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A great employee recognition program does more than just reward employees — it creates a culture where people feel valued, motivated, and excited to contribute. When employees know their efforts are appreciated, engagement soars, and employee morale thrives. It’s not just about saying “thank you”; it’s about creating a meaningful experience that connects your team members to your organization’s mission.
Recognition programs also provide valuable data that can help inform business strategies. In fact, 74% of HR leaders use recognition platform data to support performance objectives. These insights help organizations identify their top performers, track trends in engagement, and ensure their recognition efforts line up with larger goals. By building a program with outcomes that you can actually measure, you can turn employee appreciation into a powerful driver of success.
So, how do you build a recognition program that makes a real impact? In this blog, we’ll walk you through the steps to create a program that inspires your employees and delivers measurable results. From setting clear goals to designing a system that works for your team and determining the types of recognition to incorporate, we’ve got you covered.
Types of employee recognition
Recognition isn’t a standalone concept. There are different types of recognition that can be tailored to different needs while still leading to the same end goal. Each type addresses unique aspects of employee contributions, whether they’ve achieved a short-term goal or reached a significant career milestone.
Creating a successful employee recognition program means including the three pillars of recognition — social, monetary, and peer-to-peer. Each pillar plays an important role in improving the employee experience. Together, they ensure employees feel valued, motivated, and connected to their team.
Social recognition
Social recognition is about celebrating employees’ efforts in a way that everyone can see and share. Whether it’s a shout-out in a team meeting, a post on your company’s recognition platform, or a spotlight in your newsletter, social recognition makes appreciation visible and meaningful.
Why does it matter? Because people thrive when their hard work is noticed and celebrated. And when they’re recognized regularly, the results speak for themselves. Our research shows that 45% of employees who are recognized monthly say they’re very engaged at work compared to only 23% that are recognized annually or less.
Social recognition allows employees at every level to see the impact of the work they do and to feel proud to be a part of their team.
Monetary recognition
Monetary recognition adds tangible rewards to your appreciation efforts, offering employees more than just a “thank you.” This type of recognition can range from gift cards and bonuses to points that employees can redeem for the rewards in your program’s customized marketplace. This approach ties recognition directly to something employees can use or enjoy, making the appreciation feel even more meaningful.
So, why include monetary recognition in your program? Because it’s a powerful motivator. Employees feel a stronger sense of value when their contributions are rewarded in ways that benefit them personally. It’s also a versatile option — whether you’re celebrating workplace anniversaries or smaller milestones, monetary rewards can be tailored to fit your needs. Adding this element to your platform ensures that recognition feels rewarding in every sense of the word.
Peer-to-peer recognition
Recognition helps managers grow as leaders by practicing giving direct, positive feedback. But recognition doesn’t always have to come from the top. Peer-to-peer recognition should be a focus of your employee recognition program. When employees are able to connect and celebrate their colleagues and receive those sentiments back, it creates a foundation for healthier working relationships.
Peer recognition is a proven culture builder. Employees who receive at least monthly recognition from their colleagues are twice as likely to feel a strong sense of belonging and say there is a culture of trust at their company. Incorporating this type of recognition in your program is a guaranteed way to add another layer of value to your program.
How to build an employee recognition program
Building an employee recognition program is a detailed process. One that involves understanding the type of culture you want to build and what you want your employees to gain by using the platform. It takes time and lots of planning to create an employee recognition program that people believe in and want to use.
Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you get started:
1. Design the program
When designing an employee recognition program, make sure it’s adaptable so that you can experiment with new ways to recognize your employees. The goal should be to create a platform that is so easy to use that it fits into every employee’s workflow.
Set objectives
Every great recognition program starts with clear objectives. Think about what you want to achieve: Is it boosting employee engagement, improving retention, or aligning recognition with company values? Setting goals helps you measure success and ensures your program delivers meaningful results.
Start by identifying key performance indicators (KPIs) to track, like participation rates or employee satisfaction scores. Consider how recognition can support larger organizational goals, such as driving innovation or increasing collaboration. Clear objectives not only guide your program design but also help you secure leadership buy-in by showing how recognition can help drive business results.
Align with the culture
Your organization’s culture is simply how you do things there. It’s the shared values, behaviors, and attitudes that shape how employees interact and work together. It defines the work environment and influences overall engagement, productivity, and satisfaction.
One way to align your employee recognition program with your company culture is to tie recognition to company values. Companies looking to implement a recognition platform need to be ready to measure, manage, and invest in cultural alignment.
Allocate budget
Building an employee recognition program is an investment in the overall health and scalability of a business. To get the most out of your program, you have to be willing to allocate a budget for robust and customizable software.
A well-planned budget ensures your recognition program is impactful and sustainable. Start by determining how much your organization can invest. Consider factors like team size, program goals, and reward types. Break the budget into categories, such as monetary rewards, platform costs, and social recognition ideas. Think about how you’re going to accommodate different recognition needs, like celebrating milestones or recognizing team-wide achievements.
Outline policies
Clear policies are key to making sure your recognition program runs smoothly and that everyone knows how it works. Think of it as creating a guide for your team — when and how should recognition happen? What behaviors or achievements should be rewarded? Use real-life examples to show what “good recognition” looks like.
Go a step further by explaining how reward points fit with different tiers of rewards. This helps employees see the connection between recognition and real benefits. Host company-wide training sessions before launching the program to ensure everyone understands the process. A little preparation upfront can help set your business up for success.
Determine global scale
If your company operates in different countries, it’s important to think about how your recognition program will work on a larger scale. While many organizations claim to have global recognition programs, the reality is that few actually offer truly global solutions. In fact, only a small number provide recognition in regions like Europe or Asia.
If you’re considering expanding your recognition program internationally, choose a platform that’s built to scale. Look for one that makes administration simple, gives you control over costs, and ensures employees everywhere get the same great recognition experience, whether they’re working in-person or are part of your remote team. That way, every employee feels connected and valued, no matter where they are in the world.
2. Introduce the new program
Be prepared to set aside people hours for training and communication. Everyone, from executives and managers to online and offline workers, needs to learn how to use the program and understand why recognition is an important piece of your culture. Typically, companies use company-wide meetings to announce the program and introduce the concept of recognition within the company culture.
As you develop your training and communication plan, be sure to include an analytics component. Managers should know how to measure employee engagement and participation, on an individual and team level, over time. Set target KPIs every month so that managers are held accountable and reminded to monitor and grow their team’s engagement. Some relevant KPIs might include:
- Recognitions sent
- Recognitions received
- Monthly active users
- Activation rates
- Recognition index
- Number of leaders recognizing/participating
- Improvements in engagement scores
3. Measure the results
Measuring performance in key business areas — like retention, engagement, or customer satisfaction — before and after launching your employee recognition program automatically connects recognition to your organization’s bottom line. This is extremely valuable to maintaining buy-in from upper-level leadership.
One thing to keep in mind is that employees have to want to use the recognition system in order to adopt it fully. Asking for employee feedback on a regular basis can provide invaluable insights for improving your recognition strategy. Hearing straight from the employees themselves through pulse surveys or focus groups is the best way to get a sense of what they really think about the recognition program and find inspiration for new strategic approaches.
Plus, immediate feedback can signal to platform administrators when employees are dissatisfied and gives them an opportunity to think of newer, better ways to engage.
BONUS: Find the right recognition platform
The best recognition platforms make it easy for employees and managers to provide monetary and social recognition without impacting workflow and productivity. Look for platforms that have an open API or easy integrations with intranet portals, instant messaging tools, or learning management systems.
Integrating with Workday, for example, gives employees the ability to favorite recognitions so that they can bring them up in conversations with their managers. You want to make sure that your platform can deliver on all fronts when it comes to your recognition needs — everything from an easy user experience to real-time data — and can house all your recognition programs in one place.
While functionality and user experience are undoubtedly necessary, post-implementation support services should also influence your decision. Customer success managers are a valuable resource that can help you customize your employee recognition program and ensure it has all the features you need to drive usage.
The business case for employee recognition programs
While most people think of compensation as a driver of job satisfaction, it doesn’t necessarily encourage long-term engagement or retention. Employee recognition programs have been shown to enhance organizational culture, improve brand recognition, and increase company profits.
Enhance business results
Recognition goes beyond just boosting morale. It directly impacts business performance. When employees feel valued, they’re more motivated to contribute to the company’s success. Through our research, we’ve found key employee recognition statistics that highlight this connection. Here’s what we’ve found:
- Increasing recognition from quarterly to monthly boosts the likelihood of engagement and productivity by 40% and job commitment by 25%.
- Doubling weekly employee recognition leads to a 24% improvement in quality, 27% less absenteeism, and a 10% reduction in shrinkage.
- Employees who are recognized monthly are 36% more likely to say they are productive and engaged and 22% more likely to be highly committed to their roles.
When employees are recognized for their hard work on a regular basis, there’s an incentive to go above and beyond and to become advocates in and out of the office. Recognized employees perform their best, making them more engaged with their work and their peers.
Improve organizational culture
A strong culture plays a crucial role in shaping employee engagement and driving business success. When employees feel connected to their responsibilities, their peers, and management, there’s more motivated to produce their best work. Without organizational culture, companies risk employees feeling disengaged and are more likely to look for opportunities elsewhere.
According to insights from Deloitte, there are clear incentives for leaders to prioritize organizational culture:
- 85% of employees who are regularly recognized say their organization cares about their well-being. Those employees are more likely to rate their organization higher on key metrics like engagement, satisfaction, and overall workforce experience.
- On average, employees who regularly receive recognition are 56% less likely to look for other job opportunities.
- Employee retention can save businesses with 10,000 employees up to $16.1 million per year.
Improving your organizational culture doesn’t just benefit your employees. It gives you the tools to adapt and navigate changes in your industry and come out stronger. When employees feel like they can confidently advocate for their workplace, it puts their leadership in the best possible position to grow and find continued success.
Get executive buy-in
No matter how much preparation you put into an employee recognition program, executive buy-in is essential. Start with a clear analysis of recognition use cases, even beyond HR. This will earn the attention of stakeholders who likely experience a lack of engagement with their employees. Next, show off the benefits of a recognition program, everything from talent retention to employee engagement, and the positive impacts it can have on your bottom line.
Here’s what our research found:
- Companies that invest in social recognition are also 4x more likely to see improved stock prices and 2x more likely to see improved NPS scores.
- 60% of HR leaders with an online recognition program say it’s driving business results, compared to 30% with an offline or in-house platform.
- Programs that drive business results are 68% more likely to measure specific outcomes, such as employee well-being, belonging, and engagement.
Lastly, evaluate the quality and scale of your recognition platform from an objective lens. Picking just any solution is not going to return your investment. Choosing a program that aligns with business goals and delivers measurable results not only strengthens employee engagement but also highlights a clear return on investment, making it easier to secure leadership support.
Best practices for employee recognition programs
It can be difficult to know if your employee recognition program is on the right track. The good news is that there are some trends and best practices you can follow to help ensure your real-time recognition is exactly where it should be.
Make recognition frequent
Frequent recognition builds a strong culture of appreciation and belonging and increases the use of the platform. If organizations can simply bring employees from low belonging to moderate belonging, they can increase engagement and productivity by 400%. Recognizing employees’ achievements on a regular basis shows them that you are continuing to notice their good work and that they are a valued piece of the puzzle.
Tie recognition to specific behaviors
Whether they’re large or small, tying recognition to specific actions reinforces desirable behavior. Plus, 92% of employees agree that when they are recognized for a specific action, they are more likely to take that action in the future. This means that employers have the power to direct which key behaviors to emphasize and encourage, particularly those in line with a company’s mission. Any behavior that exemplifies company values should be especially lauded with positive and supportive recognition. Remember to always personalize your recognition and clearly communicate the action you are rewarding.
Recognize employees in real time for maximum impact
It would feel disingenuous if your manager recognized you today for something you did months ago. Recognizing someone in real time shows that you’re consciously paying attention to their everyday efforts and acknowledging their contributions. This reinforces positive behavior and shows employees their hard work doesn’t go unnoticed.
Run regular, fun campaigns to encourage participation
Employees will never opt in to boring recognition programs. Organizations should think of fun ways to incorporate the company’s style and design in their recognition campaigns and pair their launch with certain events. Some companies go live with their recognition programs during the holidays to get people in the right spirits. Others leverage their program during a global gathering, such as their yearly sales kickoff. Whatever you choose, be sure to connect it to something tangible to help build momentum.
Examples of successful employee recognition programs
Successful employee recognition programs can have an immense impact on a company’s culture and profit. Here’s how Achievers customers have leveraged their platform to achieve real, sustainable business goals.
Bayhealth
Bayhealth’s recognition program, Driven, positively impacted employee engagement across the organization. Since launch, 97% of leaders are active in the program at least once a month, and 84% of employees use the program on a monthly basis. When employees were asked if they were satisfied with the type of recognition they receive for doing a good job, they responded with 3.79 on a scale of 1 to 5. That score is 0.10 above the national healthcare average, raising Bayhealth’s engagement from the 16th percentile to the 34th among healthcare providers.
General Motors
General Motors (GM) had four objectives when it came to their GM recognition program: establish one global program and platform, build strategic alignment to accelerate culture change, drive employee engagement, and provide consistency and simplicity. Since its launch, the program has seen huge success. Within 30 days of launch, 87% of the entire global population was active on the platform, sending over 80,000 unique recognitions. People leaders at GM send an average of four recognitions per month, and 8 out of 10 managers send recognitions monthly.
Set your program up for success with an employee recognition platform
Building an employee recognition platform isn’t a one-step process. It takes time to design a program that meets the needs of an organization and gets employees excited about participating. It must be able to seamlessly integrate into everyday workflows and be accessible in and out of the office. These elements, when combined with a robust rewards system and insightful feedback tools, can transform the employee experience and drive measurable business results.
Achievers is changing the way organizations view employee recognition. Our award-winning software features a connected suite of tools designed to unify your workforce. We offer a combined recognition platform and rewards marketplace with custom features and software integrations that make it easy to build your dream workplace culture. Featuring built-in APIs, a user-friendly experience, and mobile capabilities, our platform is easily accessible to anyone, anywhere.
Ready to build an employee recognition platform that doesn’t just check a box but that makes meaningful change across your organization? We’re here to help bring that vision to life.
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