We’ve already discussed some of the most effective ways to give feedback at work, and now, we’re making the process of giving positive feedback to employees even simpler, by providing some useful examples. 

As a leader or manager going to praise someone on our team, we usually know what we want to say, but we’re unsure how to phrase it. In one-on-one meetings or when faced with a blank screen, it can be hard to know where to start, and often, we end up rushing through the praise, not giving enough detail, or not relating the praise to specific goals, all things that make the feedback itself less effective. That’s why we created the Give Praise function in Frankli, to give teams a channel for positive feedback and help guide people at all levels of the organisation through the process.

Here, we’ve provided some employee positive feedback examples for colleagues that you can scan through for inspiration, or use as a template for drafting your own praise. These can be used for giving positive feedback to employees in performance appraisals, reviews, one-on-one meetings, casual catch-ups or even Slack shout-outs. We highly recommend you grab our free download, so you can scan through it anytime you need help crafting your feedback.

Looking for a specific type of feedback that we haven’t included? You can get in touch to let us know via LinkedIn.

Why is Positive Employee Feedback Important?

Positive employee feedback is important for lots of reasons, but there's one in particular that's hard to resist - positive feedback shows employees how to make real-time improvements to their performance. Let's take a closer look at some of the key benefits.

Giving good feedback to employees helps to set clear expectations and shows them what your idea of success looks like. It communicates the behaviours and actions that you want to see from your people, and reinforces the connection between employee and company goals, vision, mission and core values.

Praise and recognition can increase employee satisfaction and engagement, which in turn, can lead to improved performance and productivity.

Positive feedback can also help to build stronger relationships between employees and their managers or team members. It can foster a culture of appreciation and recognition, which can lead to a more positive and supportive work environment.

What are the Best Practices for Delivering Positive Employee Feedback?

There's more to giving positive feedback than simply saying, "Good job!" Let's look at some key factors that drive effective employee feedback:

• Praise should be context-driven. It's best to show exactly how an employee's extra efforts impacted their teammates and the business as a whole. This helps give meaning to the feedback, promoting learning and growth, increasing accountability, and supporting goal-setting.
• It should be delivered in the flow of work, when it matters most. Praising employees in real-time provides an opportunity for managers to identify areas where the employee can grow and improve. By letting them know they've done a great job in the moment, managers can help team members make the necessary changes to improve their performance.
• It should be shared publicly. Public praise can help to reinforce positive behaviour and create a company culture of recognition within the organisation. When employees see their colleagues' good work receiving praise, it can inspire them to strive to do truly great work.
• Where possible, praise should be linked to company core values. Linking praise to core values helps to reinforce those values and create a company culture that aligns with the company's mission and goals. For example, if one of the company's core values is "problem-solving", praising an employee for coming up with a creative solution to a challenge can reinforce that value and encourage others to be a team player.
• Positive feedback should be balanced with constructive criticism. While there's no perfect ratio of positive to negative feedback, one study suggests that people flourish when they receive three positive comments for every negative one, giving us an ideal feedback ratio of 3:1.

What are Some Examples of Positive Employee Feedback?

Here, we’ll share positive feedback examples across multiple themes. Most of these good feedback examples can be given in isolation, but if you’re preparing a more detailed piece of feedback, you can begin with one of our suggested opening lines, pluck a few relevant lines of praise from the list, and finish with one of our suggested closing lines.

Feedback Opening Lines

1. “I want to take a minute to thank you sincerely for your work on (Project X).”

2. “(Name), I want to talk about how phenomenal your work has been recently.”

3. “I’d love to chat about your contribution to the team over the past few months, which has been invaluable.”

4. “I want to congratulate you on hitting your goals for this quarter.”

5. “(Name), I wanted to say a huge thank you for all of your hard work over the past few months.”

Growth Feedback

6. “You’ve made terrific progress in the last couple of months.”

7. “You’ve really exceeded my expectations.”

8. “I really value your (dedication/perseverance/can-do attitude/passion/creativity).”

9. “Your efforts have helped us reach our goals faster this quarter.”

10. “Your addition to the team has resulted in a dramatic boost in (morale/productivity/engagement).

11. “I really admire your commitment to learning.”

12. “Your willingness to learn has really paid off this year.”

13. “I never doubted that you would excel in this role, but you’ve exceeded my expectations.”

Project-Specific Feedback

14. “Your work on (Project X) has been exemplary.”

15. “I really appreciate all the hard work you’ve done on (Project X).”

16. “I know I speak for the whole team when I say that your work on (X) has been brilliant.”

17. “You did an excellent job on your presentation today. It really highlighted some changes we need to make within the team.”

18. “I appreciate how thorough your report was. It really helped us understand how to move forward with (Project X).” 

19. “I appreciate your bravery in taking risks with (Project X).”

20. “You showed great initiative on (Project X).”

Quality and Competency-Specific Feedback

21. “(Consistency/Innovation/Creativity/Leadership) is one of your biggest strengths.”

22. “I can always count on you to get the job done well and on time.”

23. “I really appreciate your (flexible, enthusiastic, energetic) approach.”

24. “I hugely appreciate all of the (energy/enthusiasm/focus/creativity/flexibility) you bring to your work.”

25. “I really admire how focussed and results-oriented you are.”

26. “You're an excellent communicator and listener, and we could all learn a lot from your approach.”

27. “One thing I really appreciate about you is your (vision/perseverance/independence/flexibility).”

28. “I think you have a superpower around (coaching/leadership/development).”

29. “I can always rely on you to bring new ideas to a meeting.”

30. “Your work shows (creativity/innovation/simplicity), which aligns so well with our company values.”

31. “Your kindness and patience are so, so appreciated at (Company X).”

32. “Your (commitment/dedication/authenticity/integrity) is clear for the whole team to see.”

Culture Feedback

33. “You’re doing an amazing job at living and breathing our mission and values.”

34. “Your hard work and positive attitude has made (Company X) a better place to work, for everyone.”

35. “Thank you for helping to create a culture of (collaboration/innovation/trust/transparency) at (Company X).”

36. “I really appreciate the positive attitude you bring to (Company) every day.”

37. “Your work has been invaluable in moving us towards a more (transparent/collaborative/flexible) culture.”

Teamwork Feedback

38. “(Team) is all the richer for having you on it.”

39. “You really showed off your teamwork skills during (Project X).”

40. “Your work was instrumental in helping us achieve our team goals this month.”

41. “Your energy and enthusiasm is infectious -  it makes us all want to work harder and do better.”

42. “We really appreciate you taking on extra work while (teammate X) has been away.”

43. “You set a great example for the rest of the team.”

44. “Your work has been of great benefit to the team.”

45. “I appreciate the selfless work you did in helping (teammate X) reach their goals.”

46. “It’s a pleasure having you on our team.”

General Contribution Feedback

47. “(Company) is all the richer for having you on our team.”

48. “Hiring/promoting you was one of the best decisions we’ve made.”

49. “It’s no exaggeration to say that you’re a huge asset to our team.”

50. “Having you on our team has been a game-changer for (Company X).”

51. “We’re grateful to have such a talented individual on our team.”

52. “Your work was instrumental in helping us achieve our (company/department/team) goals this quarter.”

Feedback Acknowledging Challenges

53. “I'm truly impressed with how you tackle challenges, head-on.”

54. “I know you were thrown in at the deep end with (Project X), but I couldn’t be more pleased with the results.”

55. “I was thrilled to watch you overcome multiple challenges this month.”

56. “It’s been a challenging quarter, but you’ve taken each change in your stride.”

57. “We really appreciated the speed at which you tackled (recent issue).”

58. “We really appreciate you taking on extra work while (teammate X) has been away.”

59. “You never lose focus, even when the challenges are mounting up.”

60. “Your composure and focus in difficult times has had a wonderful influence on the entire team.”

61. “Thank you for your hard work. I know it wasn’t easy with all the speedbumps you encountered along the way.”

62. “You handled (challenge X) really well this quarter.”

Leadership and Management Skills Feedback

63. “Your passion and dedication is evident in your team's outcomes.”

64. “Your efforts in keeping everyone on the same page are hugely appreciated.”

65. “I really appreciate your hard work in promoting (company value X) among your teams.”

66. “You’re an inspiring and empathetic leader for your team.”

67. “Your communication skills ensure that everyone on the team is heard.”

68. “I appreciate the positive influence you have on your team.”

Customer Service Feedback

69. “It’s easy to see why customers love working with you.”

70. “I really appreciated how thorough your report was, and I know the client did too.” 

71. “Our customers can’t say enough good things about you, and that really speaks to your customer service skills.”

72. “Thank you for going above and beyond the call of duty for (Customer X).”

73. “If it wasn’t for your quick response, we may have lost that customer.”

Feedback Closing Lines

74. “I can’t wait to watch you grow and develop these skills even further.”

75. “I can’t wait to see where your creativity and passion takes you next.”

76. “I’m so looking forward to working with you for many years to come.”

77. “I’m so looking forward to seeing your work translate to even greater results in 2023.”

78. “Keep doing what you’re doing.”

79. “(Company) is all the richer for having you on our team.”

80. “I would love to see you do even more (X) in the coming months.”

81. “I think you have a long and fruitful career ahead of you at (Company X).”

82. “Let me know if there’s anything I can do to better support your growth at (Company X).”

83. “Keep learning and exploring.”

‍Frankli provides companies with intuitive channels for giving, receiving and requesting feedback at all levels of the organisation. Learn more about Frankli.