How Celebrating Wins Can Drive a Tighter Company Culture

Nothing brings a team together more effectively than success. Everything typically feels great when the wins are rolling in, and everybody has something to celebrate. So why would you -- as a leader of your organization -- pass up the opportunity to strengthen your company culture by rejoicing in every accomplishment, no matter how big or small?

Celebrating wins can energize your workforce, reinforce the team concept, and motivate individuals to strive for future success.

According to a study by Socialcast, 69% of employees would work harder if they felt like their company better appreciated their efforts. This doesn't just mean acknowledging significant accomplishments or milestones—those are few and far between—it means giving recognition to the small wins, too.

Recognizing your employees' achievements lets them know that they are a part of the team and that they are a valued member of it, thereby strengthening the team itself and creating a snowball effect of motivation that can reach every individual in your workforce.

If you're looking for a way to develop a strong company culture and a closer, happier, more motivated team, read on to learn everything you need to know about how and why celebrating big and small wins is the solution for you.

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The Positive Effects of Celebrating Success

It shouldn't be too difficult to understand why a bit of celebration can help create a happier workplace. However, the benefits of acknowledging achievement go beyond making things more fun.

Here are some of the most significant advantages of establishing a culture of recognition in your workplace.

Team Building

Highlighting wins doesn't just benefit the individual; it helps the whole group. Celebrating someone else's success within the organization acknowledges their personal accomplishments and their contribution to the company's greater goals.

Great teams feel gratification for every teammate's success, not just their own, and that's why they win.  

Employee Recognition

Caring for others is one of the major drivers of success for organizations today. In every workplace -- and in most other places -- people want to feel accepted and acknowledged, and they want to feel as if their hard work is making an impact.

Your employees may never feel any of those things unless you make a concerted effort to create a culture that celebrates their wins, both big and small.

Motivation

Sometimes, all an employee needs to push themselves above and beyond with their work is the knowledge that the company will recognize them for it. When you celebrate accomplishments, you let your workforce know that they too will be celebrated if they apply themselves and contribute to company success. The team motivation that comes from celebrating wins is a win itself for everybody involved.

Friendly Competition

Establishing a finish line will often inspire a foot race. Many people are naturally competitive, and creating a bit of friendly competition in the workplace will draw that out of them, increasing their productivity. This is especially true when you gamify your workplace, and your celebrations result in actual rewards.

Overall Positivity

Don't underestimate the power of injecting some positive energy into your workplace. Allowing time to celebrate big and small successes can take the edge off of the stress that the 9 to 5 grind can place on your workforce.

Making small but significant steps to lighten the office's tone can go a long way towards creating an admirable company culture. Not only that, but it can also enhance psychological safety among employees, which is a significant factor in team success.    

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5 Employee Recognition Stats to Inspire You to Celebrate Your Workforce

Sometimes, numbers are the best storytellers. Looking at these stats regarding employee recognition can highlight the importance of celebrating and acknowledging individual achievement in your workforce.

Appreciation

According to a study by O.C. Tanner, 79% of employees in the United States who have left a job did so because they felt underappreciated.

Job Changes

A survey by Bonusly and SurveyMonkey found that 63% of employees who felt their employer recognized them were rated as very unlikely to switch jobs.

Recognition

Despite these numbers, a Gallup poll found that 65% of employees claim that they have not received any recognition for their accomplishments within the last year. In other words, celebrating wins puts you well ahead of the curve.

Absenteeism

According to another report by Gallup, doubling employee recognition can significantly improve the quality of work, along with substantial reductions in absenteeism and shrinkage.

Trust

In a report by Forbes, a staggering 90% of employees reported higher levels of trust in their boss when they received some form of gratitude and recognition from them.

Maybe you could have guessed some of this information yourself. After all, it should be evident that acknowledging your workforce will help to motivate them and make them feel more satisfied with their job.

However, it is unfortunately not the case in many workplaces (reread number 3) that employees receive any recognition at all for their hard work. Any organization that's serious about growth and progress should look to buck that trend by celebrating their employees' achievements.

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How to Celebrate Wins in the Workplace

You know why celebrating successes can be tremendously beneficial to your company culture, but you're probably still wondering how to get the job done effectively.

There are many ways to go about acknowledging achievement and inspiring your workforce to join in. Some are small and simple, such as a high five or a pat on the back. Others can be bigger and more significant, such as an award or a reward.

Read on to learn some of the best ways to establish a culture of celebrating wins in your workplace.

Talk About Wins

Simple as it may sound, sometimes, all it takes for an employee to feel acknowledged is verbal recognition. Whether it's in a more intimate setting or a company-wide announcement, simply declaring a win aloud and encouraging celebration among co-workers may be the single most effective way to drive tighter company culture.

Include Wins in Company Emails

A great way to get the whole company involved in the celebration is to acknowledge wins in a company-wide email blast. This gives the recognition a little more permanence and allows co-workers to have some time to dole out their own congratulations.

And if you have a company newsletter, that may be an even better place to celebrate wins in print.

Incorporate Wins into Employee Engagement Software

Employee engagement technology is built around the concept of employee recognition. It can streamline acknowledgment by bringing it right to your employees' smartphones. A Slack channel dedicated entirely to celebrating wins, for example, can be a fun and effective way to recognize all kinds of achievements.

Make Wins More Personal

Celebrating is something that is most often done in groups. Still, there's a specific value to acknowledging employee accomplishment in a more personal way, such as a written note or a one-on-one conversation.

Taking your employee to the side and letting them know that you've not only noticed their contributions but that you appreciate them may go even further in allowing them to feel recognized.

Create a Monthly Award

Not all employees are motivated by words of affirmation or email recognition. Some need their acknowledgment to be rewarded a bit more literally. Setting a specific goal that is acknowledged monthly can help to motivate employees, inspire healthy competition, and increase productivity. Tying the award to a reward can drive that motivation a bit further than that.

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No matter how you get it done, it's important to celebrate the wins. When a tight company culture is essential to your organization, find new ways to make celebration a part of your standard practices. Are you interested in how you can build a better culture at your organization? We have decades of experience in business transformation skills and workshops to foster a culture that enables leadership to celebrate wins and encourage growth across your workforce. Get in touch, and see how we can help you accelerate innovative ideas and build a culture for tomorrow, today.

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