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There are leaders and then there are leaders; the ones who always bring out the best in their teams. Among their arsenal of people and leadership skills, these leaders truly understand the power of praise. The power of praise is well documented and can have a significant impact on performance, motivation and staff retention.
A recent Gallup study surveying more than four million employees found ‘that employees who receive regular praise are more productive, engaged and more likely to stay with their organisation, than those who do not. The survey results also indicated that employees who are praised receive higher loyalty and satisfaction scores from customers, and even enjoy better health than employees who are not.’
But the power of praise is all in the delivery. Here are 6 ways to effectively praise your employees:
- Don’t wait -
the more time that passes between great performance and recognition, the lower the impact of that recognition.
- Be specific - generic praise is good but specific praise is more effective. Don't just tell an employee they did a good job; tell them how they did a good job. Not only will they appreciate the gesture, they also know you pay attention to what they do.
- Be genuine – praise great performance consistently. If you are genuinely pleased – it will show.
- Praise for praise sake - save constructive feedback for later - praise and recognise now.
- Be surprising -
birthday presents are nice, but unexpected gifts make an even bigger impact. Unexpected recognition is always more powerful, too.
- Create a recognition culture – ‘Employee of the month’ recognition may not suit every workplace, but taking notice of individual staff achievements is very effective.
If you embrace the power of praise, your employee performance, motivation and retention will improve. And that is something every leader wants to see.
For more ideas on motivating your staff, contact Ryan today.
