Revealing the 2025 Employee Appreciation Index

Today we released our newest report, The Appreciation Index. In this report we make the invisible visible to strengthen culture and drive performance.

Our focus at Reward Gateway | Edenred is to expand understanding of why and how a focus on people provides measurable returns to individuals and to your business. In this report, we examine the impact that a feeling of appreciation has in support of the basic needs of employees and specific strategies organizations can use to create more appreciation within their workforce.

This study will enable our clients and business leaders to make more reliable decisions to make organizations better places to work, whilst also driving improved business performance.

Global findings

This report shares global findings as well as how these findings vary across the U.S., UK and Australia. Globally we found:

• Emotions of appreciation: the most common emotions were increased happiness and motivation – findings that align with existing research in organizational and positive psychology, which highlights how positive emotions create a ripple effect, boosting broader wellbeing.
• Outcomes of appreciation: Appreciation boosts productivity, performance and employee engagement, while also improving motivation and team relationships. By making appreciation a priority, organizations can strengthen their workforce and drive better business outcomes.
• Benchmark of appreciation: The global Appreciation Index, a tool that measures how valued employees feel in their workplace, is 65 out of 100. This score varies by industry, gender, age and many other demographic factors.
• Five drivers of appreciation: The key drivers of appreciation are:
  • Managerial recognition
  • Rewards for hard work
  • A sense of belonging
  • Managerial support
  • Organizational praise

U.S. findings

Now let’s dig in and take a look at the U.S. findings:

• The power of managerial recognition: The most powerful driver of how appreciated employees felt in the U.S. was the recognition they received from their managers. In the U.S., employees reported recognition scores at 62.5, above 59.6 in the UK, and below 64.9 in Australia, with seniority playing a significant role in how employees experienced recognition.
• Mind the gender gap: Men (63.0) were more likely than women (58.7) to feel their efforts were rewarded, highlighting a clear gap in how hard work was perceived across genders in the U.S.
• Seniority matters: Seniority also influenced levels of organizational praise in the U.S., with executive-level employees (64.7) consistently reporting higher levels of recognition compared to those in entry-level positions (55.8).

Key report takeaways

There is so much more data than the above in the Appreciation Index and we can’t wait for you to dive right in. In it you'll find:

• Fostering a workplace culture of appreciation presents a strategic opportunity for companies
• The findings reveal clear disparities in how appreciation is experienced across different demographics in the U.S.
• The most significant influences on how appreciated employees feel were tied to their self-esteem, sense of belonging, and opportunities for self-actualization – elements that require a focus on the person side of the employee equation, not only the conventional for organizations role side.

Download your own copy and schedule time with our team to discuss the findings.