A study of over 200,000 people conducted by the Boston Consulting Group revealed that appreciation for work ranks as the highest reason for happiness at work. With growing awareness of the benefits of employee engagement and employee appreciation, companies around the globe have been investing in employee recognition programs. However, these programs seem to largely overlook the many benefits of peer-based recognition.
What is Peer-Based Recognition?
Peer-based recognition is when employees appreciate each other for their accomplishments. When companies prioritize peer-based recognition, employees are more appreciative of their teammates, recognitions flows across departments and locations, and even up and down the organizational ladder.
This creates an atmosphere of appreciation and gratitude and sets a positive culture at work. Here are a few reasons companies should encourage peer-based recognition.
- Positive Work Environment
The average employee spends over 90,000 hours at work in their lifetime, making a friendly and positive work environment essential. Over 56% of employees ranked a good workplace culture as more important than their total compensation. With peer to peer recognition, employees are happier and more appreciative of their teams which contributes significantly to building a positive work environment. Employees also tend to be more engaged at work and less likely to experience burnout in a positive working space.
- Better Team Building
Peer-based recognitions fosters a great relationship between co-workers. It encourages a spirit of collaboration instead of competition amongst team members. When team members enjoy working with each other it boosts the overall team building and is key to building a cohesive team.
- Inclusive and Scaleable
Peer recognition is inherently inclusive since employees can freely give or receive appreciation. This is what sets it apart from typical employee appreciation programs such as employee of the month which can only be given to one employee at a time.
Also, peer-based recognition is easily scaleable since it is not a top-down approach with the leadership being solely responsible for employee appreciation.
- Helps Build Employee Confidence
Instead of arbitrary milestones that most recognition programs are based on, peer-based recognition is an authentic appreciation for great work. Also, peers have a unique insight into their teammates’ work and accomplishments. They are more equipped to recognize the smaller accomplishments too which leads to bigger accomplishments or impact. As such colleagues understand the project that their teammates are working on along with its inherent challenges that need to be overcome. Therefore peer-based recognition is more pertinent and contributes substantially to building employee self-esteem and confidence.
Employees are the very heart of any organization and should be appreciated for all that they do. A peer-based recognition system helps build camaraderie between employees and boosts gratitude and overall engagement. So if you have already implemented an employee recognition program or are contemplating one, it is important to ensure that it includes peer recognition. Benefit One USA’s employee recognition platform can be customized to include rewards and recognition from peers as well as the leadership and meet the unique needs of your business.
