Recognise This! – What does work to help employees engage deeply? All of these, and more, in combination.

My post this week on Compensation Cafe delved into the research showing more money, more perks and more purpose do not engage, motivate or sustain employees – when used individually that is. In combination, however, these are powerful levers to communicate to employees the value they and their contributions bring to the organisation, how they contribute to achieving “the big picture,” and how the company continues to invest in them and their development.

Read the full post for more on each of these levers, driving to the conclusion:

An effective way of blending these approaches – and meeting the needs of employees as defined by Gallup – is social recognition. Communicate to employees what is expected of them by praising them (publicly as often as possible) when they deliver those expectations. Employees know their managers have their backs when very specific recognition is given in a timely way. Data from social recognition can be easily analysed and graphically presented in real time to ensure the right people are in the right jobs based on the wisdom of the crowd as well as manager feedback. This allows for fast adjustment and the ability to move people into roles that play to their strengths.