March 1st 2023
8 Creative Ways to Show Appreciation to Your Employees This Quarter
We know what you’re thinking, the year just started, isn’t it a little soon to be “appreciating”? Well, if employee retention is one of your OKRs for Q1 – then listen up! Employee appreciation is the egg and employee retention is the chicken – you can’t have chicken without the egg. So, how to ensure your acts of appreciation don’t go… unappreciated? This week on Parallel we’ve compiled our favourite IRL and virtual, creative concepts to show your employees love before this quarter ends.
IRL Ideas
1 | Host A Paint & Sip
Everyone’s inner child is invited! Host your very own paint and sip session at your local art studio or at your HQs. Invite an artist to help guide and host (if creativity isn’t your forte) and bond over your shared inability to paint recognizable portraits.
2 | Game Day (Work Edition)
The truth is, no matter how old we get, we’re always down for game day! From getting your tech team to host a trivia sesh, to an afternoon of murder mystery set by the managers – blow off steam and build camaraderie with your coworkers by hosting a mini olympics. Someone get the beanbags out!
3 | Dinner Is... On You!
Good food brings out a good mood - that goes without saying. Treat your employees to some fine dining or some killer local takeout if that’s more your vibe. Who said you had to wait till thanksgiving to be thankful?!
4 | Small Moments Of Appreciation
When an employee least expects it – flick them a Slack, pop by their desk, or dial-in on a call to let them know that their efforts are being seen and cherished. Pro tip: don’t schedule this in their calendars – they’ll likely freak that you’re pulling a ‘Google’ layoff on them. A lil’ effort goes a long way.
Virtual Ideas
5 | Send VISA Gift Cards
As much as some of us would like to deny it, consumption culture has us in a chokehold! That is something we are not de-influencing! Let your candidates treat themselves by rewarding them with a VISA gift card …and on the bright side: they won’t be regifting the gift card like they did with the socks you brought them last year.
6 | Surprise! It’s A Half-Day
There’s nothing like an early start to the weekend! On the Monday of – let your employees know that they have a mini work day on Friday so they can plan to start the weekend right. Or, better yet, let them have Monday off (because let’s be real, on Fridays we’re mentally checked out anyway).
7 | Spin It To Win It
Ditch the scheduled virtual all hands, and spring an afternoon of spinning a virtual prize wheel on your employees. All set to walk away with a lil’ something something – it’s an unexpected mood booster to end the week. A week of free coffees for the marketing team?! You got it! What about an all-expenses paid trip? No? Then don’t worry about it, that was just a hint to our boss.
8 | Send A Care Package
Sending your employees a package filled with goodies and a handwritten Thank You note out of the blue will earn you some serious appreciation points. Well – make sure it’s not just those 2 words, you can do better than that! Ideally, personalise the note with your employee’s name and recognition of a specific aspect of their role they’re totally killing at the moment.
You and your employees go together like bread and butter - a strong team that serves to keep clients and customers happy and satisfied every single day! It’s so easy to get overwhelmed to the point where you forget the people who are helping you keep it together. So this is it, this is the little nudge and reminder you needed. Go out there and do what’s right!