Employee Recognition in 2023: Best Practices vs Trends

Introduction

As businesses grapple with recession concerns and the aftermath of the pandemic, employee commitment will be crucial in boosting business outcomes this year.

Rates of employee disengagement have been ticking upwards in recent years, posing a real threat to the bottom line. Disengaged employees dampen productivity, make more errors, and ultimately are more likely to quit. That is why even now, when organizations are trying to save money, HR leaders should still prioritize employee experience to prevent steep losses.

The employee experience in 2023 is vastly different from previous years, however. Employees increasingly seek workplace well-being, inclusivity, and purpose — which means that employee rewards programs that don’t take these preferences into account are likely to fall flat.

Fortunately, technological advances made it much easier to accommodate the latest trends in employee recognition. Solutions like WorkProud are built to fit today’s workplace, which is becoming increasingly remote and globalized, and enable managers to provide positive feedback promptly.

Keep reading to learn more about the latest employee recognition trends in 2023, and how you can incorporate them into your rewards and recognition program.

Preventing disengagement with employee recognition

The connection between employee recognition and employee retention is clear. In fact, a survey by Gallup found that employees who had not received recognition within the previous seven days were twice as likely to say they would quit within the year.

Organizations with a modern recognition program can more effectively foster feelings of workplace purpose, meaning, and appreciation. Here are some factors to consider when building your program and seeking out employee recognition software:

Best practices for employee recognition

To ensure your program’s success, be sure to incorporate these best practices:

Automate decision-making with data analytics

Technology advancements have made it much easier for businesses to provide equitable and accurate recognition. Robust recognition software can automatically monitor key metrics to detect under-the-radar performers and increase the frequency of recognition across every department and skill level.

Incorporate the DEIB Framework

Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) initiatives aim to create workplace cultures of inclusivity that boost employee morale, retention, and feelings of emotional safety. The approach has taken on greater significance in recent years, with over 60% of employees now considering it to be “a critical factor in their company’s ability to drive success.”

When combined with employee recognition, the DEIB framework helps companies to nurture more inclusive cultures and overcome unconscious biases that might otherwise trickle into employee recognition efforts.

Support peer-to-peer recognition

While manager feedback has a huge role in boosting engagement, recognition from colleagues can be even more powerful. In fact, research shows that peer-to-peer recognition is 36% more likely to generate positive financial outcomes than manager-only recognition. Therefore, when looking for an employee recognition program, you’ll want to make sure that it features interactive peer-to-peer recognition capabilities.

Provide flexible reward options

Rewards pack the most motivational punch when tailored to employees’ unique preferences. Offering a variety of monetary and non-monetary rewards is a great way to generate greater excitement and morale among employees. Let your employees choose from a wide range of options, such as:

• Gift cards
• Paid time off
• Professional development
• Branded merchandise
• Corporate wellness incentives
• Charitable contributions

Be transparent

With layoffs making headlines and recession concerns abounding, employees in 2023 need greater transparency than in the past. Making employees aware of company performance and goals — both company-wide and department-wide — helps spur them to take action that aligns with your key performance indicators. It’s also important to specify which actions and behaviors deserve success within your organization.

Recognize employees in real time

Positive feedback is most impactful when delivered right after the positive behavior or outcome has occurred. Instant recognition helps employees feel immediate ownership over their work and maintain a proactive, positive attitude.

It would be best if you had an employee recognition software solution with real-time feedback features to provide recognition as fast as possible. Solutions like WorkProud can help to pick up on achievements as soon as they happen so that positive feedback becomes a constant organizational value that’s not limited to annual or quarterly reviews.

Offer localized rewards

Companies with global workforces need to be able to customize rewards based on various cultural sensitivities and preferences, standards of living, currencies, and other factors. This can be accomplished with a recognition program that supports multiple currencies and rewards from local brands and vendors.

Employee recognition trends for 2023

In addition to the above best practices, you’ll want to consider current workforce trends when developing your recognition program. Here are several to keep in mind for 2023 and beyond:

1. Remote recognition
   The COVID-19 pandemic made remote work accessible to broad swaths of the population – and workplace flexibility is now expected of employers. According to a survey by McKinsey in 2022, 58% of respondents — an astounding 92 million people — have the option to work from home at least part of the time.

   Digital transformation plays a key role in supporting the needs and preferences of remote workers. Rewards programs must be digitized to foster interaction and make it easy to redeem rewards from any location.

2. Gamification
   With the help of advanced employee recognition software like WorkProud, you can introduce game-like elements such as scoreboards, badges, and multi-player interactions to generate excitement among employees.

3. Professional development incentives
   Workplace learning and development help employees be more engaged and motivated to excel, which greatly reduces turnover. Be sure to include desirable training courses and sessions in your rewards catalog — doing so will motivate your employees and help close any skills gaps within your organization.

4. Recognition for deskless workers
   Because rewards programs are often tied to digital platforms, they tend to be more commonly deployed by organizations whose employees mostly work at offices. But considering that 80% of the global workforce is deskless, this sizable slice must receive the recognition they deserve. This becomes even more important when we appreciate that many deskless employees are front-line workers, such as nurses, who are battling high rates of burnout.

   To facilitate deskless employee engagement, opting for a mobile-first solution — such as the WorkProud app that allows employees to access messaging and gamification features from the palm of their hands, is vital.

5. Sustainable awards
   With sustainability becoming a bigger focus for organizations and individuals alike, companies will benefit from offering eco-friendly rewards. Be sure to offer gift options that are sustainably produced and have minimal environmental impact.
   
   
6. Employee well-being
   In a post-COVID world, workplace well-being has become a top priority — particularly among the younger generations. Offering benefits that foster improved emotional and physical health will speak to your workforce and demonstrate your commitment to employee satisfaction. Consider providing rewards like club memberships, insurance benefits, and fitness gear.
   

Final Thoughts

Employees seek human-centric recognition at a time of economic volatility and widespread workplace burnout. For your recognition and rewards program to succeed in 2023, it must aim to instill workplace purpose, well-being, and inclusivity.

If you’re looking to develop a program based on industry best practices and meet the expectations of the modern workforce, contact us today using the form below! Whether you’re looking to launch your first employee recognition program or refresh your program to cater to new preferences, know that WorkProud is here to help. We’ll help you create a plan to enable you to reach your employee engagement goals.