Smile at people around you !

Ramya was intrigued when the parcel arrived. It had the name of her employer as ‘the sender’.

Ramya has just started her maternity break. She held the parcel in her hands for a few seconds fearing what the package might contain.

Gathering all her grit and determination she opened it. To her surprise, she found it to be a ‘new born baby gift’. There was a printed note congratulating her and that was it! But instead of being pleasantly surprised, Ramya rolled her eyes in detachment.

Wondering why?

There was no note from her manager or her colleagues. The gift did not evoke any feelings in her. In fact, this parcel reminded her of countless ‘Happy Diwali’ messages that she receives during the festival. Her emotional state was as cold as it had been upon reading those countless message exchanges.

What do you think caused this disconnect between Ramya and her employer?

Many companies run programmes that attempt to focus on employee milestones and recognition but elicit responses from employees that are similar to that of Ramya’s.

The employee recognition or rewards framework often fails in its very objective. Probably because over the years, it becomes just another checkbox for the organization. This results in failing to evoke a sense of appreciation or accomplishment in its employees. A recent ESAT (Employee Satisfaction Score Survey)?Survey conducted by an MNC highlighted that despite the company having a very strong R&R (Rewards & Recognition) framework, employees didn’t feel satisfied.

Many of us fail to understand that we (humans) have an intrinsic desire to feel connected, understood and respected for the person that we are. For us, our contributions are important. And more importantly, we have a constant need to be appreciated.

Companies need to understand that employees are not invisible, being just another spoke in the wheel. They are HUMANS.

This is where having a culture of ‘appreciation’ helps enormously.?

Appreciation is always for the values that one has, the contributions that have resulted because of the person that he/she is and ‘gratitude’ for those ‘little things’ which normally go unnoticed. Employee appreciation, if tailored to an individual’s talents and strengths can create wonders.

It needs to be customized and wrapped in genuine warmth for the employees to feel the connect with their employer and get sensitized as the employer desires.

There are studies that have shown that employees are more productive when managers show ‘gratitude’; teams collaborate better when the members ‘believe that their colleagues respect and appreciate them’. Contrast this with the typical R&R (Rewards & Recognition) framework that always focuses on the past performance and is inherently short-term in nature.

But then, APPRECIATING IS NOT EASY.

Remember, employees can quickly discern if the appreciation is genuine or not. To them, simple things matter more.

But there are studies showing that managers feel ‘showing appreciation’ is challenging and many managers struggle to balance it with giving developmental feedback.

Then, what should the managers / employers be doing? ?

1. Make an attempt that’s genuine.
2. Check in with the teams. Spend some quality time listening to their stories. Know what they are doing or have been doing. Extend the conversations beyond work; probably some current topics can come in handy; be it world affairs or the new DPDP bill. This makes them feel that they are ‘known’ and connected.
3. Remember to say ‘Thank you’. Perhaps in the Indian cultural context, this will need an additional effort. But a ‘thank-you’ carries a lot of meaning in terms of acknowledging the existence and the contribution of the employee.
4. Regular weekly or biweekly catch-ups with team where the manager explicitly acknowledges the individual contributions.

It doesn’t cost you to appreciate someone but when done right, it leaves an indelible mark in the mind of the person appreciated. This goes a long way with people who are normally invisible e.g. the housekeeping staff, the office support supervisor.

Anyone at any level can appreciate. But if leaders get involved in the process, it helps to build a culture of appreciation much faster.

In accounting terms, APPRECIATION flows bottom up.

But when referred in terms of company values, APPRECIATION / GRATITUDE cascades top to bottom.

Start your week by smiling at people around you.

Express gratitude.

Remember, the smallest of the things matter the most.