​Speaking with candidates every single day, I always ask them ‘what specifically is important to you in your next role’ and a great majority of the time their response reflects being appreciated by their employer. The fact is that receiving appreciation and acknowledgment from your employer, not only makes you feel good about the work you have put in, but also encourages you to achieve great results each time.

It is important to acknowledge where hard work is put in by staff and that your employees and colleagues feel valued. Receiving recognition in the workplace improves productivity, workplace morale and staff longevity.

Keeping in mind, it is important for this to be a genuine thanks. Why? Because if an employee believes that you are not genuine, this can have a complete reverse effect on what I have just stated above. If you are being ingenuine with an employee or colleague who has produced fantastic work, they will not actually value and appreciate your acknowledgment and this can result in lack of motivation in the workplace.

When giving recognition and appreciation, to ensure that it is genuine, you need to explain why you are thanking this person. What task have they completed and what results have they produced? You can even go as far as to say how them completing this task or the results they have produced actually benefits you and the team.

There are many ways in which you can say thanks to an employee or colleague. A few suggestions are listed below:

You don’t have to break the bank to acknowledge where hard work has been put in, you just need to ensure that you are providing a genuine appreciation and thanks.

I am a Legal Support recruiter based in Sydney and I can absolutely say first hand from experience, when you receive that acknowledgment and appreciation it motivates you and impacts the rest of your day in a positive light. One example I can give is that, we successfully placed a candidate in a role who I had sourced and interviewed months prior. The perfect opportunity became available and the second I heard about the role I suggested this candidate for the position.

They went through the interview process, we completed references and this candidate was successful and was offered the position. Not only was I very pleased and excited that we were able to place this candidate in their dream role, I received recognition from my colleague regarding the speed in which I had suggested this candidate, being a one week turnaround from when we were briefed on the role to the candidates offer. There is no doubt that when someone says thanks, you feel appreciated and that is exactly how I felt.