
Sometimes, it is the simplest of things that can matter a great deal to us. In this case, it is saying “thank you” to a coworker for a job well done.
If you are using VMware’s Socialcast collaboration tool, now you can, through an add-on app that they call Thanks. It is almost so deliciously simple and obvious you wonder why they even thought of it. Well, I am glad they did.
Here to testify on the importance of saying thank you is Laura Trice at her Ted Talk (the video isn’t up to their usual snuff, but the audio and her message is crystal clear):
The notion is to recognize peers inside your social network but do so in a more formalized and controlled way. Employees can send a thank you by selecting from a custom library of badges that a company makes available inside Socialcast. The idea is to remove yet another point of friction from your social network and make it easier to connect with your work colleagues. You can see a sample screenshot below.

There is no additional cost of the feature, and it is available starting today. On one beta user’s network, an average of five to seven thanks per month per employee were recorded. Companies can set up their thanks banks to make them more or less valuable and scarce.