How do you know if your team’s recognition program is making your location money?ROI achieved from employee recognition depends on proper planning and execution. To find out if your team’s recognition efforts are making your location money…
Just ask yourself these 5 questions:
1) Are my employees being recognized for things that affect our bottom line?
Examples by industry:
- Hotel: guest service/experience and cleanliness (directly affecting guest scores & return business)
- Assisted Living: personal & friendly resident care
- Shipping/Transportation: safe driving milestones and overall teamwork for fast deliveries (like jumping in to help on the dock!)
- Retail: sales, customer service, shrink, and safety
2) How clearly and how often is “winning” defined for my employees?
You & your team’s supervisors are probably already letting everyone know what’s important on a daily, weekly, & monthly basis. If your recognition is tied to those things, then clearly & consistently defining what “winning” looks like should be easy.
Make recognition public so your whole team can see WHY employees are being recognized. Let the whole team know EXACTLY why each person is being awarded or given a shout out and others will step up.
3) How consistently are my employees being recognized?
Recognition doesn’t age well. The sooner you give someone that pat on the back, the more impact it will have.
Monthly programs should be used monthly- as quickly as the winners can be determined once the month is over. Thank you cards and shout outs (in group huddles, via text, email, or just in passing) should all be given on a daily and weekly basis.
4) Who is running my team’s recognition program?
Managers should determine what’s important for the business to succeed and any “official” awards should be based on those things. Direct supervisors AND upper management presenting winners their awards and taking pictures with them will have the most impact. Period.
Peer-to-peer recognition is awesome too! This falls best into the daily/weekly recognition category and it’s exactly why we invented the Shout-Out pads!
But peers shouldn’t vote on each other for any “official” awards. All entry level employees may not have the integrity to avoid voting for their friends, or even participate at all. If we had a nickel for every recognition program that has been destroyed by employee votes…you get the idea.
5) How much of my team sees & hears recognition when it happens?
Not to beat a dead horse but this point is often missed and the potential impact totally overlooked, primarily due to logistical concerns. If your team doesn’t see and hear the recognition happen, you’ve seriously missed out. Make it happen and you will see positive change.
Making recognition public is your BEST opportunity to PROVE to your employees what’s important to you and your business’ success. This is how to make improvement and success part of your CULTURE, taking it far beyond the individuals being recognized.
Recognize daily & weekly in group huddles or team meetings. Make a culture board to display Shout-Outs and Spot-On cards, along with other thank you cards & special notes.
Find a time where your entire team can meet and present your more “official” awards on a more “official” platform (like the awards from management). Even if you have to award your monthly winners in a smaller team meeting first, still do it in public and on a monthly basis. Then recognize them again at your next all-company meeting, along with any other winners that initially received their award in a smaller setting.
You won’t believe what a difference presenting awards and recognition on a public platform will make. IF it’s done right and done consistently.
Try this: Host a company meal for presenting awards and invite employees that are off work that day too so everyone can participate! It works like a charm.
For even more on ideas on how to make recognition pay for itself, check out How to Pick Your Winners [VIDEO].