Using praise as a successful motivational tool

If you ask managers and HR specialists what keeps employees at work and what motivates them to give of their best, the first things they will probably think of are a financial reward, benefits or days off. But many companies and people underestimate the power that praise from a manager or the HR department has in motivating employees. In fact, this an inexpensive way of motivating employees effectively to do their best at work. Here we will look at what praise for doing a good job should look like so that it is as effective as possible in supporting a healthy relationship between an employee and the company.

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Praise for hard work

According to HR Morning, hard work and successful completion of a demanding project should not be rewarded only financially and in secret. It should be praised publicly in front of other employees and managers. This way of praising has a magic effect on the motivation of the employee, their work performance and their confidence, all of which is important when dealing with complex tasks.

Being specific

Public praise of employees should not be vague or universally applicable because this would seem contrived. It must be specific, mentioning concrete successes of the given employee, and ideally also numbers and data.

Not too frequent praise

Public praise should not be used too often because it would then lose its power and exclusivity. So publicly praise only genuinely unique achievements, especially of employees you wish to keep and with whom you want to have a pleasant working environment.

Award

An award or a symbolic prize can form part of public praise. You might give this to the employee either at a special ceremony or, for instance, during a company party or at any other time which it is suitable.

Healthy competition

Public praise should create positive emotions and healthy competition, not envy, unhealthy competition or a feeling of insufficient appreciation of those who were not praised publicly. So be careful how your praise is formulated.

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Article source HR Morning - American portal for HR managers
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