5 ways to celebrate Employee Appreciation Day in 2025

Employee Appreciation Day is coming up on Friday, 7th March 2025 and presents a perfect opportunity for employers to recognise and support their people for working hard and contributing to their mission. At Reward Gateway | Edenred, we're huge believers in the power of employee appreciation and that organisations need to recognise their people not just for what they do, but for who they are. 

By showing appreciation, we can boost employee wellbeing, self-esteem and job satisfaction, while our studies have also shown that when employees feel appreciated and valued, they are 43% more effective.

Visit our Employee Appreciation Hub to discover more ways to show appreciation to your workforce. 

What makes employees feel appreciated?

Our latest research report The Appreciation Index surveyed over 1,040 UK employees using an Implicit Response Test (IRT) to offer reliable and actionable insights into how organisations can drive appreciation within their workforce.

Through this research, we identified the following as the top drivers of employee appreciation in the UK:

#1 I am recognised by managers 

#2 My hard work is rewarded 

#3 I feel I belong here 

#4 My managers support me 

#5 My organisation praises me

Making your employees feel appreciated should be your year-round focus, but there's no better time than Employee Appreciation Day to kick-start a new initiative or try a fresh approach to showing your people how valued they are within your organisation. So here are five ways you can get started that tap into these drivers:

Personalise your manager-led recognition

Showing recognition for an employee's contributions is something that many organisations and managers think they are doing well, and many are. But that doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement. 

Manager shout-outs in team meetings to highlight the work of an individual can be a self-esteem booster, however sometimes it's not entirely focussed on what the employee feels are their main accomplishments. 

Try encouraging your managers and leadership to ask "what are you most proud of?" when speaking to their direct reports in 1:1s. This is a really simple but effective idea to prevent great work from being missed, especially when it's someone else's hard work and may not have been in full view of the rest of the team. 

Of course, empowering the employee's manager, and even peers, with the ability to send an eCard to recognise a job well done can be a way to really drive home the value that the individual brings to your organisations. 

Get creative with your rewards - it's not all about money

Recognition is sometimes only half the battle, and our research found that employees feel truly appreciated when they are rewarded for their contributions. But this can be difficult if you don't have a substantial reward budget or are needing to cut back. 

Fortunately, rewards don't always have to have a monetary value. Why not nominate someone for a learning and development opportunity or even offer them lunch with the CEO or another member of the leadership team? By investing in an employee's development and progression within your organisation, it shows how you value them for what they bring to your company and have made a commitment to their growth.

Celebrate company culture and values

Company culture is a critical element to your employees’ drive to stay and do their work, and to interact with each other in meaningful ways. And your employer brand plays a huge role in this. 

Branded eCards are the easiest way to tie your brand and company culture into your recognition programme. A great example of this is Charles Tyrwhitt, who after launching its RGER platform The Link, reinvigorated its brand values as “BEliefs,” (or the “3BEs”) with a set of eCards that corresponded to the beliefs of BE the Boss, BE the Customer, BE the Best. 

Charles Tyrwhitt's recognition and reward programme, named The Celebration Station, hosts a dozen or so branded eCards that reflect these values, as well as provide awards for going above and beyond such as the “Customer Star of the Month” or the “Store of the Month.” By integrating its values within its R&R programme, the organisation has been able to foster a culture that amplifies its employer brand and connects its people to the company and its mission.   

This Employee Appreciation Day, you could even go one step further and get your design team to create a suite of themed eCards to show appreciation to your people on the big day itself.

Refresh your manager training

Our research has found that 83% of UK employees state that they feel more motivated and productive at work if they have a manager who cares. But at the same time, only 57% of people managers feel enabled and supported to be a great manager.

So this Employee Appreciation Day, it's a good time to take a second look at the training and education you have in place for current and prospective managers. As well as work policies and processes, managers should also be educated on the wellbeing tools and resources available for their teams navigating challenges either inside or outside of work. Because even if you offer a wide range of benefits and initiatives to support your people and their needs, if your managers aren't aware of their role in promoting and utilising them, then usage is likely to suffer.  

At the same time, your people team's communications should empower managers to keep their teams updated on company information as a way to combat uncertainty and doubt, as well as to keep employees feeling connected to the organisation and its mission.

Throw a party or virtual town hall to celebrate Employee Appreciation Day 2025

What better way to celebrate an occasion than with a party? Whether you're hosting an in-person celebration with drinks and snacks, or blocking out some time in everyone's calendars with a virtual town hall they can dial into, getting everyone together is a great way to spend Employee Appreciation Day.

You could publish a company-wide blog post in the days leading up, to educate your people on EAD and its importance to your organisation. At the big celebration, an appearance from your CEO or leadership team can go a long way to show your appreciation. 

Moments or recognition and shout-outs to individuals and teams for their contributions over the last year are sure to be well received. While acknowledgements of major milestones and challenges faced within the organisation, as well as your people's role in them, can help you tie your appreciation into your company's journey and create a deeper sense of belonging.

The power of employee appreciation can help transform an organisation and its culture, and even lead to a 5-7% growth in business performance. But it's not easy, and identifying the levers and solutions that will help you reach that next level can be a challenge. 

This Employee Appreciation Day, why not speak to one of our experts to discover the tools and solutions that can build and support a culture of appreciation within your organisation?