“What
is honored in a country is cultivated there.”
Plato
How do you honor the
people in your organization? A couple of years ago, I was making a focused
effort to improve in this arena. I knew intuitively different people place
different value on various types of recognition. However, to truly honor
people, I needed to know specifically what was of value to them individually.
My next step was to set a meeting with all the staff members in
my department, temporary and part-time employees too. I asked each of them just
one question? What was the best recognition they had ever received? The result
– I confirmed my hunch regarding the diversity of approaches to effective
recognition. Here’s some of what they told me…
Public recognition – Some
people love to be recognized in front of other people. You may be one of those
individuals. Unless other people can hear the kind words and see the
appreciation, it doesn’t count. When you work with these people, be on the
lookout for the appropriate forum to showcase the behaviors you’re trying to
reinforce.
Private recognition – I
don’t know the percentages, but I do know a significant portion of the
population will not feel honored if you single them out publically. I’ve worked
with many people who feel public recognition is more punishment than praise. If
you miss assess this, your good intentions could actually dissuade the
behaviors you’re trying to cultivate.
A hand-written note –
This simple, seemingly outdated means of communications is still one of the
most powerful, and universally appreciated forms of recognition. Throughout my
career, I’ve been amazed at the reception I get from writing short notes of
appreciation. I don’t write enough of these! P.S. An
email is not the same as a personal note.
A plaque or trophy –
Some people want the tangible evidence of their accomplishment. These do not
have to be elaborate or expensive… they can even be homemade. A few years ago
we were trying to inculcate our core values and we made awards for people who
went above and beyond in modeling these behaviors.
Cash – I would assume
everyone on your team appreciates a paycheck. However, for some of them, to be
recognized with cash (or a gift card) is the ultimate. You may be surprised how
little money is needed to make a big impact. If you can’t get this through on
your expense report, you may want to do it out of your own pocket. A Starbucks
card or two may produce exponential returns.
Time off – I
hope you’ve been struck by the diversity of methods for recognizing and
rewarding people. The list could go on and on, but I don’t want you to miss
this one. Many people will feel honored and appreciated if you say, “You did an
outstanding job completing that project on time and on budget! Why don’t
you take tomorrow off?”
If you want to drive change in your organization, recognize the
behavior you want to see repeated; and recognize it in ways that speak to
people individually.
Writing this post has been a good reminder for me. I need to
schedule some meetings and ask just one question…
How about you?
Mark Miller, Vice President of Organizational Effectiveness for Chick-fil-A,
believes that leadership is not something
that’s exclusive; within the grasp of an elite few, but beyond the reach of
everyone else. In the tenth anniversary edition of The Secret, Miller reminds readers of a seemingly
contradictory concept: to lead is to serve. With more than 600,000 books in
print, Mark has been surprised by the response and delighted to serve leaders
through his writing.
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