Due to major business disruptions during the pandemic, leaders had to pivot strategies to meet the needs of an entirely remote workforce. This article by Niamh Graham, vice president, Workhuman, highlights why tech has been key for business leaders to recognize their teams better.
Business leaders spent much of last year adjusting to disruption and learning how to cope with the realities of changed work environments. Companies in every industry had to utilize tech to stay afloat and stay connected. Now that the landscape is beginning to stabilize, it is critical to take stock of how your workforce has acclimated and necessary to implement new processes to ensure your work culture remains positive, productive and efficient.
When a workplace lacks human elements such as connection and inclusivity, employees feel the strain. They may become more anxious and less motivated. Morale drops. And ultimately, all of this translates into real-world business impacts, most notably around key performance indicators, such as productivity and retention.
So, what can business leaders do to stem this tide? How can you be more proactive about the work culture challenges brought on by the pandemic and use technology to your advantage?
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The solution is to focus on recognition and use tech for good.
Here are three practical ways you can start leveraging the power of recognition where you work:
1. Look at the Data and Take Action
While we can get a sense of how employees feel in person, it’s much more difficult offline. Furthermore, it becomes nearly impossible to know for sure until we ask. Use this time to implement continuous surveys to better understand what employees are saying and how they feel. This sounds like such simple advice — and it is — but that age-old maxim about developing “an attitude of gratitude†really works. In our recent survey, almost one-third of the workers we polled (31%) said gratitude and recognition increase their motivation to succeed. One-quarter (25%) reported it increases productivity. These expressions of gratitude do not have to be showy or expensive. The majority of survey respondents (54%) said a simple “thank you†would ease pressure in the workplace, proving that even relatively small gestures can make a big difference.
Just make sure you are not favoring some employees over others when you’re expressing gratitude. About 27% of the men we polled said they always received a “thank you†from their employer and/or colleague, while only 19% of women could say the same. Differences like this can have consequences. For instance, other research we conducted found that turnover rates were higher among women than men during the pandemic. With this survey data, we were able to look at the data and further leverage these insights to create better work experiences for all our employees.
2. Implement Tech That Works for Everyone
Over the last year, we’ve seen processes that were easy to navigate and others that were especially challenging. One that we have had to make work was finding ways to replicate the in-office experience while remote. We know that gratitude is essential, but now, you also need to go further and add acknowledgment of a job well done, especially in a virtual world. In fact, one of the best ways to nurture a human workplace is by continuing to build and enhance your culture through both employee appreciation and social recognition.
We know from prior researchOpens a new window that recognition is a powerful force that can lessen stress, increase engagement, and help people feel motivated by their company’s mission. Our latest study shows the same, with more than half of the workers we polled (53%) saying that recognition for hard work would be a desirable way for employers to incorporate more human moments in the workplace.
3. Utilize Social Recognition Technologies
By using human-centric technology, companies can ensure they are maximizing benefits, gratitude and appreciation consistently and sustainably. Today’s social recognition technologies relieve the management burden and provide the data and analytics needed to implement gratitude and recognition effectively.
Our survey found that employees are eager to engage in this way. About one-third of respondents (32%) said they would like their employer to encourage employees to share personal milestones. About the same (31%) said having a platform to celebrate life events helps them feel more connected to their colleagues; others said it helps them better get to know their team, promotes balance, and makes the workplace feel less transactional.
Workhuman’s® recent “One Year Into COVID†reportOpens a new window , which surveyed more than 1,000 workers about the pandemic’s impact on how we work, revealed that the majority of respondents (61%) said employers could do more to support their mental health. They reported feeling anxious, isolated, overwhelmed, and less motivated.
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Additionally, most respondents (59%) said that since the start of the pandemic, their work culture has shifted toward less human connection. A large portion of respondents indicated low morale (30%), less flexibility (28%), and less inclusivity (27%) as a result.
While it’s been a challenging year, there are various ways that companies can utilize tech and combine it with HR efforts to make sure that your employees feel recognized and your business value goes up. Three ways to do this is by making sure you are listening and diving deeper into what your data tells you, implementing tech to close the gap between in-person and virtual settings and utilizing social recognition technologies. All of these can go a long way in ensuring employee happiness and performance, especially today. As many of us continue to miss out on face-to-face interactions, for the time being, commit to being more proactive in how you face work culture challenges. Doing so will help your employees — and the bottom line — thrive.