Employee recognition is essential. Everybody gets that. But too often, what goes into effective recognition seems like guesswork.
What works for a young e-commerce start-up with 20-somethings hacking away day and night might not make sense for an SMB in the technology space and definitely won’t make sense for a large manufacturing conglomerate.
Recognition is unique to the company: its work culture, dynamics, and value systems. But, there are a few core aspects in designing a Rewards and Recognition program, that go a long way in making recognition more effective and help in building a culture of recognition at the workplace.
1: Ensure Recognition is Aligned with Core Values
Recognition that is tied to actions or outcomes that align with organizational values has a far higher impact than general recognition.
Check out the difference!
Consider the impact of an email saying; “Shout out to the entire team that made our Annual Picnic happen” with that of; “Hey Alice! Great work on solving that knotty bug with the customer form. Our largest customer just loved the blazing speed at which you fixed it.”
When employees know how their actions are impacting the overall organizational goals and value systems, it helps drive desirable behavior.
Learn more about how Thanks makes this easy and simple!
2: Recognize Employees Instantly and Make It Relevant:
In today’s hyper-networked world where news, rumors, and memes spread like wildfire, it seems ridiculous that one would have to wait for an event to receive recognition.
Recognition is more impactful when it is given shortly after the achievement.
3 Recognize Frequently:
The frequency of recognition has a big impact on shaping behavior in the workplace. This is one of the most crucial aspects to be considered when designing rewards and recognition programs.
In most organizations, there is an established program around events, when great work is recognized. Plus, there are often rewards around specific events such as Safety Week, Health Awareness Week and so on.
Establishing a culture of recognition entails going beyond the limited opportunities offered by events. It means incorporating recognition as a part of daily work practices. When managers and peers are all empowered and encouraged to recognize good work, the concept of recognition gets instilled in the organizational culture.
4 Manage the Formality of Recognition:
Many awards currently included in organizational recognition programs don’t focus on building connections.
For example, based on subjective criteria, managers choose one person out of an entire team and declare them to be the best. There is not much engagement there!
Nor does this recognize the collaboration of the team. These types of recognitions are more likely to divide your millennial workforce (Tips to better engage with millennial managers).
Consider other formal awards like Long Service Awards. Two main issues can arise from this type of recognition. First, these awards are seldom customized or personal. Second, they celebrate employees for being there, rather than for performance.
Customized service celebrations and awards will better engage your entire workforce. Even millennials, who tend to not value service awards, engage better with personalized celebrations that highlight successes the employee has enjoyed over the years.
Add the ability for the rest of the team to participate in the conversation, the impact is multiplied and connections strengthened.
Check out how Thanks helps you create customized yearbooks to celebrate employees’ anniversaries!
5 Recognition Setting and Context:
Although, social is “everything” these days, not everyone likes attention. The reason you are recognizing someone in the team is to make them feel special. Yet it’s important to know your team members enough to know if public recognition is not enjoyed.
So, don’t go social blindly.
Choose between a quiet note of appreciation left on the keyboard versus an announcement on your favorite social platform, depending on the personality of the recipient.
But yes, personal recognition is much more important than a boiler-plate.
6 Significance of Who is Recognizing:
In large organizations getting an appreciation from senior management is often seen as an achievement in itself.
If recognition is public in nature, and broad-strokes, big-picture “you saved the company by fixing that big issue” then, higher up-the-ladder recognition spurs greater engagement.
But if it is something that delves into the nuances of an assembly-level code fix, then recognition by the reclusive senior architect might resonate far more than one from the President of Sales.
In other cases, peer recognition rates over supervisor or management recognition.
7 Sincere Recognition:
Recognition is valued greater by employees when it is given with high levels of sincerity. It is very difficult to fake sincerity. Scaling back on recognition is better than handing it out like candy.
8 Provide Recognition that’s Valuable to the Recipient:
Every team member is unique and has their own perspective on the value of the recognition. Some employees value tangible things over verbal recognition.
Others value the opposite. Some want bragging rights in the office. Others might want a dinner voucher to take their spouse out for a great meal.
If the recognition is to resonate, the format in which it is delivered must be thought through as well. Broad strokes approach rewards/recognition can’t drive engagement beyond the bare minimum in the long-term.
Get Started with Thanks Today#9 Peer Validation through Recognition:
Appreciation and recognition by the superiors have always been valued, but as organizations become flatter, more competitive, and roles become more complex, peer validation of recognition has taken on a whole new level of importance.
Check out how Thanks encourages employees to engage and participate in recognizing each other
Conclusion:
When implemented correctly, recognition makes a huge difference in the culture and success of an organization. Technology today lets everyone participate in the discussion around individual recognition.
About Thanks
Thanks is a leading provider of a recognition-based platform that increases communication, builds teamwork, and makes recognition a part of company culture. Fast, easy and simple Thanks makes it easy to bring data-driven employee recognition to your entire organization. O.C. Tanner purchased the Thanks platform in 2019 to fulfill the recognition needs of smaller businesses.
Thanks customers benefit from the same decades of research in employee motivation and company culture that O.C. Tanner enterprise clients enjoy, but in a product that is geared for fast, easy, and simple deployment. Whether you’re starting a recognition program or improving and expanding on what you already have, Thanks has everything you need to engage your people with effective, scalable recognition. Thanks is a subsidiary of OC Tanner.