We all know recognition is important in a work environment, but how do you continue to give recognition that’s sincere and meaningful? This is a topic that various writers and employee recognition experts have tackled in the Authentic Recognition series on the Ready to Feedback blog managed by Sonia Di Maulo. 

Today, I had the privilege of contributing a post on the series, “Regular Recognition Says It Best.” Check it out! 

I’ve talked about having fun at work several times in the last year, and various Baudville bloggers have posted fun at work tips and ideas. 

But you don’t have to take just our word for the value of having fun at work. A Forbes.com article claims there is a “definite correlation between happiness and productivity on the job.” Apparently, a happy worker is also a more productive worker. 

Peer recognition programs are very popular in organizations today. Peer recognition increases the quantity and frequency recognition is given, and it takes pressure off managers who are typically responsible for top-down recognition. We published a peer recognition white paper that explains the benefits of this type of recognition program– including improved culture, loyalty, job satisfaction and camaraderie. 

Creating a peer recognition program is very easy thanks to existing, ready-to-use programs. We currently offer three peer recognition programs, and I’m going to give a brief how-to for two of them today. 

Next in our How-To Recognition series is a focus on our new Happy Birthday recognition theme. Everyone has a birthday therefore every employer struggles with whether or not to celebrate employee birthdays in the office. I shared best practices on celebrating birthdays in the office in our Recognition TV Webisode today, and you can watch the recorded version on Baudville.com or Baudville’s Facebook page. Most of my tips, ideas and best practices are below. 

Celebrate!
The official Baudville stance on birthdays is: celebrate! Birthdays are a great opportunity to let employees know that they matter, you value them, and to foster a sense of belonging and camaraderie. On the other hand, ignoring birthdays can be hurtful to employees. Ignoring a birthday sends a message to employees that the company doesn’t value what’s happening in their life outside of work. Acknowledging employee birthdays, in small but sincere ways, can improve employee engagement and loyalty to the company. 

Yesterday, I read a press release announcing that the Best Western River North Hotel in Chicago is using social media to recognize one of its star employees, Wallace. Wallace has recently been nominated for the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association’s Star of the Industry Award, and a Facebook page was created to support Wallace (and maybe influence the judging!). 

If having a Facebook page dedicated to him wasn’t a big enough compliment, customers quickly filled up the wall with their favorite Wallace stories. Some of the stories were from hotel stays two years ago! Other repeat customers confessed that they stay at the hotel because they want to use Wallace’s extensive knowledge of the city and ability to get the best deals.