identified as one of the main positive interactions employees would have preferred from the employers they left. A unique recognition award is an opportunity to do just that, and is a physical representation of the time, thoughtfulness, and gratitude which the recipient employee deserves as their work is being acknowledged and appreciated. ”
Do Younger Employees Appreciate Recognition Gestures Like Awards?
A second poll from Gallup elucidates these statistics further, especially in a workforce that is increasingly dominated by younger generations, namely Millennials following the swath of retirements from older employees during the Great Resignation.
Gallup details that Millennials are the most likely generation to be looking for new jobs while employed, with 60% reporting being open to new job opportunities. This job searching is not just empty threats either: Millennials are also officially the most likely generation to switch jobs.
Of additional importance for employers is the Gallup surveys’ finding that the majority of Millennial workers (55%) report being disengaged or “checked out” at work. Dr. Simone Phipps of Middle Georgia State University’s school of business believes this attitude might have something to do with the after-effects of the Covid pandemic, saying “Younger employees…decided that they have one life to live and they want to live it to the fullest… (which) usually does not include a job where one feels unappreciated (or under appreciated).” The good news is, an investment like a recognition award can make a huge difference.
Gallup’s research and Dr. Phipps’ insight reveals the importance of gestures like recognition awards, which earlier studies have shown have notable positive effects when it comes to both employee retention and workplace engagement.
Specifically, when it comes to Millennials as well as the Generation Z employees following in their footsteps, recognition truly does support outcomes that matter. Another poll by Gallup and Workhuman which includes Gen Z workers found that these younger employees are 82% more likely to be looking for new job opportunities than Generation X and Baby Boomers, which means it is indeed worth noting what matters to them and what will inspire their commitment to an employer.
What Gallup and Workhuman reveal is that recognition is something that does indeed matter to these younger employees. The studies show employees born after 1989 are 72% more likely to want recognition, at least a few times a month, compared to employees who are considered Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964). Recognition awards are one tool for making these younger employees feel valued, arguably a foundational workplace need for these generations, and may even be a catalyst for opening up conversations about opportunities to grow at an organization which may have never occurred otherwise.
The studies show employees born after 1989 are 72% more likely to want recognition, at least a few times a month, compared to employees who are considered Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964).
How Can Recognition Awards Make A Difference In Employee Engagement At Work?
What is also clear from the data is that regardless of an employee’s age, recognition actions, including gestures like achievement awards, are linked to a variety of improved outcomes in people’s professional lives as well as their personal lives.
Gallup reports that employees who strongly agree they get the right amount of recognition at work, regardless of their age or tenure, are four times as likely to be engaged at work. This even includes the surveyed individuals who said they never want to be recognized. Additionally, when employees are recognized frequently, they experience a boost in wellbeing and belonging. So it seems that these recognition gestures on behalf of an organizations’ leadership, including recognition awards, do indeed make a real difference.
The other benefit about investing in a recognition award, unique trophy, or premium cup award specifically is that it allows opportunities to include the entire company in the celebratory recognition moment. Awards are often given or associated with a public gathering or ceremony, involving creative custom aspects for the specific occasion and specific honor within the company, and often including many employed members of the company or organization as witnesses or participants. Writer and Gallup Methodologist Emily Lorenz advises that “leaders should model, or showcase, the impact of recognition by actively giving and receiving recognition in front of others.”
Why Are Awards Excellent Ways to Recognize Employees?
While an awards ceremony is an excellent way to connect in a celebratory way while cultivating a culture of appreciation and acknowledgement, a beautiful sculpture award also offers opportunities to reiterate the recognition simply by enjoying the artistry wherever it is displayed. An award, like all the artistic awards which Bennett Awards creates, is created for displaying and enjoying indefinitely, which also creates indefinite opportunities for an employee to be re-reminded of their value to an organization when they see and feel the presence of their award in their inhabited spaces. Not to mention, if this award is viewable by coworkers, it cements the values of a company for these bystanders as well even if they aren’t the direct recipients.
An award, like all the artistic awards which Bennett Awards creates, is created for displaying and enjoying indefinitely, which also creates indefinite opportunities for an employee to be re-reminded of their value to an organization when they see and feel the presence of their award in their inhabited spaces.
Bennett Awards has a variety of customizable award options with a variety of price options so that a recognition award can become the ideal gesture to make employees feel valued. A unique award with modern design influences, sustainable materials, and timeless elegance is the perfect memento to encourage employees to feel proud of their work and contributions, and to reflect on the value of their efforts every day they see it. Although the statistics show recognition and appreciation should be given frequently through conversations between employers and employees, not to mention appropriate compensation and benefits for the employee, an artistic award creates an exciting opportunity to honor and celebrate employee contributions in a formal and ceremonial way. As the research reveals, these distinguished moments and gestures of recognition do matter to employees and can make a difference in their commitment to longevity and engagement with an organization. An award is a beautiful representation of why these employees matter, and in the end, that matters.
Read the full reports here:
https://www.mga.edu/news/2022/04/what-is-the-great-resignation.php
https://www.gallup.com/workplace/396470/bridge-generational-gap-recognition.aspx
https://www.gallup.com/workplace/646538/employee-turnover-preventable-often-ignored.aspx
https://www.gallup.com/workplace/231587/millennials-job-hopping-generation.aspx