A high-impact team culture strategy you might be missing
Do you know #1 reason why people quit their jobs? According to OC Tanner research, “79 percent of employees who quit their jobs claim that a lack of appreciation was a major reason for leaving.”
Early in my career as a manager, I vividly recall discovering research by Gallup: employees who receive recognition and appreciation at least once a week are significantly more productive, engaged, and less likely to leave their organizations. While I understood the importance of appreciation, I was surprised by how frequently it needs to occur.
Appreciating our team members for their hard work isn't just the right thing to do for them as valuable contributors; it also makes strategic sense for anyone concerned with team impact. Regular appreciation reduces turnover, boosts productivity, and benefits those who express appreciation.
For nearly two decades, I've been deeply engaged in workplace appreciation. Through leading workshops, retreats for teams, and coaching executives on recognizing their teams, I've gathered valuable strategies to help integrate appreciation into everyday work.
Start simple, and dream big too.
Fair compensation and genuine time off are crucial for team well-being. Appreciation shouldn't replace fair wages or healthy workplace practices—if these issues exist, they must be addressed promptly. However, don't delay building a culture of appreciation while tackling more significant systemic changes. Send a quick text or Slack message right now to thank someone for their work on a project. Begin your next meeting with a round of shout-outs. You can start fostering appreciation today alongside your broader goals.
Make it specific so that it is meaningful.
Appreciation has to be more than, "Hey, thanks!" or "Great job on the budget presentation!". Get specific about what you appreciated and the impact someone has had. You need not give a long speech or write a novel to say thanks, but a few specifics about what made their work so great will take the impact of your appreciation up many notches.
Systematize it.
If you want to appreciate team members more, put systems in place to make that easier to do amidst all that you’re juggling. Set a weekly reminder to send out an appreciation or two. Add a recurring part of a team meeting agenda (and don’t skip it!) to invite others to give each other recognition for good work done. Add to a project or event checklist to call the question of how appreciation can be built into the next time we do this project or event. Start a Slack channel or Google Space called #kudos and ask team members to express their appreciation for each other as soon as they think of it. Use a system like Thnks to give everyone on your team a budget for sending small thank-you gifts to each other.
Make time to discuss appreciation directly.
The best way to invest in a culture of appreciation is to discuss why it matters with your team and invest everyone in creating that culture. For my clients, this often looks like spending a few hours of a retreat or workshop discussing the research on appreciation, diving into how individuals like to be appreciated (we often use this book and its associated quiz as a tool), and brainstorming how to build that recognition into their existing systems. But you can also start small, as well. Play Totem together as a team (when I was a nonprofit Executive Director, I’d bring this game to team happy hours). End your next team meeting with 10-15 minutes doing this easy activity.
To support you in doing this with as little friction as possible, I’ve created an Appreciation Toolkit with a sample session facilitator’s guide, handouts, a slide deck, and lots of appreciation-at-work resources that you can get for free at www.jessicaeastmanstewart.com/appreciation.
If you’d rather have the support of an experienced facilitator to take your team through this virtually or in person, you can reach out to me to see if I can help. I’d love to chat.
About The Author
Jessica Eastman Stewart is a consultant, workshop facilitator, and podcast guest expert. She teaches busy professionals how to get more organized at home and at work so they can stop feeling worn out and start living a Joyfully Managed Life! Thousands of readers drop everything when her weekly newsletter, The Friday Five, arrives in their inbox. Every Friday, you’ll get FIVE amazing tips to help life feel INSTANTLY more joyful and easy!
