(In a first-ever guest post on Recognise This!, Kevin Kruse, New York Times best-selling author of Employee Engagement for Everyone, shares more on how strategic recognition can influence employee engagement.)

Does your company have a formal, strategic recognition programme in place?

Do your managers—do you—actively deploy gratitude as performance multiplier?

If you answered no to either of these questions you aren’t alone. Surveys suggest that:

• Only 47% of workers around the world are satisfied with the recognition they receive (source: Kenexa)
• Only 10% of adults say “thank you” to a colleague each day (source: John Templeton Foundation)

This recognition crisis drives morale lowers, leads to higher turnover, reduces productivity and ultimately reduces profits and shareholders returns—as appreciation is a primary driver of employee engagement. What can be done about it?

At the top, C-level executives need to immediately understand the power of new social, recognition systems. Long gone are the old days of reward catalogs tied to tenure. Today executives should be deploying cloud-based, peer-to-peer recognition systems that provide global, visible appreciation tied back to values or strategic initiatives.

Managers need to realise that as part of their job as leaders, they need to deploy the power of a simple “thank you.” Verbal is fine, written is better, and a creative expression of gratitude is best of all. Thank you’s cost little and go a long way to motivating team members.

Even individuals—even you—have a role to play in recognition, as it’s like a mirror. The more you notice and acknowledgeothers doing something great, the more likely they’ll notice you when you do something great.

From the C-level to the front-lines, all employees need to maintain an attitude of gratitude so the power