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1 How Important Is It to Give Compliments at Work?
Positive feedback and recognition of hard work can have a significant impact on employee motivation and engagement within the workplace. It has also been linked to reducing stress, improving mood and enhancing self-esteem. The public aspect of a spoken compliment for a coworker boosts team morale and can help reinforce actions you want to see replicated across the board.
There may be a lot of pros, but many people get stuck on how to praise someone professionally, especially when it comes to worrying about adopting the correct tone and enunciating the right words. To make things easier, here are some examples of compliments for employees you can use in your workplace.
2. How Do You Compliment Someone’s Work Professionally?
- Be Very Specific
One word compliments for coworkers seldom feel genuine or thoughtful because they don’t allow you to be specific about someone’s contributions or positive attributes. The more particular you are, the more personal your compliment for a coworker will appear.
- Be Professional
A key consideration of how to praise a team member in public should always be to keep the tone fairly formal. Remember that a compliment for a coworker should focus on their skills, experience and office performance, rather than personal appearance or personality.
- Make Sure It's Relevant
The type of compliment you give will obviously vary depending on the context. This could be a manager giving a verbal pat on the back to a member of staff, peer-to-peer tributes or an employee praising their boss. Bearing this distinction in mind will ensure your compliments are always relevant, as demonstrated in the sample shout out messages for colleagues below.
3 Compliment for Coworker Examples
3.1 Compliment for Coworker on a Task Done Well
“Well done on pitching that client. I could see how much effort you put into creating your presentation and it definitely paid off.”
“I’ve noticed how hard you’ve been working on the current project. It was really impressive to see the dedication you had towards making it a success.”
“We’ve been able to hit our quota this month thanks in great part to your hard work. Your commitment is an inspiration to the rest of the team.”
3.2 Compliment for Coworker on Skills and Experience
“The skills and strengths that you bring to the table exponentially improve the overall performance of the team.”
“You have demonstrated a consummate understanding of how to utilize the CRM. In fact, I was hoping you wouldn’t mind sharing your knowledge and expertise with your colleagues.”
“The many years of experience you bring to your role are readily evident in your professionalism and ability.”
3.3 Compliment for Coworker who's a New Joinee
“Thank you for a brilliant first week. Everyone has been very impressed by the earnestness and attention to detail you’ve brought to your role so far.”
“I know it’s been a whirlwind of information to absorb, but you’ve done admirably so far. Keep up the great work.”
“Having you on the team has already made a huge difference to the team dynamics. It’s a pleasure to have you on board.”
3.4 Compliments for Coworker Who Shows Enthusiasm for Work
“It’s brilliant to see the enthusiasm you bring to your job every day. We could all learn from your self-motivation skills.”
“You always manage to see the lighter side of a difficult situation, which has been very beneficial to driving up team morale.”
“The eagerness you bring to every task and objective makes it an absolute joy to work with you, so thank you.”
3.5 Compliments for Coworker on Interpersonal and Soft Skills
“Organizational skills are absolutely crucial to your role, and you’ve shown time and time again that it’s a capability you have in spades.”
“I can always depend on you to manage your time with minimal oversight. It makes my job so much easier.”
“You have a fantastic faculty to broker agreements between different stakeholders on a project. I think we’d benefit from having you head up the next round of negotiations.”
3.6 Compliments for Coworker Who's had a Bad Day at Work
“We had a tough loss today, but your constructive analysis of the situation was a refreshing perspective that gives me hope we will do better next time.”
“I’d like to take a moment to thank you for your professional conduct in the face of the rather difficult circumstances regarding the client earlier. You handled the situation with grace and astuteness.”
“I appreciated your support in managing the extreme workload today. I couldn’t have handled the challenges without you.”
3.7 Compliments for Coworker to Encourage Teamwork
“I want to thank you for being such a great team player. It makes such a difference to the general ambiance of the office.”
“Many of your peers have taken the time to speak to me about your great energy and how supportive you’ve been.”
“It’s great to see you bouncing ideas around with the team, which has led to some innovative, fresh ways of working.”
3.8 Sincere Compliments for Coworker
“The market research you did enabled us to get off on the right foot with our latest project, so thank you for your thorough preparation.”
“You’ve been such a great help introducing the new member of staff to our work procedures and office culture.”
“It’s been wonderful to see you picking up the slack recently when some of your peers have been struggling. I recognize the situation has been challenging and I’d appreciate your input on how we can make it more sustainable.”
3.9 Thoughtful Compliments for Coworker to Brighten Their Day
“Your sense of humor really lightens up the office mood. It’s a pleasure to work alongside you.”
“Just wanted to quickly let you know that everything you’ve been doing recently has been top notch.”
“Your hard work deserves to be recognized more. Let’s sit down and talk about what you’d like to achieve in the next year and how we can facilitate those goals.”
3.10 Compliments for Your Boss
“I really appreciate the supportive attitude you always demonstrate. It’s made me a much more confident person in the workplace.”
“The constructive feedback you’ve given me over the past few months has really helped me to grow and develop in my role.”
“Thank you for giving me the opportunity to show what I can do. I really appreciate your willingness to delegate and give others the chance to shine in a leadership role.”
4 FAQS
- What Are Staff Compliments?
Staff compliments are any positive phrase or sentence that praises a particular behavior, skill or achievement. They are a great way to boost morale and publicly recognize employee contributions and successes.
- How Do You Compliment the Whole Team?
There may be occasions when you want to acknowledge a whole team’s effort. You can do this by following the same criteria as for an individual compliment for a coworker: keep it specific, professional and relevant.
- How Do You Compliment Someone at Work?
Whether you’re wondering how to compliment a coworker to their boss or someone who works directly under you, politeness, genuineness and positivity should always be at the heart of what you say.
