One of the best parts of being a boss is celebrating and recognizing your employees. Amongst all the paperwork, stressful conversations, and micromanaging, it’s worthwhile to find the silver lining that makes it all worth it: your hardworking, loyal staff. Because of them you’re able to boost profits, rake in new clients, and continue your business without pulling your hair out. As the boss, it can be difficult to relate to employees because of the power dynamic at play. Make no mistake, both parties understand that work is simply a transactional effort. But as the exec, you have the power to make employee lives easier and less one-dimensional.
Employees understand that most corporate gifts are incentives for bringing in top sales, closing clients, and in general just doing good work. This makes your special gift even more transactional, especially when an award is expected for doing good work. What can you do to make it known that you appreciate your employees outside of pure obligation? By giving gifts spontaneously – not incentives on an expected timeline.
Spontaneous Gifts Leave Employees Energized & Motivated
If you know you’re getting something, it’s hard to feel surprised. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t continue to give out awards for key milestones or events, like the end of the fiscal quarter. But it is more impactful to give your employees a little special something in between the major moments. Surprising employees with tokens of appreciation can make them appreciative of the company’s culture and general thoughtfulness.
It adds a little breath of fresh air to their day and makes them feel valued for their general contributions. Bill Higgs, former CEO of Mustang Engineering discussed how awarding his team personalized out-of-the-blue gifts created a sense of belonging. Higgs would give awards on random days without much ceremony, simply leaving them on the desks of employees. This is a brilliant strategy that also starts a conversation amongst workers about the reasoning behind their gifts. “Just because” is an excellent answer to any queries and makes employees feel far more valued. Spontaneous treats have no baggage and expectations around them, which means you can award corporate gifts that are inexpensive, a factor that is commonly found in great gifts and awards.
Impromptu Gift Ideas
You don’t have to go all out for gifts. In fact, the thought itself is what will spark excitement within your work force. A simple gift to surprise your employees with is engraved pens with your company’s logo – they serve a practical purpose and are versatile enough that they work both inside and outside of the office.
If you run a small team, you can treat them to brand new business card holders or name plates that sport their titles – a practical corporate gift they’ll love to show off. Or how about company branded mugs and drinkware that employees can either take home or keep in the office for coffee? The beauty of impromptu gifts is that because employees don’t know they’re receiving something, grand gestures aren’t needed, which means you have no chance of imparting disappointment.
Whatever gift you leave your employees with, remember to make it known that it is genuinely a gift, a token of appreciation for their hard work, not an incentive that comes with strings of attached.
