PUT GRATITUDE TO WORK: HOW TO KEEP UTAH'S TECH TALENT HAPPY IN 2018.

• Author: Beck, Crystalee
• Position: SILICON SLOPES

Business leaders have a lot to be grateful for in Silicon Slopes. With Entrepreneur recently ranking Salt Lake City as the nation's hottest tech startup city, and Forbes' echoing declaration of the Beehive State's capital as "next tech mecca," tech talent is buzzing here.

Once they've attracted talent, however, how do Silicon Slopes leaders retain their people? Consider two simple (and free) words: "thank you."

In my published study on managerial gratitude, I learned unexpected truths about how employees prefer to be thanked in the workplace. This insight matters because getting gratitude right--or wrong--directly impacts an organization's bottom line.

Gratitude in the workplace is the most accurate predictor of job satisfaction. When employees receive gratitude, their motivation and sense of value within the organization increase, in turn increasing employees' willingness cooperate with other employees. Feeling appreciated even cuts down worker sick days.

To help your employees feel more appreciated in 2018, here are my research outcomes, including how employees prefer to be thanked, seven appreciation "dark sides" managers need to avoid, and tips from thre

WHAT EMPLOYEES WISH THEIR LEADERS KNEW ABOUT GRATITUDE

In my survey of nearly 900 full-time workers and three focus groups with Utah-based employees, respondents rated the importance of receiving gratitude for job performance as 4.45 on a 1 to 5 scale, with 5 being the highest. Being thanked matters to employees--a lot!

I also had employees rank six gratitude mediums according to their preference, which yielded surprising results. These included verbal (one-on-one), verbal (in a group setting), handwritten note, tangible items like gift cards or swag, electronic note such as social media or email or monetary bonuses.

You know what beat out money?

Employees ranked verbal one-on-one gratitude from their manager as their most preferred form of appreciation. So yes, that sincere "thank you" means a lot to employees.

As far as frequency, when survey respondents were asked, "Do you wish your current manager expressed gratitude more often?" half of survey respondents (50.6 percent) answered they were currently satisfied. This indicates for every two managers out there, one is perceived to be great in thanking their employees. (And who better to determine the success of a gift than the receiver?) There is room for improvement: 43.4 percent of subordinates would like gratitude more often. (Six...