As AI transforms the workplace at unprecedented speed, the Awardco COE set out to answer a critical question: what role does recognition play in a future defined by automation?

Through proprietary research, we see clear results: As tasks become more automated, human qualities like creativity, connection, and authenticity become more valuable. And at the center of those qualities sits one of the simplest, most powerful leadership practices available: recognition.

This new research reveals how recognition impacts engagement, strengthens culture, and fuels intrinsic motivation, all while offering actionable strategies every organization can implement right now.

Read the overview of our research below, and view the full research report here.

Recognition: the human advantage that strengthens teams

AI adoption has doubled in the last two years, reshaping hiring and creating uncertainty among employees. But this shift also creates opportunity. With manual tasks increasingly automated, leaders can focus on what truly drives performance: trust, belonging, and motivation.

Research from Harvard Business School shows “soft skills” are now among the most valuable leadership capabilities. Our findings reinforce this: employees who feel meaningfully recognized are more than twice as likely to be engaged, feel included, and report high well-being.

Recognition isn’t a nice-to-have perk—it’s a strategy that boosts performance.

Four key insights every leader should know

Awardco’s research uncovered four major drivers of recognition effectiveness:

• The method can make the meaning: how recognition is delivered significantly shapes its impact.
• The frequency factor: the more often recognition happens, the more engagement rises.
• The power of meaningful rewards: personalized, thoughtful rewards deepen motivation.
• The recognition gap: most organizations still underdeliver on consistent, meaningful appreciation.
  

Across industries, the evidence shows that recognition is one of the most effective levers leaders have to improve engagement, retention, and productivity, especially in an AI-accelerated world.

1. The method can make the meaning

Recognition cuts through daily noise to affirm value, but how it’s delivered matters.

While private 1:1 conversations and meeting shout-outs are common, they’re not always the most impactful. Our research found that the methods with the strongest relationship to engagement and intent to stay were:

• Company awards
• Manager emails
• 1:1 conversations

Company awards deliver high visibility and peer acknowledgment. Manager emails travel easily across locations and give recognition weight. And 1:1 conversations provide personal connections that still resonate deeply.

Recognition platforms were also highly effective, even though they’re underused. They provide visibility, consistency, scalability, and the data HR leaders need to measure culture.

One important insight: instant messages alone don’t move engagement. They’re helpful as quick reinforcements, but not sufficient as a primary recognition channel.

2. Milestones are missed opportunities for impact

Birthdays and service anniversaries produce some of the highest engagement boosts in our entire dataset—22 to 25 points—because they’re universal, predictable, and deeply personal.

And with automation, milestone programs can run reliably at scale without added workload. Leaders who overlook these touchpoints are leaving meaningful gains on the table.

3. The frequency factor: engagement’s strongest predictor

Recognition frequency was the single strongest predictor of engagement in the study, explaining 15% of engagement variance.

A few key findings stood out:

• Manager recognition needs to happen at least quarterly—after three months, engagement drops sharply.
• Senior leader recognition has twice the impact of manager recognition and sustains engagement for up to a year.
• Senior leaders need to recognize more, as nearly half of employees receive recognition from senior leaders once a year or less.

Managers keep engagement steady through frequent touchpoints; senior leaders elevate and strengthen it through high-impact moments that carry long-term weight.

Organizations need both.

4. Meaningful rewards create deeper motivation

While most employees say they prefer gift cards, preferences don’t tell the full story. Engagement was highest among employees who valued:

• Personalized gifts
• Company swag
• Team activities

These rewards build emotional connection and create shared experiences—key ingredients for belonging and loyalty.

Gift cards remain essential (flexibility is still important), but leaders should diversify their reward mix. Intentional reward design creates more meaning without requiring more budget.

A platform like Awardco makes this easy by centralizing programs, offering flexible rewards, and giving HR teams the data they need to see what works.

The recognition gap—and the opportunity ahead

Only 62% of employees say they’ve received meaningful recognition in the last three months. That means more than a quarter of the workforce feels overlooked.

The gap is even wider in education and healthcare—industries that depend most on emotional resilience.

The opportunity is enormous. Consider Children’s Nebraska, which improved engagement scores by 11.4 points above the industry average and reduced attrition risk by 20% using consistent, intentional recognition.

Every organization can achieve meaningful results with the right strategy.

A call to action: build recognition that actually works

Leaders don’t need complex systems to begin seeing impact. They need consistency, intentionality, and a design that meets employees where they are.

Here’s where to start:

• Start somewhere—even small programs can make a difference
  
• Use milestones as foundational touchpoints that reach every employee
  
• Increase frequency, especially from managers
  
• Encourage senior leaders to recognize regularly, as the effects last up to a year
  
• Provide multiple avenues for recognition, including email, 1:1s, meeting shout-outs, milestones, and digital platforms
  
• Make recognition simple, scalable, and measurable through tools like Awardco
  

Recognition is one of the most human acts in the workplace and one of the most powerful drivers of performance. In an AI-defined era, meaningful appreciation becomes not just a cultural advantage, but a competitive one.

Organizations that embrace recognition today will build workplaces where people don’t just stay—they thrive.

For a deeper dive into this research, including exclusive statistics, findings, and strategies, review the full report here.

Get a demo to see how Awardco can help you achieve your engagement goals, and learn more about Awardco’s Center of Excellence.