The Link Between Manager Recognition and Engagement

Why Manager Recognition Drives Employee Engagement and Retention: The Link Between Manager Recognition and Engagement
With the average tenure of knowledge workers at a single company often under three years, engaging and retaining top talent is more critical than ever. In new manager training, we emphasize that recognition from managers goes far beyond a simple “thank you” — it:

• Validates employees’ contributions
• Signals that employee efforts are valued
• Reinforces a sense of purpose at work

Corporate culture assessment research shows that consistent, meaningful recognition directly boosts employee engagement, encourages discretionary effort, and significantly increases the likelihood that high performers will stay longer with the organization. In short, when managers recognize their teams effectively, they’re not just acknowledging work — they’re actively investing in retention and long-term performance.

The Research: The Link Between Manager Recognition and Engagement

Recognition isn’t just meaningful to the individual — it drives organizational success as well. Our recent engagement survey, which included over half a million employees across more than 8,000 organizations, found that recognition ranks among the top five drivers of employee engagement. Yet fewer than half of those surveyed felt truly satisfied or motivated by the recognition they received from their managers.

Employees crave acknowledgment from their managers when they perform well. So why do so many leaders fail to make the link between manager recognition and engagement? Too often, managers underestimate how much their words and actions influence morale, discretionary effort, and retention. High performing teams know that recognizing contributions consistently drives both individual and organizational performance.

Managers, Why the Silence?
It wasn’t until we looked closely that the reasons behind managers’ hesitation to consistently recognize employees became clear. Essentially, three key factors explain why praise often goes unsaid.

1. Managers Underestimate the Power of Employee Recognition
   Many managers simply don’t realize the impact their recognition has on employees. Buried in their own workloads and focused on hitting targets, they can overlook the strong link between acknowledgment and engagement—and underestimate how much a simple “well done” can motivate.

   Moreover, while managers are often trained extensively in delivering corrective feedback, they rarely receive guidance on leveraging positive employee feedback as a critical tool for performance management. High-performing managers, by contrast, make it clear to their teams that exceptional effort is noticed and valued — building team engagement, loyalty, and a high performing culture in the process.

2. Managers Don’t Always See Recognition as a Priority
   Many managers fail to prioritize recognition because they themselves rarely receive consistent or meaningful acknowledgment. Without that example, it’s easy to assume that executives don’t view recognition as impactful. Yet we know from leadership simulation assessment data that forward-thinking leaders understand that a manager’s effectiveness is measured in part by their team’s engagement — and that consistent, genuine recognition is a foundational driver of that engagement.
3. Managers Lacked Simple Ways to Show Appreciation
   Many managers admit they struggle with knowing how to recognize their top performers effectively. While acknowledgment may seem straightforward, delivering meaningful, proportionate, and authentic recognition is truly an art.

   Organizations can make this easier by putting systems and processes in place that identify employees who deserve special recognition. Providing practical ideas for how to reward contributions — not only in ways that feel meaningful but also aligned with your corporate culture — ensures that recognition becomes consistent, impactful, and genuinely motivating.

The Bottom Line
Every organization aims to boost performance, but those that rely on their people for success know that engagement and retention are just as critical. One of the most effective ways to achieve both is through meaningful, timely, and appropriate recognition.

Ensure your managers fully grasp the impact recognition has — not just on individual employees, but on the organization as a whole. Equip them with the tools, guidance, and processes to consistently deliver that recognition, turning acknowledgment into a strategic driver of engagement, loyalty, and long-term performance.

If you want to learn about research-backed ways to improve employee engagement, download The Top 10 Most Powerful Ways To Boost Engagement

by Tristam Brown: CEO

Tristam Brown is an executive business consultant and organizational development expert with more than three decades of experience helping organizations accelerate performance, build high-impact teams, and turn strategy into execution. As CEO of LSA Global, he works with leaders to get and stay aligned™ through research-backed strategy, culture, and talent solutions that produce measurable, business-critical results. See full bio.