What are the three types of employee recognition?
Employee recognition is the act of acknowledging a person's work or behaviour so they know the organization noticed and values it. An effective program uses three types together: social recognition such as a shout-out or badge, peer-to-peer recognition from colleagues as well as managers, and monetary recognition such as bonuses, raises or points redeemed for rewards.
- 1
Social
A shout-out, a digital badge, or a comment or emoji, so employees of all levels feel valued. Harvard Business Review: 40 percent of employees say they would put more energy into their work if recognized more often.
- 2
Peer-to-peer
Recognition from colleagues and supervisors alike. Any employee can publicly recognize a team or an individual.
- 3
Monetary
Bonuses and raises, plus points-based rewards that employees redeem for rewards of their own choice, which makes them more personal.
An effective employee recognition program should include three types of employee recognition: social, peer-to-peer, and monetary recognition.
1. Social recognition
Social recognition is one of the three types of employee recognition. It can come in the form of a shout-out, a digital badge, or simply a comment or emoji. Practicing social recognition allows employees of all levels to feel valued for their contributions to your organization. Furthermore, it allows companies to identify and validate behaviours that align with company culture.
Harvard Business Review states that 40 percent of employees say they would put more energy into their work if they were socially recognized more often. In fact, companies with employees who are highly engaged outperform those who are less engaged, and experience a decrease in absenteeism and turnover rates.
2. Peer-to-peer recognition
Recognition helps managers grow as leaders as it enables them to practice giving direct, positive feedback. But, recognition doesn’t always have to come from top level employees. As a matter of fact, recognition should come from both colleagues and supervisors to promote everyone’s performance. A recognition program should be inclusive and support peer-to-peer recognition. In essence, it should allow any employee to publicly recognize a team or an individual, and make everyone feel like their work is acknowledged and appreciated.
3. Monetary recognition
Monetary recognition includes traditional incentives such as bonuses and raises. Rewarding employees with something of monetary value provides them with tangible proof that your organization values them. However, to achieve a comprehensive reward and recognition program, it is important that you provide more personalized rewards. Employees perform better when they’re being offered rewards they actually want.
Points-based reward structures are widely used. In these systems, employees can earn a set number of points depending on the action/task that they’ve completed. Those points can then be redeemed for rewards of their choice. By giving employees the opportunity to choose their own rewards, rewards become more personalized and significant than pre-selected gifts. In fact, organizations that have a points-based reward system see major increases in their sales and customer satisfaction.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the three types of employee recognition?
Social, peer-to-peer and monetary recognition. Social recognition is a shout-out, a digital badge, or even a comment or emoji that tells someone their contribution was seen. Peer-to-peer recognition lets any employee publicly recognize a colleague or a team, not only a manager recognizing a direct report. Monetary recognition covers bonuses, raises and points that can be redeemed for rewards. An effective recognition program includes all three rather than relying on one.
What is social recognition?
Social recognition is public, low-cost acknowledgment: a shout-out in a meeting, a digital badge, a comment or an emoji on a post. It lets employees at every level feel valued for what they contribute, and it gives the company a way to point out and validate the behaviours that match its culture. Harvard Business Review reports that many employees say they would put more energy into their work if they were socially recognized more often.
Why does peer-to-peer recognition matter?
Recognition does not have to come from the top. It should come from both colleagues and supervisors so that everyone's performance is encouraged. A program that lets any employee publicly recognize a team or an individual is inclusive and makes people feel their work is acknowledged and appreciated. Giving recognition also helps managers grow as leaders, because it is practice in giving direct, positive feedback, and a peer program spreads that practice to everyone.
What counts as monetary recognition?
Bonuses and raises are the traditional forms of monetary recognition, and they give employees tangible proof that the organization values them. On their own they do not make a full reward and recognition program. People perform better when they are offered rewards they actually want, so the program should add more personalized rewards rather than relying on pre-selected gifts or a standard payout.
How does a points-based reward system work?
Employees earn a set number of points for each action or task they complete, and they redeem the points for rewards of their own choosing. Because the person picks the reward, it feels more personal and more significant than a gift chosen for them. Points-based structures are widely used for this reason, and they sit alongside social and peer-to-peer recognition in the same program, so a thank-you from a colleague and a reward the person chose can both come from one system.
How do you build an effective employee recognition program?
Include all three types of recognition rather than one. Make social recognition easy and frequent so people at every level feel seen. Open recognition to peers, so any employee can recognize a colleague or a team in public. Add monetary rewards and personalize them, ideally through points that employees redeem for what they want. Use recognition to reinforce the behaviours that match your culture, so it shapes how people work as well as how they feel.
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