The Key to Recognizing Employee Achievement in Corporate Wellness

Recognition is an important motivator in any situation. Corporate wellness is no different. Recognizing your employees’ wellness achievements can lead to a much stronger wellness program full of invested participants.

Why should you recognize wellness achievement?

Recognizing employee achievement in wellness (or anything else, for that matter) is a great way to encourage even more achievement. Recognition drives employees to strive for more progress. It reinforces the positive steps they’ve taken so they want to take more.

Aside from this increased investment in, or engagement with, your wellness program, recognition simply helps your employees feel good about what they’re doing. Employees who feel appreciated and noticed will have more positive emotions in regards to your program. These positive feelings translate to a positive opinion about the program.

In employee wellness, recognition of achievements can make all the difference. It’s a great way to reinforce positive behavior and make employees feel good about being part of your wellness program.

Whose wellness achievements should you recognize?

If you plan to develop a strategy of employee recognition, it needs to be just that—strategic. While it’s not always necessary to have a tiered plan of the people you can and can’t recognize, it is important to maintain some consistency.

Some great achievements to recognize in your wellness program include:

• When an employee reaches a personal wellness goal
• When an employee goes above and beyond to participate in wellness activities
• When an employee reaches a milestone (like reducing blood pressure to a healthy range)
• When an employee consistently does good work in wellness

All of these things are achievements your employees can reach as they participate in your wellness program. Keep an eye out for these things so your employees can get the recognition they deserve.

How can you recognize wellness achievement?

If you want your employee recognition to really be valuable, there are a few things to keep in mind.

Give recognition when it’s earned. Too often people are recognized when it hasn’t truly been a job well done. Reserve your recognition for employees who have done something to deserve it.

Be timely. Recognition given a month after the fact is not quite as effective as recognition given right after the good deed is done. Try to be timely and recognize employee wellness achievements as soon as you notice them.

Don’t be fake. Your employees can tell when recognition is actually genuine. If it’s not, they’ll just feel cheated or looked down on. Be sure the recognition you give is real and genuine.

Look for opportunities. Sometimes employee achievement—especially wellness achievement—won’t be obvious. Take the time to notice how your employees are doing in your wellness program.

Balance it out. We’re not suggesting allocating equal recognition for every employee, but it is important to avoid “playing favorites.” If employees see that one employee is constantly being recognized, they could become dismissive of the whole concept.

Focus on the individual. Each employee’s achievement is specific to him or her. Respect that fact when offering any type of employee recognition.

Employee recognition can lead to an increase in engagement with your wellness program. When done right, recognition is a great way to encourage positive habits and make employees feel good about your program. Take the time to recognize employees who’ve made real achievements in wellness.

How do you recognize your employees for a job well done?