Appreciation in the Workplace: Why Recognition Matters

December 15, 2025 / Gravity IT Resources /

The Power of Appreciation in the Workplace: Why Recognition Matters 

At Gravity, we know the foundation of great work is simple: appreciation. Recognizing people isn’t just courteous — it’s a strategic driver of morale, productivity, and engagement. A recent SIA survey reinforces just how essential recognition has become. 

 

Employee Recognition is More Than Seasonal

Ninety-nine percent of hiring managers believe recognition matters, and more than half call it absolutely essential. Yet 45% of organizations admit they lack the resources to deliver it consistently — highlighting a major disconnect between belief and practice. 

Recognition must be part of the culture year-round, shaping how teams connect, collaborate, and grow. 

 

A Strategic Advantage for Retention and Performance

The research aligns with what we see firsthand: 

  • 93% of hiring managers say recognition strengthens loyalty 
  • 85% agree it reduces turnover 
  • 89% view recognition as a competitive advantage 

Employees echo these sentiments. 74% percent of job seekers believe leadership understands the importance of recognition in reducing turnover, and 68% believe their employers are willing to invest in it. However, for many of these professionals, recognition remains tied to major milestones or limited to infrequent instances.  

At Gravity, we continuously see how recognition enables leaders to go beyond retaining talent; it helps cultivate a more motivated and cohesive team. Over 90% of Gravity’s team strongly agreed that “management shows appreciation for good work and extra effort.” Authentic appreciation must be intentional and ongoing — not occasional or reserved for milestones alone.  

 

Current Gaps in Recognition Practices

For companies prioritizing engagement and retention, embedding recognition into everyday processes is a step toward creating an exceptional workplace. In Gravity’s most recent Great Place To Work Survey Results, Over 90% of the team at Gravity strongly agreed that “everyone has an opportunity to get special recognition.” Here are ways your organization can build this type of culture — and how it comes to life at Gravity: 

 

Fostering a Culture of Continuous Recognition

For companies prioritizing engagement and retention, embedding recognition into everyday processes is a step toward creating an exceptional workplace. Here’s how organizations can take action: 

1. Create a Recognition Framework
Leverage tools, platforms, or simple guidelines to help managers and peers recognize contributions in real time. Frameworks ensure effort isn’t overshadowed by day-to-day demands.

At Gravity: Morning and afternoon standups include shout-outs, achievements, and goal updates — ensuring recognition happens every day. Promotions and achievements are honored with team lunches or happy hours chosen by the honoree. Office-wide milestones are celebrated with larger outings like boat days or ballpark trips!  

2. Celebrate People, Not Just Work
From birthdays to work anniversaries, recognize diverse achievements and moments. This personal touch anchors team members to the company beyond their job roles. 

At Gravity: These thoughtful gestures help our team feel seen, valued, and connected — which is reflected in our Great Place to Work results: 93% of our team strongly agreed that “management shows a sincere interest in me as a person, not just an employee.” 

3. Share Stories
Highlight accomplishments with authentic storytelling, whether through meetings, internal emails, or newsletters. Stories humanize workplace contributions and inspire others. 

At Gravity: With eight plus offices nationwide, our all-company Teams chat brings everyone together to share kudos, wins, and appreciation across locations. Along with quarterly company wide calls that highlight success stories, use cases, and accomplishments from that quarter.  

4. Make it Visible and Inclusive
Ensure recognition aligns with your commitment to diversity and inclusivity by acknowledging contributions from all levels, backgrounds, and roles. 

At Gravity: Our marketing team amplifies achievements by creating promotion, anniversary, and celebration posts that employees can share across their networks. 

5. Tie Recognition to Core Values
At Gravity, we value innovation, inclusivity, and growth. Tying recognition to these values ensures appreciation reinforces behaviors that advance both people and business goals. 

At Gravity:  Appreciation aligns with our values and helps us foster an employee-centric culture! 

6. Measure Your Impact
Track and analyze data on employee retention, satisfaction rates, and engagement levels. Use this insight to refine recognition efforts over time. 

At Gravity: We encourage open, ongoing feedback with leadership and peers and participate in the annual Great Place to Work survey to ensure every voice is heard and acted on. 

 

Recognition as a Pathway to Growth

When employees feel seen and valued, everything changes. Teams collaborate more effectively, communication strengthens, and organizations become more resilient. 

At Gravity, recognition sits at the heart of how we elevate careers and build an environment where people thrive. From daily shout-outs to meaningful celebrations, appreciation fuels trust, motivation, and long-term success. 

Small actions, done consistently, transform culture — and build workplaces where people want to stay, grow, and contribute their best. 

About Gravity IT Resources

Gravity is a Human Capital Management company headquartered in Fort Lauderdale with offices across the country including Atlanta, Charlotte, Columbus, Cincinnati, Nashville, DC, Salt Lake City, San Diego and Tampa. Our company has been recognized by Inc. Magazine as an “Inc. 5000” award winner and one of the fastest growing privately held companies in the United States for the last 7 consecutive years (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025). Additionally, Gravity is proud to be Great Place to Work certified for the 5th year in a row (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025) and was also recognized on the SIA’s Fastest-Growing Staffing Firms in the US list the last two years (2024, 2025).

Gravity helps prominent clients like Salesforce, Chewy, Carnival Cruise Lines, AutoNation, Mosaic and hundreds of other enterprise and SMB companies to identify, recruit and hire IT professionals for their most critical projects and jobs. Our recruitment spans across various roles, including artificial intelligence (AI) specialists, software engineers, cloud engineers, project managers, data engineers, business analysts, security engineers, CXO leaders and more.

Gravity provides a variety of delivery models and services designed to meet client needs efficiently and effectively.

To learn more about Gravity IT Resources practices, career opportunities and culture, visit gravityitresources.com

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