Keeping employees motivated is a never-ending process that many organisations struggle with. However, finding the right way to bring the best out of each employee is vital for sustainable business success.

Meaningful employee recognition is one of the best ways to motivate employees, with 37% of people agreeing it’s the best motivator for great work.

But what exactly is meaningful recognition, and how can companies utilise it to meet the needs and preferences of their people?

Get all your motivation-related questions answered below.

What is employee motivation?

Employee motivation refers to how committed, enthusiastic, and energetic people are as they work. It drives actions, decisions, and effort, and directly reflects employee productivity, engagement, and overall contributions.

In general, there are two types of motivation to be aware of:

1. Intrinsic motivation: when employees find enjoyment and purpose in their work
2. Extrinsic motivation: when employees are motivated by outside factors such as rewards or monetary compensation

These may sound like opposites, but that’s where employee motivation recognition comes into play. Meaningful recognition, while an extrinsic motivator, can provide employees with more enjoyment and purpose at work, building their intrinsic motivation.

The impact of employee recognition on motivation

Employee rewards and recognition are the best ways to create and sustain motivation in your people, especially when they meet the needs, preferences, and expectations of each person.

Employee rewards boost motivation for those tasks that may not be inherently fulfilling because it offers desirable compensation for doing a good job.

Employee recognition, on the other hand, boosts motivation by showing employees the value of their work by expressing appreciation for their efforts and the impacts they have. This reinforces employees’ feelings of value and connection to their work, increasing their purpose and enjoyment.

How to offer meaningful recognition that boosts motivation

Meaningful recognition is personalised to the recipient in such a way that it meets their needs and preferences. 

For example, if someone puts in a ton of extra work and expects monetary compensation, they’ll be disappointed by a team dinner. On the flip side, a gift card or cash bonus may feel unneeded if the employee was expecting a public shoutout for their work.

Here are ways to ensure your employee recognition hits the spot and impacts motivation every time.

1. Learn employee preferences

Talk to employees to learn what kind of recognition they like. Do they prefer public or private recognition? Do they want money more than non-monetary appreciation? You could even ask them when the last time they received lackluster recognition was and what about it was disappointing.

Additionally, understand each employee's professional goals so that you can recognise them when they make progress or learn new skills.

2. Include professional development as recognition

When employees are consistently providing great work, they should feel like they’re moving upward in their careers. Once again, learn about their career goals and recognise their efforts with new opportunities that align with those goals.

Maybe someone wants to travel to new locations for business. Maybe someone wants to start managing a team. Maybe someone else wants to go back to school.

By tailoring rewards and recognition to each person’s goals, their motivation will increase as they realise that their work is helping them make noticeable progress toward where they want to be.

3. Tie recognition into results and impact

Studies show that having a sense of purpose at work drives motivation, productivity, and engagement. A sense of purpose at work basically means experiencing fulfillment beyond a simple paycheck. Work is transformational, not simply transactional.

By tying frequent recognition into each employee’s specific achievements and helping them see how their work impacts business success, you can help build a feeling of purpose for everyone.

Here’s an example. Fred has put a lot of extra effort into building a new tool for your company app, and customers are loving the new feature. In recognising Fred, make sure to share customer reviews or anecdotes to show him how much his work means to the company and its customers. Seeing the results will help Fred be motivated to put just as much effort into his next task.

4. Be genuine, timely, and specific

As general guidelines, recognition needs to follow these three principles:

• Genuine. Appreciation needs to feel real to be effective. Don’t settle for a cookie-cutter thank you card or a careless compliment. Take the time to offer genuine recognition that speaks to the recipient’s preferences.
• Timely. Offer recognition within a few days of the behaviour being recognised. If someone exceeded expectations for a project on Monday, don’t wait until next Wednesday to recognise them!
• Specific. In addition to tip #3, make sure recognitions are specific to the behaviour and the results being recognised. A generalised “Great job,” will feel much less special than a personalised message explaining why the recipient is appreciated.

Increase motivation with impactful employee recognition

The reasons for employee recognition are hopefully clear—when done right, employees respond with greater motivation, engagement, and productivity because they know they’re cared about and their efforts are appreciated.

See how modern recognition strategies can boost motivation by scheduling a demo with Awardco today.