The Power of Peer Recognition beyond work hours

PeerFives is an all-in-one peer recognition tool that shall help unlock the full potential of your team. Much about peer recognition, the need for it at workplaces, and the different ways in which one can go about using peer recognition to keep the workforce motivated are well-documented via some of the other blogs posted on this very platform. However, using this blog, we at PeerFives would like to give our readers an in-depth view of how peer recognition is a powerful tool in fostering better employee relations beyond work hours as well.

Peer recognition tools and software have become a must-have at organizations of all scales and sizes over the past few years. A culture of motivating employees to recognize and reward good work done by their peers instantly using the above-mentioned tools and software does provide real benefits and instant positive results.

The entire concept of co-workers giving each other a pat on the shoulder for good work does serve as the basis for them to bond better and organically convert colleagues from work into true friends. This shall, however, stem from certain actions taken in the workplace that shall later transform into fruitful results. Let us understand how certain peer recognition activities can serve to be the catalyst for the same.

Every employee works hard towards the completion of their tasks. Some employees may fix a bug in the code, while some may help the organization crack a major deal. Irrespective of the size of the victory, every win must be celebrated using peer recognition. Progressive workplaces even reward employees who work hard and fail so that they are motivated to not give up and try harder in the future.

Similarly, when colleagues at work have birthdays, anniversaries, and other personal milestones to celebrate, using PeerFives’ marketplace is a great option for gifting and letting them know that their presence is valued. All of this ultimately builds towards a deeper bond between the employees post-work hours.

While PeerFives definitely advocates instant peer recognition, various post-work activities can also help strengthen the bond between employees. Team dinners and bonding activities don’t necessarily need to be done in person, and teams can meet virtually and have activities planned out to be executed remotely. For this, organizations can use the PeerFives marketplace and give employees vouchers and coupons for their favorite restaurants.

Peer recognition can be executed on multiple levels; awarding employees is one such method. However, here we aren’t talking about your average yearly or monthly award programs, rather fun and quirky awards given to employees for their likable traits and habits; a few such examples include:

• The Coffeeholic Award
• Office Parent Award
• The Instagrammer Award
• Mission Impossible Award
• One Liner Award
• Full of Enthusiasm Award
• The Informant Award

These are fun ways to infuse humor in the workplace on a regular basis; at the same time, these awards can be given away using custom printed merchandise such as t-shirts, mugs, posters, jackets, and so forth.

These go a long way in helping the employees bond better beyond work, as they get something to talk about or have a little about.

All of the above-discussed methods of peer recognition are meant to motivate the workforce while keeping the work environment fun and friendly. Only when this occurs shall the employees consider going beyond the usual formalities and getting to know one another on a personal level.

A good peer recognition program shall certainly reap benefits; once the personal touch is achieved in employee relations, then there’s no looking back. In the process of motivating each other, the employees tend to form a bond; they genuinely start caring about their colleagues and start sharing with each other different aspects of their lives.

This process of caring and sharing transcends the boundaries of the workplace sooner or later. Oftentimes, employees or a small group of them plan to meet after work at an employee’s house or a nearby cafe or restaurant; they tend to share the happy moments of their lives together at first. Later, on gloomy and difficult days, employees tend to share the challenges they face or the duress that they find themselves under; this serves to be the perfect way to get things off one’s chest and contribute to the overall mental well-being of an individual.

Better physical and mental well-being does contribute to overall well-being, and in turn, one can expect an individual’s social well-being as well. A good peer recognition program bears fruit when all employees are incredibly social and collectively motivated to look out for each other.

Most of us have lived in a world where we have often depended on the kindness of neighbors, friends, and family during hardships. A good peer recognition program at work shall enable us to add a few more people to the list of people we can depend upon during hard times.

There is absolutely no doubt that peer recognition is the ultimate tool for a positive work environment. In addition to this, it does strengthen post-work relations between employees as well. This is especially needed in current times where employees can go underground as soon as they clock out. All they need to do is turn off their work computers and switch off their work phones. Employees working remotely haven’t even personally interacted with many of their work colleagues.

Thus, we at PeerFives encourage you to take your peer recognition programs seriously because the value they provide to not just maximizing an organization’s output but also the lives it touches is truly indispensable and contributes toward the overall good of the society by creating stress-free, positive, optimistic, and genuinely happy individuals outside the workplace as well!