Business owners who have the pleasure of working with great employees know that they should be thankful for those employees. Not every employee does an outstanding job, so when you find one that does, it is a good idea to let them know they are appreciated.
In honour of Thanksgiving, here are six ways you can show gratitude to your employees when they really go above and beyond expectations and do an outstanding job in your franchise business.
1. Bonuses
Yes, money is the most obvious way to say thank you to a magnificent employee. It may seem impersonal and you may be tempted to try and give something that is more personalized, but everyone likes to get extra money and everyone can use extra money. As good as it feels to receive gifts, your employee might be trying to pay off debt or save up for something special that money will be more useful for. A monetary bonus is always highly appreciated.
2. Gift Cards
Prepaid credit cards or gift cards — as long as they are for a place where your employee actually spends money — are a nice alternative to actual cash if you don’t want to go that route. You can keep a stockpile of them to give out when you see someone going the extra mile for the company. The downside of gift cards, of course, is that they are only useable in one specific business, but something like an Amazon gift card is nearly as good as cash.
3. Public or Private Recognition
Some businesses like to display photos of employees who are doing really well, others make it a regular feature like an “employee of the month” honour while others keep it more confidential and simply let the employee know privately that they have been noticed. Whichever way you choose to go about it, a simple note or other recognition — even if it’s not accompanied by any kind of reward — is appreciated by employees. They like having their efforts noticed.
4. Milestone Acknowledgement
Aside from appreciation for certain situations where an employee has shown excellence or for a short period of time like a month, you should also recognize longer periods of service. A consistently good employee who has shown loyalty to the company should have that service acknowledged when important milestones come up. With employees moving from company to company being so common nowadays, anyone who stays five years and beyond should get some kind of recognition for their contributions to the business.
It’s a good idea to have a gift to give out for these occasions, like the aforementioned cash or gift cards or something that shows true appreciation like an item engraved with their name. If you have an internal newsletter, you can mention the milestone in there, or if the milestone is big enough, like a 20-year anniversary, you can have a little ceremony for it.
5. Personal Meeting
While notes and displays are good ways to convey gratitude to your employees, a face-to-face meeting will really drive the point home. Hearing it straight from the boss’ mouth and being looked in the eye while it’s happening will really stick with an employee and inspire them to keep doing exactly what they’re doing.
6. Recommendations
Sadly, amazing employees have to think about their futures and their future might not be at your place of business. When a truly gifted employee has to leave, there is no better thank you than a good recommendation to help them with their future endeavours. Whether you act as a reference for them, write a glowing recommendation letter or simply recommend them on LinkedIn, giving praise that will be seen by others who can positively affect their lives is a great way to give thanks to great employees.
Before you give thanks to your employees, you have to have employees and for that, you need a business. Sign up for a free FranNet franchise search and consultation today and let us help you on your way to business ownership and wealth building.