Monthly Archives: August 2021

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How To Use the Pedestal and Prestige Effect To Recognize High Performers

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I am going to be upfront with you about your traditional online recognition programs. They won’t work for everyone.

For example, social recognition programs, sending ecards, and using typical performance reward programs, will not hit the mark with your high performers, senior leaders, your top salespeople, or other high-ranking professionals.

But there is something very interesting that I discovered about these elite people. They still like to be recognized. Just not the same way as everyone else.

I will share with you what I learned from talking with some of these professionals and high performers.

It became very clear to me that giving a professional point rewards, sending them an award nomination, or giving a $25.00 or $100.00 gift card, was not meaningful to them. They didn’t relate to this kind of recognition

That’s when I learned something very important. Your traditional recognition and reward programs are appreciated by the 80% majority of your employees. But they will not appeal to a private banker, the top pharmaceutical salesperson, or the executive vice president of finance.

However, there are still some tremendous ways to recognize them. And I am going to share two simple methods with you on how to recognize these high performing professionals.

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What a Difference Leaders Make To Your Recognition Program Success

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Your leadership team, and whoever your direct executive sponsor is, can really impact the success of your recognition programs.

For example, nearly one-quarter of respondents on a Gallup survey said the most memorable recognition comes from a high-level leader or CEO. Imagine what leaders could do if they encouraged everyone to get on board with using their organization’s recognition programs. 

In a survey I conducted across the United States and Canada of managers in the public sector, they shared how participation of senior leaders was an important aspect of delivering effective employee recognition. 

Examine your own organization and evaluate how leadership involvement with employee recognition plays out. 

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Recognition Does Not Really Improve Employee Engagement…So There!

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I know.

How dare I pronounce such heretic claims!

Many in the recognition industry parlay about what people “said,” or what others have “seen,” on one survey or another, suggesting to the world that recognition improves employee engagement.

Some consultancy firms indicate where recognition “occurs,” whatever that means, that organizations have better employee engagement as well as improved key performance metrics. Recognition industry vendors indicate how many managers or employees “say” recognition made so many things totally awesome, such as employee engagement.

But what “people say” on a survey is not exactly sufficient proof.

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How To Make Your Recognition More Visible in the Hybrid Workplace

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We live in a new work world that is more divided than ever before.

Some of us work in the office, on the plant floor, or out in the field. And then there are others who remain or alternate with, working from home. 

When was the last time you saw or heard a colleague being recognized? Is recognition front a centre in your organization? Are celebrations visible or hidden from view? 

Take stock and see if you can better accommodate the needs of employees in a hybrid workforce. Learn to make recognition more visible to everyone. 

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A Dozen Ways To Educate People on Using Your Recognition Programs

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Teaching people how to use your recognition programs takes time and effort. And the education opportunities are best if you repeat them in different ways at various times.

Try to set up the following ways to educate managers and employees on using your recognition programs. 

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Why You Should View Your Employee Recognition Programs as Being Important

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Perception is all in the eye of the beholder. 

And if you have a negative perception of something, it can lead to the concept known as the self-fulfilling prophecy. Which is one reason you must view your recognition programs as being very important. 

The online Britannica encyclopedia website defines a self-fulfilling prophecy as the process through which an originally false expectation leads to its own confirmation. 

In a self-fulfilling prophecy, an individual’s expectations about another person or entity eventually result in the other person or entity acting in ways that confirm the expectations.

So, if you believe that your recognition programs are important, others will act in ways that confirm the beliefs of the importance of your recognition programs. 

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What Makes For a Good Recognition Strategy?

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Creating a written recognition strategy is not as easy as it seems to create. It should not simply repeat the organization’s vision and mission statements. Nor is it a set of aspirational goals that never amount to anything, let alone try to change things.

So, what makes for a good recognition strategy? That is what I thought I would investigate while reading Richard Rumelt’s book, Good Strategy Bad Strategy: The Difference and Why It Matters.

Richard Rumelt is the Harry and Elsa Kunin Emeritus Professor of Business & Society at the University of California, Los Angeles Anderson School of Management. And as you can guess, his focus is primarily on strategy. He knows a thing or two about strategy. 

Let me share with you some insights I gained reading his book so far and then apply those ideas to crafting a good recognition strategy.  

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6 Ways Leaders Can Make Your Award Events Shine

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I think leaders underestimate the great value employees place in their presence at employee award events. Their genuine charisma and celebrity-like status truly add to employees’ feelings about attending award ceremonies. 

Consider the following pointers that your leaders can do to make award events shine. 

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