White Papers

Explore the power of appreciation to drive employee engagement and retention, and demonstrable business results.

The modern workplace is disconnected. Although technology gives us a sense of connectivity, we’re feeling more disconnected than ever before. And we’re seeing lower engagement, morale, and wellbeing in the workplace worldwide.

As you embark on your search for an employee recognition partner, it's helpful to understand the recognition industry at a high level. Is there one primary type of recognition company or are there many? How do you compare apples to apples? Why does everyone sound the same?

Employee wellbeing is a vital part of any business strategy. But which aspects of employee wellbeing contribute to a great workplace culture? This paper will highlight new findings from a recent study, conducted by the O.C. Tanner Institute, including the current state of employee wellbeing, the impact of wellbeing on company culture, and the powerful symbiotic relationship between wellbeing and employee recognition.

Employee wellbeing is about more than just gym memberships, team challenges, events, and wellness programs. Excellent employee wellbeing leads to increases in engagement, productivity, and innovation, while weak wellbeing costs companies in decreased work output and cognitive ability.

If improving your organization’s culture is a priority for you, you’ll want to start by seeing what your culture is like now. How do your people feel about their current employee experience? Are you creating a place that they want to engage with? Are you inspiring them to do and be their best?

After a wild 2017, be prepared for even more changes in 2018. What should you expect to see when it comes to new things companies are doing to improve their workplace cultures?

Attracting top talent is the #1 challenge for HR leaders. How do you become magnet for the best and brightest talent?

Companies everywhere are trying to improve their company culture – but what do you focus on first? Improve your workspaces? Offer perks like free food and flex time? Invest in leadership development? Research shows that there are 6 crucial elements to a strong company culture, including a sense of opportunity, purpose, and appreciation.

Companies everywhere are investing significant resources to improve workplace culture with mixed results. From revamping employee workspaces to fun perks to new wellness initiatives, everyone wants to create an amazing culture.

Companies often implement a new employee recognition program but struggle with usage and ROI. Research shows there are 5 common mistakes that companies make when starting new recognition initiatives – whether it’s trying to do it themselves or not involving the right people – that can get in the way of success and impact.

Most Human Resources professionals know that recognition and appreciation are an essential part of creating a great culture. But how are companies recognizing their employees and what program elements are generating the most value to organizations?

A new study spearheaded by O.C. Tanner examined best practices for recognizing employees around the globe. From this study O.C. Tanner created an essential guide for leaders to help them influence greatness around their organization and across cultural borders.

Technology is necessary but should be used to improve, not replace your culture. When it comes to recognition there is very little that can compare to face-to-face interactions. To ensure your technology is improving not replacing your recognition culture make sure it’s being utilized in these 7 areas

A new study by the O.C. Tanner Institute has shed light on a problem a lot of HR leaders struggle with: the employees in their company aren’t giving recognition regularly. In fact, a global survey showed that 29% of employees surveyed hadn’t given recognition in the last month.

Aon and O.C. Tanner joined forces to find the three key ingredients that are needed to have a successful recognition program that in turn gives you a motivated and driven workforce that are eager to produce great work.

Employee wellbeing is low inside the workplace – employees feel stressed, little work/life balance, not enough positive interactions, and don’t always find purpose in their work. So what can companies do to truly impact and improve wellbeing? Do things like free meals, unlimited vacation time, more parental leave really help employee wellbeing?

The O.C. Tanner Institute’s latest study examines not only the powerful benefits of employee recognition, but more specifically, how giving recognition effects the giver. Turns out, giving recognition is directly linked to some pretty profound results.

As you constantly shape and improve the culture of your organization, make sure you are on the right path. Discover the latest studies in employee engagement, culture, and talent management to see what’s new (and what’s still trending) in 2017.

Pulling from O.C. Tanner Institute’s latest study—Influencing Greatness: Giving, Receiving, and Observing Recognition—this orange paper dives into the data behind social recognition (not social media recognition) and examine the truth behind the old axiom: it’s better to give than receive.

The latest global study from the O.C. Tanner Institute examines recognition from a new perspective: the givers. Turns out there are all kinds of organizational benefits that are magnified when employees give recognition.

The premise of the latest orange paper stems from a single, crazy idea: the most influential leaders are those who gain followers without using positional authority.

Good work keeps a business going. Great work takes companies to the next level. This white paper examines not only what great work is, but how to promote great work throughout your business. After all, great work doesn’t just help your company thrive, it helps give each employee a sense of purpose, achievement, and appreciation for their own work.

O.C. Tanner’s recent Great Work Study shows an interesting phenomenon regarding the relationship between employee engagement and the amount of great work completed. The study showed that being involved in a great work project has a greater impact on engagement than being highly engaged has on doing great work.

Looking for a recognition program that doesn’t just drive costs higher, but actually helps deliver cost-effective solutions? O.C. Tanner teamed up with Aon Hewitt to study effective recognition trends and the best forms of implementation. Focusing on the impacts recognition programs have had in different industries, various forms of recognition, and why the results varied.

One of the biggest challenges associated with a corporate wellness program is understanding what employee wellness is. For many, the term ‘employee wellness program’ equates to weight loss challenges, smoking cessation classes, and on-site gyms. But do these initiatives alone truly impact employee wellbeing?

What creates cultural success? As we looked at research and insights from last year we saw several trends that will impact your initiatives for 2016.

Have your service awards become a little old school? If you can’t remember the last time your service awards got a dose of cool factor, it may be time to rethink, retool, and perhaps even replace them.

O.C. Tanner Presents: The Business Case for Recognition. The latest research, compelling insights, and the benefits of effective recognition

In the newest white paper by market research firm, the Cicero Group, you will gain a better understanding of what organizations can do to cause employees to produce great work.

Analyzing data from more than 8.5 million recognition moments, along with third-party research, our latest Orange Paper provides relevant insights for 2015.

More workers are extending their careers and, as a result, we are seeing an unprecedented phenomenon: multiple generations coming together in the workplace. No matter what generation your workforce is made up of, it’s clear performance recognition and career celebration is critical.

Research proves that great work thrives when companies invest in building trust with their employees, deepening those relationships, and finding ways to help workers feel they’re personally making a difference in the organization. These three things can be achieved through recognition training. Get the true impact of recognition training, along with the latest research and best practices in the O.C. Tanner Institute’s latest Orange Paper.

A business case for leveraging appreciation to drive business results.

Global research by the Cicero Group demonstrates how performance recognition impacts not just employee work relationships and attitudes, but also innovation and productivity.

The Great Work Study is the primary source of the five skills discussed in Great Work, the book. It was designed to help define “great work” and test the hypothesis that there are specific skills that anyone can practice to increase the odds of producing great work that others love.

How celebrating service anniversaries is an effective strategy to drive employee retention and engagement—along with six best practice tips on ways to do it right.

This global primary research study correlates years of service award programs with increased tenure and other key employee engagement metrics.

Sao Paulo, Paris, Sydney, Mumbai—it doesn’t matter what city or country, employees want to be recognized for their great work. Learn the 10 Critical Factors for Success.

Determining the optimal elements of a recognition program can help companies more effectively increase employee engagement and company loyalty without relying on increasing salary and bonuses.

How a Clear Focus on Employee Engagement Delivers Powerful Results.

An internal case study of recognition at O.C. Tanner Limited.

We analyzed data from more than seven million recognition moments, along with third-party research, to pull relevant, actionable insights for creating or optimizing your recognition program.

Based on a 10-year, 200,000 person study of managers and employees, this white paper unveils new tips, including groundbreaking statistics, strategies, and benchmarks for increasing employee engagement, retention, and results.

Why today's best companies are using recognition to foster new hire engagement and lower turnover.