It seems there are common problems that crop up when integrating employee recognition programs into an organization.
These problems create barriers to the success of the goals the organization hopes to achieve through strategically using recognition programs. Fortunately, the troubles recognition programs can sometimes present with are easily treated and resolved.
Look at the following scenarios and examine how you would tackle each one.
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Individuals often ask me what I recommend for them to do to become a great recognition giver of the people around them—whether at work, home, or play.
The following is a short list of things I suggest you get into the habit of doing.
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It doesn’t happen very often. But every once in a while, you find an exceptional leader who changes the course of employee recognition in an organization.
Their example and positive actions influence and affect recognition practices by those around them and the usage of recognition programs by everyone. This influence is powerful and important in changing the way recognition plays out in an organization.
Here are some specific examples and some observations from others.
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You’ve often seen them in action. Perhaps in a meeting you’ve taken part in or seeing them on stage at a celebratory award event. It might simply have been a pass by in the hallway. Or maybe you received a thank you note from them. Then there’s the masterful way they acknowledge team members in a virtual meeting. Recognition is alive and going well with this leader.
Have you ever thought about asking this individual for their help with giving better recognition? They might mentor you. But how do you go about seeking a mentor? Follow these suggestions for acquiring a mentor and start learning to give more meaningful recognition to people.
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It was yesterday when I heard about an organization that had set up a formal award program called their CEO Award. The only problem was this formal award program was being undermined by other leaders and managers. Not very helpful.
Make a nominated formal award program a success right from the get-go. Look at the following factors and see what you can control for to make your award program a great one.
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Like all things dealing with nonverbal communication, it is always culturally specific, so we can interpret a smile in different ways around the world.
But for North America, Americans smile wider and more often than any other people, and that’s validated by research. So, be sure to smile when giving recognition to people in the U.S. and Canada.
And apparently, according to writer Olga Khazan from The Atlantic, a Finnish individual posited on Reddit that, “When a stranger on the street smiles at you:
a. You assume he is drunk.
b. He is insane.
c. He’s an American.”
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We are approaching the last quarter of the year and it may well be time to submit your budget requests for keeping your offline and online recognition programs in place, or even asking for funding to add new programs.
It can seem like a nail biting exercise each year to go through. One way to make this angst less ominous is to get your executive sponsor’s support ahead of time. Follow these practical ways to get your leader’s commitment to your recognition program budget.
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Having just completed an organization’s recognition strategy and plan, I know that the next step for my client’s representative is to present the document to their executive leadership team for approval.
Hopefully, you already have an executive sponsor shepherding the way to the boardroom. They should have the first review of your new recognition strategy and plan. Listen to their suggestions for any revisions they think should you need to make to better support the current and future business strategy.
They can also advise you on what each executive leader will expect from the document and from your presentation. And they can also tell you of recent successful presentations and what they did to achieve this. You could ask to look at their PowerPoint® presentation and invite the presenter to share their experience with each of the leaders.
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No matter whether you deliver your recognition education and training online or in-person, how do you hold the participants accountable for using what they’ve learned?
Very little planning goes into building accountability for what people learn.
This needs to change if we want more people to practice recognition giving the right way. Where do you begin? How do you get people to apply what they learn?
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One of the common decisions senior leaders make with length of service awards is their perception that they don’t produce any measurable return for the organization, is dropping them completely.
This rationale of career milestone awards not impacting performance numbers and results has been around for many years.
However, there is definitely an impact made when you give these awards. So, what benefits are there from continuing with milestone recognition? Should you keep going with length of service award programs?
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