Employee Appreciation Day 3 Mar-Which is the most preferred language of appreciation in Singapore?
Jasmine Liew Doctorate Candidate Psychological Safety,iHRP- SP
Fearless Organization Psychological Safety Practitioner ?Change Implementer?Appreciation@Work?Performance Coaching
During the month of February, it was heart-warming that many corporate organisations in Singapore are also celebrating Valentine's Day in the organisation. On social media, organisations were sharing the different ways to express love to their team members and colleagues using The Five Love Languages by Dr Gary Chapman.
Right after the end of Feb, it is the Employee Appreciation Day which is celebrated annually on the first Friday of March in the United States, on 3rd of March. The Employee Appreciation Day was established in 1995 by Bob Nelson, a board member of the Recognition Professionals International. ?Although we do not have an official Employee Appreciation Day in Singapore, we can still express appreciation to our employees as a People Leader.
Showing recognition and appreciation to our employees are important as this will enhance the employees’ well-being and lead to a more motivated and engaged team. ?While both recognition and appreciation aim to build a vibrant workplace culture, they have different focus and outcomes. Recognition is usually tied to an employee’s achievement of work targets, results and behavioural outcomes. Thus, recognition could be monetary rewards and awards such as “The Most productive Employee for the Month” or “The Best Performer of the Year.” ?As recognition is usually criterion based, it may be given once or twice a year to a minority number of employees. It may also be the same pool of high performers who get such awards, rewards and recognition month after month or year after year. Leaders may have neglected the majority of the employees who are not the top and or, high performers but are contributing to the organisation.
On the other hand, appreciation is more focused on the personal qualities or efforts that an employee brings to the work. It is about valuing the employees for their positive traits, having a growth mindset or how they have demonstrated the organisation’s core values through their work attitude and contributions. Therefore, appreciation can be expressed to anyone in the team without focusing on the employee’s achievement of the results. It can be done anytime without the constraint of a limited monetary budget. Appreciation can also be expressed anywhere without a formal setting unlike recognition. To show recognition, leaders may have to depend on company -wide events such as the yearly recognition day, dinner celebration or during the performance appraisal session and promotion ceremony.
It may be natural for us to express love languages to our loved ones and family members but it may be awkward to do so to our employees. Dr Gary Chapman and Dr Paul White, Ph.D. has introduced 5 ?Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, which is the workplace context of The 5 Love Languages.
Out of these Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Acts of Service and Tangible Gifts, which is the most preferred languages of appreciation by Singapore Employees??
A study was done in 2019 among 977 employees in Singapore, “The comparison of preferred languages of appreciation between Singapore employees and US employees", White, Paul, Hamrick, N. and Liew, Jasmine (2020), Development and Learning in Organizations, Vol. 34.
The number one most preferred Language of Appreciation by Singapore employees was Acts of Service at 39 per cent, followed by Words of Affirmation at 37 per cent. The least preferred Language of Appreciation by the Singapore employees was be Quality Time at 22 per cent and Tangible Gifts which was only 2 per cent.
Starting with the most preferred language of Appreciation in Singapore- Acts of Service,?Leaders can express?The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace?to the team members in the following ways.
Acts of Service- Offer practical assistance to help our employees especially during time-sensitive or difficult tasks. A simple yet effective way for a leader to provide acts of service to the employees is to ask “How can I help you to do your job better?”
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Words of Affirmation- A written or verbal praise that shows gratitude to our employees by describing the specific situation, behaviour and outcomes to the employees.
Quality Time- Have an attentive conversation with the employees by listening to their issues at work . In this way, the employees feel that their concerns are being heard in a non-judgemental way and the leader can be more understanding and empathetic.
Tangible Gifts: Giving a thoughtful gift based on the employee’s personal preference. The common gifts will be food that the employee like.
Physical Touch:?There are appropriate ways to appreciate our employees in the workplace in such a celebratory high five, fist bump or handshake.
Since Acts of Service and Words of Affirmation are the most preferred appreciative languages by Singapore employees, leaders can go beyond the common forms of showing appreciation to their employees which are usually gifts and treats.
With a combination of recognition and the expression of The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, leaders can nurture a positive workplace culture and workplace environment for their employees.
“Giving appreciation to others is a most welcome gift, for the results of it are lifted spirits, increased self-worth and a hopeful future.” – Florence Littauer, American Speaker and Writer.
As leaders, when we appreciate others, we not only uplift our employees who are the recipients of our appreciation but also a lifted spirit for us as givers of appreciation.
To find out how we can co-create a thriving workplace environment through Appreciation at Work through our training and speaking session, you can click this link to find out more.
Dr Paul White is the President and Co-Founder of Appreciation at Work. He is a Best-Selling Author, a Keynote Speaker, Leadership trainer, Psychologist., Researcher that assists companies in improving workplace cultures.
Jasmine Liew Chia Wei is a Premier Partner of The 5 Languages of Appreciation at Work and the Managing Director of Breakthrough Catalyst LLP that elevates people, teams and organisation to greater success. She is also a Doctor of Business Administration candidate at University of Canberra.