Every company needs a strategic reward system for employees. The system needs to address these four areas: compensation, benefits, recognition, and appreciation. The problem with reward systems in most businesses today is twofold:

• They are missing one or more of these elements—usually recognition and appreciation
• The parts are not properly aligned with the company's other corporate strategies

Recognition and appreciation are integral components of an effective strategic reward system. These two elements rarely receive the attention they deserve. I find this to be amazing as these elements are low-cost and provide a high-return. Your employees like to know whether they are doing good, bad, or average.  It is crucial that you tell them.

One misconception about highly successful cultures is that they are happy, lighthearted places. This is mostly not the case. They are energized and engaged, but at their core, their members are oriented less around achieving happiness than around solving hard problems together. This task involves many moments of high-candor feedback, uncomfortable truth-telling when they confront the gap between where the group is, and where it ought to be.” ― Daniel Coyle, The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups

Motivate with positive reinforcement

Studies show that people are far more motivated by positive reinforcement than by the fear of failure, yet many workplace cultures waste daily energy by staying low and going with the flow. Positive reinforcement both shapes behavior and enhances an employee’s self-image. Recognizing and appreciating desirable employee behavior is the essential key to motivating employees to work more productively.

Are employees at your workplace frequently distracted from the goals of the organization by anxiety about being called out for their mistakes?

You will create a more positive workplace culture just by adding two words to your routine: Thank you. It seems simple, but appreciation and recognition are often overlooked by busy professionals focused on the bottom line. Guess what— ignoring these elements affects the bottom line.

• Recognition means acknowledging someone before their peers for specific accomplishments achieved, actions taken, or attitudes exemplified through their behavior.
• Appreciation centers on expressing gratitude to someone for his or her actions. Showing appreciation to your employees by acknowledging excellent performance and the kind of behavior you want to encourage is best done through simple expressions and statements.

Tips for positive appreciation and recognition

If you want to draw people to you with positivity and motivate your team, start offering up positive appreciation and recognition in your workplace.

Here are some tips:

Say "thank you"

This simple expression of gratitude goes a long way in enforcing a positive culture. Do not become a boss who fails to use these critical words merely because the work is “someone’s job.”

The people we work with deserve appreciation for a job well done, and “thank you” should be delivered with intention, eye contact, and sincerity on a regular basis.

Play chess not checkers

Think about the difference. In checkers, all the pieces are the same. Nobody wants to feel like a faceless cog in the proverbial wheel. In chess, on the other hand, each piece has a unique role, unique abilities, and limitations. Recognize what is unique about each team member. Know their strengths, weaknesses, likes, and dislikes. Use these insights to draw the very best from each.

Be human

Be warm, personable and easy to relate to. Remember that everyone has emotions. Know how to keep your feelings in check when the situation calls for it. Relate to your people as a person first and a boss second.

Offer appreciation one on one

Research shows that most employees feel they do not get enough attention from their managers and superiors. This is even more pronounced with millennials. They crave one-on-one attention. Make sure that the interactions with your team are not always about corrective feedback—make time for appreciation and recognition. This is best done in a solo setting. Provide opportunities for people to recap and review the success with you. Ask them to highlight what went well, and what they learned, and they would do differently next time. Give them a few minutes to talk about their wins and congratulate them accordingly.

Show appreciation publicly

Speak publicly about your team’s accomplishments. Recapping in a one-on-one setting provides rich details. Sell their successes to your superiors, other groups, and the organization. Give appreciation and recognition to team members in multiple forums, making sure that others are seen as trailblazers, innovators, and problem-solvers.

Publicly celebrate the achievements and invite the organization to mark their accomplishments. Noting the success of your team shows more positive leadership than taking the credit for yourself. Both those higher up and those high-performers you would like to attract to your team will remember how you praised others. Do not highlight your role in these public situations. You should advocate for yourself, too. However, do it at the right time.

Take a pause—celebrate

When a task is finished, big or small, it’s important to take a moment to reflect on the work.

It is the most obvious point to provide recognition for a job well done, but so many fail to take the time. Engage the individual or team in a conversation. I always like to reflect:

• What went well?
• What did you learn?
• Even better if?

Early in my career, I was often constructively disgruntled. I was always seeking the next improvement. I had assembled a great team to realize my vision. We made remarkable progress. One team member had the courage to tell me that they loved working in such an innovative environment. However, it was deflating for staff not to be recognized for their success before moving on. Upon reflection, she was right. I barely acknowledged the accomplishment of a milestone, before I start of the next task. This wise counsel stuck with me throughout my career. It made a big difference.

The pause to celebrate a milestone that has been reached does not need to be a big production. However, it is critical to take a minute to pause and celebrate these successes. Teams that have no time at all to enjoy their success will hardly be motivated to chase more. Take a breath before moving on.

Show appreciation for those outside your team

Always note the contributions of those outside your group, or your organization. If a vendor was a crucial player in your success, say so. If another team was critical in helping you get the job done, be sure to recognize them. These are your opportunities to spread positivity and goodwill beyond your direct sphere of influence — do not miss these opportunities.

Make showing appreciation a habit

Praising others and saying "thank you" does not take much energy. Regularly putting a few minutes toward making sure others feel appropriately acknowledged for their efforts goes a long way to building a positive team environment. Plan to work appreciation into your every day, and before long, raising the visibility of your high-achievers will be a regular habit. Your positive team environment will impact your workplace.

Appreciation and recognition are contagious.

Bringing it all together

Demonstrates Energetic Enthusiasm is one of the ten essential competencies at both the senior manager and C-Suite levels of leadership. Celebrating the success of your team is not only good for your team, but it is also good for your leadership advancement.

Things click once you stopped thinking about what your people could do for you and started thinking about what you could do to help your people succeed.

Inspire. Teach. Be human. Appreciate. Recognize. Reward. Protect. Remove obstacles.

We are incredibly passionate about Behavioral DNA and the impact this scientific insight can have on you and your business. Your success is determined by how you leverage your behavioral strengths and manage your challenges. Let us show you what comes naturally and what you must try to achieve. If you cultivate these characteristics, you will become the unforgettable boss that your people will remember for the rest of their careers.