Start the Year with a Thank You Note
Appreciation, Recognition, and the importance of team retention
700 quick words. 2 minutes
I don’t know about your mother, but mine was a bear regarding thank-you notes.
“I’m only a kid,” I would say.
Then she would hand me notecards and a pen and tell me to get to it.
The habit has served me well, though. And now we have business research that shows likewise.
A recent Harvard Business Review article entitled: “Do you tell your employees you appreciate them?” by Zegner and Folkman (subscription might be required) –
“According to the data we collect on leaders across industries, every measure of morale, productivity, performance, customer satisfaction, and employee retention soars when managers regularly provide recognition.”
Further, when they tracked team member engagement across tens of thousands of 360-degree assessments, Leaders giving recognition to team members is a crucial driver of employee engagement.
Leaders rated in the bottom 10% in this area have only 27% of their teams engaged, whereas leaders ranked in the top 10% have 70% of team members engaged.
They also describe appreciation more than recognition. Recognition is often public and hoopla. Some people don’t appreciate the recognition. But almost all appreciate being appreciated.
This appreciation comes in quiet, thoughtful ways.
Their tips:
Be specific.
In writing.
From their direct supervisor.
Timely. Make it closely tie to the behavior or accomplishment.
As I looked back through the archive of Harvard Business Review, there was at least an article each year on the subject of thank you notes, appreciation notes, or similar affirmations.
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We have long known that people don’t tend to leave organizations but instead leave managers and supervisors. This is the key element of team member satisfaction – how does their supervisor treat them?
In 2023, many of the pandemic staffing losses have been worked through. If we didn’t realize we were in a retention battle, we certainly know it now.
Tips for church leaders in this area:
Keep supplies handy. Heavy stock cards and envelopes. Emails and texts don’t seem to have the same effect on people as physical objects.
Set a goal. Perhaps it is weekly or monthly as to the number.
Track who gets them. Too many to one person can seem weird and even counterproductive.
Make them as timely and as specific as possible. But don’t let that time passage prevent you from following up.
If you are not their direct supervisor, make sure that person knows what you observed and that you sent a recognition.
Make them genuine, honest, warm, and not just dashed-off throwaway lines. (people might compare, you know.)
I would handwrite them. People tell me half the fun is trying to figure out what I wrote. Hopefully, you are better than that.
Don’t send a mixed message. If there is a correction to be made, make that separate, spoken, and then reinforced in other ways for files or to complete the understanding with the person.
Don’t forget some essential volunteers you see or get reports on something great, consistent or significant in their lives.
There are still people I served when I was briefly a pastor who keep my notes in their Bibles to this day, and some that inherited notes that do so.
Potential Occasions to send:
For an outstanding or exceptional breakthrough in service. (“Leading the team for our Christmas outreach was so special to see all of those served well.”)
For consistency in service. (“I know few notice your service in the parking ministry every week, but I see you there every week faithfully, and I appreciate it.”)
For tangibly upholding a key value. (“I want you to know I noticed how you went out of your way to show great hospitality in welcoming that guest last week. That is one of our key values, and I appreciate your faithfulness there.”)
Anniversary on the team, especially for staff. (“In our meetings, I always appreciate how you___ and ___. That goes a long way to build our whole culture towards health.”)
The way they treated another staff member or volunteer under stress and duress. (“I know that was a challenging situation, but you handled it with so much grace and understanding.”)