Motivating an employee force is critical to the success of any business. Unhappy employees can slow down productivity—while happy, enthusiastic ones can re-vitalize the culture of a business and provide exceptional results. Here are a few tips on how to go about energizing your employees.

Do your homework. Take the time to conduct research and get to know your employees: what makes them tick, their aggravation points, and what they’re looking to take away from their careers. Run surveys. Ask questions. Arming yourself with this fundamental knowledge will make future engagement efforts that much more effective.

Reward and recognize. Every workplace has their heroes and heroines. Identifying these individuals who perform exceptionally well—and rewarding them accordingly—not only inspires them to keep on going the extra mile, but also shows the rest of your workforce that extraordinary efforts yield real benefits. Contests and promotions help grease the wheels, too.

Encourage the culture. Every workplace has its own character. If you’ve taken our first tip, then you’re starting out with an overall knowledge base on your employee population. Tap into the culture, anecdotes, legends, stories, and overall flavor of your day-to-day operation. Use it as a template to develop programs specifically aimed at your unique place of business.