Gallup 2023 data shows 69% of employees across the globe are disengaged at work. And with growing risk of The Great Gloom and The Great Reshuffle, HR leaders need to implement a proactive strategy to tackle this if they want to maximise and retain their most crucial asset. To do this, employers must instil a fundamental yet overlooked puzzle piece in their People strategy: valuing and appreciating their teams.

With 84% of employees reporting meaningful recognition to directly boost their motivation to succeed and 71% saying they’d be less likely to leave their organisation if they were recognised more frequently, it’s time HR leaders capitalised on the power of recognition for their business and their people.

At Rippl, we believe in prioritising recognition all year round. But, Employee Appreciation Day marks a good opportunity to start. So, we’ve compiled a list of different ways businesses can meaningfully value and empower their people.

10 ways to celebrate teams this Employee Appreciation Day.

1. Say thank you. A simple ‘thank you’ or shoutout goes a long way. But importantly, this shouldn’t be exclusive to job role KPIs or hitting targets. Teams should feel appreciated for all corners of their contribution across job performance, support for others, embodying business values and more.

2. Gift a reward. Whether it’s a team bonus, lunch on the company or a sweet treat home delivery, rewards elevate recognition that one step further. For budgets big and small, there are plenty of options to make Employee Appreciation Day that little more special for both in-office and remote teams.

3. Prioritise wellbeing. Another dimension of reward on Employee Appreciation Day is through leveraging wellbeing initiatives. Whether that’s establishing an extended lunch hour, announcing an early finish to begin the weekend a little sooner, or allocating a future wellbeing day for employees to take advantage of, evidencing commitment to work-life balance and wellbeing will have significant impact.

4. Launch internal award nominations. Whilst recognition should be championed by leaders and managers, appreciation should be multi-dimensional. By launching an internal award nomination campaign, colleagues can get involved in actively recognising their peers from all angles – from a helping hand to the best coffee maker in the office. This will not only boost engagement across the business but champions a strong sense of community and belonging on Employee Appreciation Day.

5. Retrieve feedback. For teams to feel truly valued and appreciated, this needs to centre ensuring they have the support they need. And to understand this fully, employee feedback needs to be amplified to get under the skin of what’s working well and what the business needs to do more of to empower teams to be their best. Employee Appreciation Day presents a key opportunity to circulate a feedback opportunity to gather insights and demonstrate the business’ commitment to ensuring employees’ voices are heard.

6. Rethink your benefits package. Employee perks must reflect the diversity of needs across the business– otherwise, the benefits package will be perceived as no more than a tick-box exercise. Consider, is your current offer reflective of what your teams need? Where are the gaps? Do the needs of the workforce need reassessing to get an accurate picture? How is the benefits package evolving in line with business and workforce changes? Feedback will be crucial, so Employee Appreciation Day presents a great way to get teams chatting and sharing their ideas around the perks they have vs the ones they need.

7. Outwardly recognise teams. Take recognition to the next level by giving colleagues a public boost on Employee Appreciation Day. Whether that’s tagging employees in a shoutout on LinkedIn or saying ‘thank you’ in an all-team meeting, delivering recognition outwardly will significantly enhance its impact.

8. Get social. Regardless of whether your team are office-based, work on the frontline or follow a remote model, set time aside to prioritise community engagement. Host a virtual game for teams to join, set a virtual cooking class, schedule an in-person lunch or get colleagues together at an after-work event to boost connection and belonging.

9. Launch a team leaderboard. Build a sense of community and motivation by launching an Employee Appreciation Day incentive. This could motivate performance, soft skills or a fun task, but ensure business-wide visibility of colleague progression against the goal or target so engagement is maximised. A series of prizes will make this even more exciting.

10. Make it permanent. Whilst Employee Appreciation Day provides a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the brilliant talent behind a brand, its impact will likely fall flat if this isn’t continued on a permanent basis. Start off by observing the impact of delivering these initiatives and expand them into an established recognition programme that ensures teams feel valued all year round.

To discover more about how Rippl revolutionises recognition, reward, benefits and incentives for global businesses, chat to us.