Effective communication is critical to ensuring a good working environment. Workplace recognition is particularly effective when it comes to employee engagement, productivity, and wellbeing. While many companies may believe they show enough acknowledgment for their staff, a recent engagement and retention report indicated over 80% of employees wish their employer recognized their work more often.
The same report found that one-third of employees also find it hard to connect with their coworkers and the company culture. While employees appreciate flexible scheduling and the ability to work from home, many still desire face-to-face interaction for at least part of the week. With the pandemic forcing many companies to shift to remote platforms, employees feel disconnected, unrecognized, and unmotivated.
Recognizing past and ongoing achievements are essential for employee motivation and productivity. The pandemic has made this more challenging to achieve, but it’s well worth the effort. A Gallup Workplace report found that companies that focus on employee engagement have 41% less absenteeism than those that don’t. The research identified workplace recognition as one of the most effective ways to improve employee engagement and absenteeism rates.
While grand gestures aren’t feasible or realistic for day-to-day interactions, company leadership can implement the following to show employee appreciation:
Regular recognition. Companies can’t afford to wait until a holiday party to recognize employees. Yearly or quarterly recognition isn’t enough to sustain employee engagement. Weekly recognition yields the greatest returns on employee engagement. Recognition efforts don’t need to be over the top, either. They can be as simple as acknowledging an employee’s role in meeting a deadline or highlighting how their work contributes to the company’s goals.
If companies take too long to recognize an employee’s efforts, it isn’t likely to yield the desired outcome. Employees perceive delayed acknowledgment as a check in the box or that their company leadership didn’t notice their efforts in the moment.
Specific acknowledgment. Personalized acknowledgments will always produce better results than sending generic, canned messages to multiple people. When recognition is specific, employees are much more likely to repeat the action in the future.
Public encouragement. Thanking employees behind closed doors doesn’t foster a company culture of appreciation. Recognizing employees in front of their peers is a much more effective means of showing appreciation.
Recognizing employee efforts is an effective motivator. It improves employee engagement and has a direct effect on absenteeism. To learn more about reducing absenteeism in the workplace, contact the experts at Actec.
Call centers often experience high employee turnover, and insufficient onboarding processes are a driving factor. Companies that optimize the process can save time and money while improving employee retention. The following are several insights to improve the onboarding process for new call center employees:
Retaining employees is often a top priority for HR managers. Companies spend a considerable amount of money on recruiting the best talent to fill their vacancies, but it comes with a hefty price tag. Refilling positions is even more expensive, as it can cost up to one-third of the employee’s salary to replace them. Businesses can influence employee retention rates by understanding the following:
Personalization is a critical part of delivering a high-quality customer experience in the insurance industry. However, tailored experiences require customers to share their data with their insurance provider, something many may hesitate to do. Insurance providers need to understand the four primary attitudes about sharing data before they can take steps to convince customers to give out personal information.
Motivated and engaged call center employees are more likely to deliver high-quality customer service. However, consistently providing superior service and meeting KPIs is challenging and can leave agents exhausted without adequate support. Recognizing their efforts shows customer service agents that the company appreciates their work and cares about their well-being. It also behooves companies to recognize call center agents, as customer service directly effects revenue.
Businesses are struggling more than ever to foster customer loyalty. Today’s customers are more likely to look for new vendors or providers following a poor experience with the company. Customers have a low threshold for frustration, and service issues such as long hold times, agents lacking knowledgeability, or unresolved problems are more than enough to erode their faith in the organization.
Working from home became an unavoidable reality during the pandemic. Many businesses have cautiously resumed in-person operations, but numerous continue to offer the option to work from home for part of the workweek. Some companies are 100% remote by choice, either due to a distributed workforce or the nature of their services.
All forms of motivation fall into two categories: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation comes from within. It fuels employees that strive to complete tasks that make them feel good about their work. Employees gain an internal reward without expecting praise when they’re driven by intrinsic motivation. Extrinsic motivation comes from external sources, either in the form of a reward or avoiding punishment. Examples of extrinsic motivation include employees who go above and beyond to achieve a bonus and employees that come to work on time to avoid disciplinary action.
Several elements define a company’s culture. The company’s mission, values, and leadership style all affect how employees engage with each other and how customers view the company. A strong, positive company culture drives employee motivation, productivity, and morale. Establishing a company culture takes time, but businesses have several styles they can cultivate within their call centers.