By Nick McCormick

Many managers struggle with recognition. Most err on
the side of not recognizing their team members enough. Very few provide
too much recognition. Here are a few tips to help guide you toward
recognizing well, and benefiting from the results.

1) Just Do It
– You need to make the time to recognize. Make a commitment to
recognize at least one person per month. Set aside time in your
schedule to do it: assess who might deserve recognition; determine what
the recognition will be; acquire the recognition item(s); and deliver
the recognition. The process is time consuming. It’s little wonder that
it is neglected.

2) Match the Reward with the Accomplishment
– Don’t give an employee 2 movie tickets for saving the company
thousands. If an employee does something great, reward them
accordingly. If they achieve a minor accomplishment give them something
small. Mismatching rewards can really confuse recipients and their
peers, and ultimately it can do more harm than good.

This also
implies consistency. If you give a person a $200 gift certificate for
completing an assignment, and then give them a candy bar for completing
a similar assignment 6 month later, it serves to confuse. Sometimes the
funds are not available to recognize accomplishments at similar levels.
If that is the case, explain. Otherwise the employee is left to wonder,
“Did I not do as well this time around?” If the recognition differs
among employees for similar accomplishments, favoritism can enter into
the equation.

Sometimes the budget won’t allow suitable
recognition that matches the accomplishment. If this is the case, it’s
even more important to get creative. Don’t forget to consider granting
extra time off. That can be very well received, and flies under the
budget radar. Also, be frank with employees about budget limitations.

3) Get Personal
– Normally people tell you not to get personal. The opposite is true
with recognition. It shows that the manager has enough interest to put
in the time to find out about and remember your interests. Also, you
actually get something for the person that they enjoy. After all,
that’s the whole point.

How do you find out what someone’s
interests are? Some organizations have associates fill out a
recognition wish list. This can come across as a bit too staged. It’s
much better to talk to your team members. Meet with them monthly and
chat. You will gain insight into what makes them tick.

4) Timing is Everything (almost)
– Recognize team members shortly after the accomplishment. If there is
too much time between accomplishment and recognition, the impact of the
reward can be decreased dramatically. First of all, the person goes
weeks or months without the much deserved positive feedback. Imagine
what they are thinking? “Doesn’t my manager realize what I just did? Is
he/she too busy to realize the importance of my accomplishment? I spent
so much time on that. Why do I even bother?” Second, it implies that
the manager didn’t see the recognition as being very important, which
doesn’t send the correct message.

Sometimes companies have formal
recognition programs. This is fine, but don’t let an employee’s
accomplishments go unrewarded throughout the entire year, until it’s
time to grant the “Employee of the Year Award.”

5) Be Specific
– Don’t reward someone for being a wonderful employee. Their
compensation should cover that anyway. Rather, point out exactly what
they did to merit the recognition – completed xyz project, received a
client letter, etc. Recognition should reinforce the behavior. So, be
specific about the behavior that warranted the recognition.

6) Make it Public
– People like to be recognized by their peers. It is further validation
of their accomplishments. In addition, recognition is not just about
reinforcing the behavior of the individual(s) being recognized; it also
affects the behavior of others. Don’t miss out on this ancillary
benefit.

Provided that the recognition follows the suggestions
above, it can be very rewarding for all involved. The impacts on team
productivity and quality can be substantial. It also happens to be the
right thing to do. So, make the commitment to adequately recognize your
team members for a job well done and reap the benefits of doing so.

Nick McCormick is a Principal with Be Good Ventures, LLC.
Would you like to improve your management performance? Go to
http://BeGoodVentures.com/ to download a FREE file containing 5"x7" training cards based on Nick's book Lead Well and Prosper: 15 Successful Strategies for Becoming a Good Manager. Act on some of the tips today! Be Good!

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