How HR professionals can build positive company cultures with gratitude and appreciation
Any HR professional can relate to the feeling of excitement and relief when finding the perfect candidate to fill a role. With a lot of jobs now remote or hybrid, it is harder than ever to retain these employees.
According to the Labor Department, 4.5 million Americans quit their jobs in November 2021. This is due to employees having more options and increasing confidence of finding a better job fit. Job applicants are now empowered to be more selective on where to share their talents. With the plethora of job postings floating around, even mostly happy employees are re-evaluating their current position for a possible ‘grass is greener on the other side’ job shift. Their reasons for leaving for a new company aren’t just for higher pay, but for companies that value work-life balance, provide a sense of purpose and growth opportunities, and above all foster positive company cultures.
You likely already know some of what makes up a negative company culture — the expectation to work late, a hyper-competitive atmosphere, a lack of transparency, unused PTO, etc. Remote or hybrid work can also make culture-building difficult because it is harder to create and maintain workplace relationships in a virtual office environment. The reasons for why a company culture may be suffering are clear, but what is often less easy to identify is how to create a positive culture. While there’s no one-and-done strategy, one of the best places to start is to incorporate appreciation and gratitude as core values and daily practices.
Naturally, people want to perform well for organizations that value and invest in their employees. A positive company culture can help improve employee retention, increase productivity, boost engagement, build stronger relationships, and — most importantly — help invest in your employee’s happiness. Here are 5 ways to help create that culture.
Create regular opportunities for fun
We spend half our waking hours at work during the week, and employees need something to make that time feel like it’s flying. Give them something exciting to look forward to! These could be company outings to sporting events or karaoke nights to build relationships without the pressure of office deadlines. Remote teams could host virtual happy hours or coffee breaks to have the casual conversations we often lose in regular Zoom meetings. Even within the work day, there are plenty of opportunities for fun. For example, you can start meetings with a check in on each person’s pets or kids to create organic conversation and positivity. These moments of fun are invaluable for relationship building and showing employees you care about different facets of their lives — not just the ones that drive profit.
Volunteer as a team
Giving back to the community is an instant reward in itself, and serves as a great opportunity for relationship building. Find an organization or activity that speaks to your company’s values, and organize a time to help out. This could be through acts like visiting nursing homes, serving food at shelters, organizing a donation drive, or getting your hands dirty at a community cleanup event. The act of giving back can immediately inspire gratitude, and that will likely seep into interpersonal interactions moving forward. Employees will feel a greater sense of purpose and generosity through helping others.
Recognize important moments and share your appreciation
There’s a reason a “thankless” task is so off-putting. We all want to know our hard work is being seen and appreciated. Beyond recognition for work, showing employees you care about birthdays, work anniversaries, and other milestones can help them feel more like a valued member of the team. Even with the best planning, life can sometimes get the better of us when having to keep track of so many important dates. One way to make sure you don’t miss these opportunities to show appreciation is to schedule personalized Thnks. You could treat a team member to an Amazon workiversary shopping spree, or a birthday bottle of their favorite wine. Scheduling these quick acts of gratitude is easy, and the impact will be monumental.
Respect (and encourage) work-life balance
We are all humans with lives outside of work. Recognizing that and being flexible with the challenges this can bring can help team members feel secure, supported, and grateful. Especially in a world of remote work, the lines between home-life and office-life tend to be thin or nonexistent. Parents still have young children to tend to, repairmen are still coming in to check that broken garbage disposal, and pets still need to go outside. Only now, those tasks are all overlapping with what was normally considered “office time.” Recognize the unique strain this creates for your employees and be as supportive and understanding as possible. Don’t schedule meetings in the last hour of the day. Try not to send emails after an employee’s working hours and encourage them not to check their inbox until the morning. Let “time off” be a true time to unplug — not to feel like you’re missing something.
Use gestures of gratitude.
A simple thank you is great, but showing gratitude through words and actions is an even stronger way to build relationships and help your team feel appreciated. From a professional standpoint, showing gratitude can increase job performance, build mutual respect, and contribute to a positive company culture. Opportunities for gratitude can show up nearly every moment if you’re looking for them. Be specific about why you’re grateful and pay attention to details to create a sincere and meaningful interaction. You can also use gratitude tools, like Thnks to make the process seamless, efficient, and thoughtful. Some of our favorite ways to show Thnks to employees are to send a cup of coffee for an employee for their travels during vacation, send dog treats to an employee who just got a new furry friend, or some team swag for an employee whose favorite team just won a big game.
About the Author
Anthony Leonard, Director, Recruitment & Engagement at Thnks: Anthony Leonard Jr. is a 2-time graduate of Cumberland University, receiving his Bachelors of Health and Human Performance with an emphasis in Sports Management in May 2015. During his time at Cumberland, Anthony was a varsity member of the Cumberland Football program. Anthony continued his education earning his Masters of Business Administration in August 2016. Post-business school, he began a career in human resources, gaining experience as a HR Operations Administrator for HCA. Anthony then joined ServiceSource in 2017 where he grew his human resources career as a Regional HR Generalist for their North American locations. Currently, Anthony resides in the greater Nashville area where he serves as Director of Recruitment and Human Resources at Thnks.