Whether it is a strategy meeting, planning meeting, or procurement meeting, there is something special that happens when you have your executive champion present in the room with the rest of your recognition committee.
Managing, administering, monitoring, and planning the day-to-day aspects of recognition practices and programs, requires constant vigilance, self-discipline, and persistence on your part with supporting recognition throughout the organization.
The reason you periodically want a senior leader in a recognition strategy or steering committee meeting, is because they can help you align recognition with the business strategy and give you the vision of where they see recognition supporting organizational strategic initiatives.
Consider some of the following benefits of having a senior leader in your meetings.
Benefits of Senior Leader Support
When you have a member of the senior leadership team present in your meetings, you know you will have their support in helping you achieve your goals throughout the organization. They can help you and your committee navigate the bureaucracy that is often there.
They ask incisive questions that might need your expertise or that of a recognition specific subject matter expert to answer. Make note of these questions so you can analyze them later to know if they understand the recognition strategy you have created. You might need to up the communications or schedule a one-on-one time with them to explain what they are uncertain about.
You’ll find senior leaders can help you with their influence with certain projects and tasks you need to complete by enlisting the help of different departments, managers, or teams. There is only so much you can get done on your own.
Great leaders invest their time and energy with helping others become successful. Along with their commitment to sponsoring and championing employee recognition practices and programs for the organization, this leader will help you make the right connections inside and outside the organization.
They are also a great sounding board on your future recognition plans. You can receive genuine feedback from them on your ideas but also on the timing with when to proceed. This is especially helpful when seeking budget approvals to start new recognition initiatives. Staffing needs are also a concern for you and your leaders can give you insights based on the big picture with what they know from other requests from across the organization.
These are some huge benefits from having a senior leader periodically take part in your meetings.
Getting Your Senior Leader Involved
You’ll find that great leaders are visionary people. Their strengths are being able to anticipate the future. They can tell you where the organization is heading and help you know where they see employee recognition benefiting the organization five years from now.
Keep them updated on your recognition strategy and plans for the coming year. Gain their feedback and recommendations for changes based upon what they know from across the organization.
Find out how often they want to receive updates on progress and implementation of your plans. Aim for at least quarterly reports for more formal updates and give bite size information along the way in the hallways or by a quick email.
Solicit their involvement when you need them to possibly influence management and hold them accountable for giving better and more meaningful recognition. They will have insights on how to use logic and reason to get to some people. Sometimes they will draw upon motivation and rewards to move specific actions and behaviors forward.
You’ll find most leaders have formed positive relationships and networks both inside and outside the organization. They can help you know who to liaise with and let you know the best ways to work with these people. Ask them to make an introduction to an individual for you who you need to work with. Seek their advice on the best ways to work with them.
Find out what specific key results and objectives the senior leader expects you to achieve. Determine the time frames they recommend you target for reaching these goals. Set up regular scheduled feedback meetings to debrief on status of your goals. This will help you request necessary resources you need to move things forward and identify any barriers you need to overcome to progress recognition forward.
Senior leader involvement is an essential and important component of a successful recognition strategy implementation.
Recognition Reflection: Do you have a supportive senior leader you can count on to champion the cause of employee recognition?
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