8 low-cost ideas for recognizing your employees

21 de June, 2022

Recognizing employees – for their efforts, for their good work – is fundamental to keeping them motivated. Companies that incorporate recognition strategies into their organizational culture manage to keep their human capital more involved and dedicated.

But if you think that all initiatives to value employees are too expensive, you’re wrong! Come and discover with us 8 low-cost ideas for rewarding and recognizing the work of your employees.

1. Say a simple “thank you”: a thank you costs nothing and is very effective. Address your thanks directly to the employee, leave a note on their desk or even a poster in the office for the whole team to see.
2. Organize a lunch, a snack or a happy hour: establish that when certain goals are achieved, employees deserve to be rewarded with a more relaxed time to celebrate and socialize.
3. Send an email to the whole team or include the thank you in the company’s internal newsletter: send an email to the whole team and highlight the good work of one or more employees. If your company has an internal newsletter, take advantage of this channel too.
4. Take a moment at team or company meetings: take advantage of the start of a team meeting, or even the company as a whole, to highlight the achievements that have been made and encourage collective recognition.
5. Offer symbolic gifts: the possibilities are endless here. You can offer a book, tickets to the cinema or theater, tickets to a soccer match or a concert, or a gift certificate that can be used flexibly by employees.
6. Offer gifts from your company: reward your team with items that can be useful to them: pens, key rings, bottles, T-shirts, computer backpacks, among others. These gifts also help to increase the feeling of belonging to the organization.
7. Provide access to some educational materials and resources: this could be a subscription to an industry newspaper or magazine, access to a webinar or registration for a conference, for example. In most cases, these resources are relatively inexpensive and help employees feel that you are investing in them and in developing their skills.
8. Celebrate key milestones or achievements: make a point of congratulating employees on their birthday or other important moments such as when they get married or have a child. If possible, send flowers or a small gift. Remembering will make them feel more appreciated and valued.

Although these strategies are low-cost, the positive impact they have on the motivation of human resources can be very great. What do you think of these ideas? Is there any other initiative you usually develop in your company to recognize the work of employees? Tell us all about it!