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At the end of this week (Friday, March 6^th), the workforce will celebrate one of our favorite official “unofficial” holidays, Employee Appreciation Day!

Our Engage2Excel team understands, through decades of research, that exceptional employees can be challenging to find – and keep – and that’s why we firmly stand by the power of showing appreciation through recognition moments. While we believe in these career experiences all year round, we do get excited when there’s a unique opportunity to provide workers with an indication of the value they bring to your organization.

Employee turnover is an even bigger topic in 2020, due to record low unemployment, than it was in 2018 when we produced the first edition of this report. Retaining employees has become one of the highest priorities for CEOs and HR leaders today. In many sectors, employee retention is now a critical factor in determining and maintaining a competitive advantage.

Our latest Trendicators Survey Report, Why Do Employees Leave?, reveals that 46% of American workers are “seriously thinking about leaving their organizations within the next 12 months.”

Exit interviews are standard fare at many organizations. Whether you find them helpful or you dread them, you understand that the purpose is to glean useful feedback from departing employees about ways your company can improve. The exit interview is an important tool for gathering insights that people might otherwise be hesitant to share. After all, a departing employee has no reason not to be completely honest with you.

But what if you could glean those same vital insights before an employee is ready to walk out the door? That’s the power of stay conversations.

Recognition has always been an important strategy for employee engagement, but recently we have seen a shift in culture that emphasizes the positive impacts of recognition for business outcomes. According to our2018 Trendicators Report, 89% of employees believe that strong recognition programs improve engagement. However, there are still gaps between what employees would like to see in their companies’ recognition programs and what companies actually offer. For example, 70% of employees would like to have a choice of rewards, but only 38% of companies offer this option.