Peer recognition programs involve coworkers publicly offering positive feedback to one another. This type of program can increase employee engagement since any team member can show recognition for a coworker who is doing a good job.

Participation in a peer recognition program can increase employee retention, employee engagement, workplace transparency, productivity, collaboration, and workplace relationships. Peer recognition programs can be formal or informal and offer a way to create a culture of appreciation.

Advantages of having a peer recognition programme

Having a peer recognition programme within the organization comes with many advantages. Peer recognition:

1. Increases positive emotions

Based on research, gratitude is mostly associated with happiness, it is believed that it may be the key element to living a happy life. Grateful employees tend to have a higher level of productivity and high performance within the workplace. 

It will therefore make sense that one of the easiest and simplest ways for employees to feel happy at work is for them to give thanks to each other. Research in fact suggests that most employees experience greater job satisfaction by belonging to an organization that endorses gratitude. 

With a peer recognition program implemented, employees become more engaged; they begin to see how their various roles affect the work of others, which is both on their team and the whole organization. This means that in the long run, peer recognition can help reduce staff turnover; based on a survey conducted, 75% of employees say that giving recognition makes them want to stay in their current organization for a longer period of time.

2. It strengthens and grows relationships 

Peer recognition encourages employees to make personal and deep connections with their team members; this is because gratitude uses a process which helps to strengthen and create the most important relationships. When team members are regularly recognised, they bind the relationship more together.