While a box of chocolates or a gift voucher might provide a moment of joy, making sure your employees have the support and structure they really need to make their working lives fulfilling and meaningful will create a much longer lasting impact.
Everyone likes getting a present. That feeling of anticipation and excitement ripping open the wrapping paper to see what’s inside. But how long do these warm and fuzzy feelings last? Minutes, hours, the whole day if you’re lucky. How can you make more of an impact?
Christmas can provide the perfect opportunity to stop for a minute and celebrate making it to the end of another year. For us it means an astonishing 50% of new customers coming in via word of mouth or people whose partner/parent/child/friend used Appraisd at their company and liked it. In other words, people like you spreading the word.
Sadly, I can’t afford to buy each and everyone of you who has been kind enough to recommend us a present, but what I can do to say thank you is to offer some thoughts on how to make that positive Christmas spirit last well into the new year for your employees.
2023 looks like being a year full of challenges, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be approached with fear. With inflation over 10% and interest rates rising, everyone is thinking about how they can tighten their belts. While this presents difficulties, it also provides opportunities. When you don’t have money to throw at a problem, you need to be inventive, embrace new points of view and consider alternatives.
Some of our clients have started using Appraisd to think about what their employees really want out of their lives - inside and outside of work. What can you give them that will really help them in the long-term? While a present is of course nice, it is also fleeting. What can you do to give them the skills, belief and motivation to maximise their potential?
I strongly believe every business has a responsibility to embrace sustainability, minimising their impact on the planet so the world is a place that our children can thrive in. Becoming more energy efficient, repairing equipment and buying recycled materials wherever possible all helps, but why not carry this mindset into your approach on employee rewards too?
Instead of thinking about things you can buy your employees, a better way to say thank you is through your actions. Employees increasingly want to feel that what they do matters, that they are making a positive difference and that there is a connection between them and their colleagues and customers.
Focusing on the following elements can make a huge difference:
- Community – people want to feel like they belong and are part of something so think about how you can bring your employees together more.
- Collaboration – encourage your teams to work together more effectively by setting shared goals that drive closer collaboration and require everyone to get involved.
- Craft – learning new skills is not just good for an employee’s development, it will help them gain confidence and boost your internal talent pool too.
- Compassion – think about how you can ease the additional stresses many are under by offering access to support services and highlighting third-party help that is available
- Celebration – take every opportunity to congratulate a job well done.
I do hope everyone has a very happy Christmas and that we move into 2023 with an increasing number of more supportive, understanding and caring workplaces - like our customers have proven to be.
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