45+ Employee Appreciation Ideas to Complement Daily Recognition

What’s the drawback of a highly successful peer recognition program? When teams adopt tools like HeyTaco, it can be easy (and even feel safer) to let them continue propelling the program forward.

After all, what can be better than employees who voluntarily share gratitude and champion helping behaviors like it’s second nature? We’ll tell you what–reinforcing the results of their efforts by staying active, attentive, and involved. 

Today, we’re taking organizations off autopilot. Employee appreciation activities are highly scalable celebrations, events, and micro-gestures to help keep people leaders and managers engaged and supportive. More importantly, they can boost participation among employees who haven’t taken as well to peer tools. They remind everyone that the entire organization values recognition and appreciation as a culture.

What’s the difference between appreciation activities and recognition?

Employee recognition celebrates achievements, while appreciation activities are ways to express gratitude. 

When we say “achievements,” we also mean the smallest wins of the day, like correcting a typo before it gets out. Similarly, appreciation activities can be small, informal gestures. 

Appreciation activities are also as important to culture-building as recognition. They’re another channel through which we assert company values, forge bonds. Meanwhile, leadership participation across both daily recognition and active appreciation is a more convincing argument that the organization values and appreciates its people.

That’s the bottom line for all things recognition and appreciation. Employees need to believe it for it to take hold in the culture.

In the case of HeyTaco, adding appreciation activities can boost the frequency of peer recognition and add more variety. It showcases different ways to not only use the tool but to express gratitude. You’ll understand this in clearer detail once we share ideas and examples.

Are team-building exercises employee appreciation activities?

They can be, yes. As we continue, you’ll see a lot of overlap between team-building and appreciation activities. 

However, bear in mind that appreciation activities are purely to reinforce the power of recognition. We choose specific team-building exercises for many purposes. For instance, fine-tuning problem-solving skills or getting to know one another better.

Are employee appreciation activities used as rewards?

Yes, in some cases. It depends on how you’re using rewards in your program. Ideas like team outings and other periodic “premium”-tier celebrations can be scaled up to reward employees. 

The main exception is using them to reward certain employees only. They’re best used as a reward when it’s time to show everyone some love, such as Employee Appreciation Day. 

How to make employee appreciation activities meaningful

Before we dive into so many examples and ideas, the following reminders may help narrow down your list of options. 

1. Add value with values.

Include core values here as proof they matter and will be acknowledged. Example: “We’re knocking off an hour early since everyone did an exceptionally great job collaborating on that last milestone.”

2. Give employees a choice. 

And invite their feedback. Some employees feel caught off guard by heaps of public praise. A team might not feel like going on an outing after work hours. Don’t pressure them.

3. Make it inclusive and accessible.

If they must actively participate, make it as easy as possible. Never reserve appreciation for the big wins only. 

4. Always measure the impact.

It can be as simple as a tension-free afternoon following a team lunch, or seeing engagement inch up in analytics. 

5. Maintain momentum. 

If we want consistent peer participation, managers and other leaders must remain consistent. Don’t let promising results die on the vine.

Daily/micro appreciation activities  

How small can appreciation get? If you want to give it daily (and you should), it’ll take five minutes, max.

• 5-minute team-building games, brain teasers, and questions
• Morning huddles to exchange appreciation
• Team cheers, chants, and mantras

Weekly appreciation activities that make great team rituals

Polls show that engaged employees remember feeling recognized in the last seven days. Here are the rituals they will remember. 

• Taco Tuesdays with HeyTaco
• Friday “fun” meetings with appreciation celebrations
• Weekly review with reasons to feel grateful
• Team lunches, whether ordering in or just eating together
• Coffee chat and check-in

All-hands appreciation for public recognition

Yes, the classic shout-out in an appreciation activity. Roll out a few of these during all-hands meetings to color the whole experience with more positivity.

• Birthday and anniversary shout-outs
• Peer shout-outs (invite employees to spotlight a coworker)
• Appreciation challenges (identify something to be grateful for today)
• Special messages of gratitude from higher-ups

Premium appreciation activities for quarterly celebrations

Got budget? Bring out the big guns every few months and give thanks with a special outing where the message is nothing more than employee appreciation.

• Recognition ceremony and awards with peer nominations
• Wellness activities like spa visits or yoga classes
• Brewery or winery tours
• Nature walks or hiking trips
• Monogrammed company swag 
• Bowling alley, theater, or skating rink party

Budget-friendly activities for non-monetary programs

If you don’t use much money for anything pertaining to recognition and rewards, you already know how to make it meaningful. Show more appreciation with these ideas, too.

• Arts and crafts sessions
• “Catch up” afternoons for tying up loose ends
• Appreciation walls
• Digital detox weekends (no work emails or other assignments)
• Flexibility opportunities, like an extra day of WFH
• Training and development opportunities

Team outing appreciation ideas for rewarding teamwork

A cohesive team is solid gold. Stash these employee appreciation outing ideas in your back pocket for when a group pulls off something really praiseworthy.

• Picnic in the park
• Karaoke bar trip
• Going out to a café or restaurant
• Mini golf
• Going out for ice cream after lunch
• Local museum visit

Remote/hybrid team activities for stronger connections

Most daily forms of appreciation, including those using HeyTaco, are easy to implement on remote and hybrid teams. Try some of these to make people feel valued, no matter where they’re located.

• Virtual coffee breaks
• Online award ceremonies
• Digital appreciation board
• Livestreamed gaming tournaments
• Virtual happy hours and milestone celebrations
• Thank you card challenge (people send cards to one another by mail)
• Appreciation week with a few of the above suggestions

Seasonal appreciation activities for the holiday spirit

Add a theme to gestures of appreciation by aligning the event with the season. Beating the heat or making it merry, every event will become associated with rituals of gratitude.

• Summer pool party and/or BBQ
• Christmas cookie decorating party
• Streaming a seasonal movie (in-office or remote)
• Gift wrapping challenge
• Flower arranging or gardening classes
• Recipe swaps or company cookbook
• Autumnal icebreaker questions

Charitable appreciation activities that align with core values

The greatest thing about genuine gratitude is how easily it grows. Give employees the chance to pay it forward and feel more pride by allowing them time and space to show others why they’re so praiseworthy.

• Company food drive
• Toy drives for holidays
• Volunteer day out in the field
• Let them choose an organization through Tacos for Charity

Recognition is the foundation. Appreciation activities build on it.

By now, you know that recognition is considered a must-have, not a nice-to-have. Mastering daily recognition comes first. It leads to rewards and other forms of appreciation that feel like natural results of the culture employees helped build.

Peer recognition is always the best place to start. Praise is often more believable and timely when coming from the person working alongside us. Equip your team with HeyTaco and give it a few weeks. Then, enhance participation and maintain engagement with more forms of appreciation.