Recognition: An Unlimited Resource for Driving Productivity
What truly motivates you? Human psychology and behavior show us there are a number of elements that comprise this aspect of our lives. While we might assign “higher priority” to certain motivational factors such as money, power, social influence, freedom of how we spend our time, there is one motivational quality shared by everyone: The desire and need for recognition. Humans are naturally social beings and at some level of existence, everyone has a driving need to know their actions, thoughts, and behaviors are accepted, appreciated, and valued by others.
Recognition is something we seek in all facets of our lives, whether in our personal relationships or our professional careers. When recognition is absent, our happiness is directly impacted. From an organizational standpoint, this has significant effects on productivity and proliferates outside the organization, impacting relationships and interactions with customers. A Bersin & Associates study showed that “in organizations where recognition occurs, employee engagement, productivity and customer service are about 14 percent better than in those where recognition does not occur.”
Disturbingly, a study by Forbes reveals, “43% of employees cite a lack of recognition as their reason for quitting” their jobs. Combine this with the cost associated with hiring and training someone new to fill a vacant position (estimated at 33% of a worker’s salary) and it becomes clear that providing recognition is vastly important to an organization’s success. So how is it that so many managers and leaders don’t seem to understand the impact of providing individual recognition?
Think back to a time where you worked really hard on something and you received praise and recognition for a job well done from your family, friends, colleagues, managers, etc. How did that make you feel?
To share a personal story, I’m going to travel back many many moons to my college days. College was challenging for me because I was a bit of a perfectionist. I wasn’t some boy genius who breezed through classes while never cracking open a book. It took time and focus. I wanted to do well. I needed to do well. I was motivated and set my sights on graduating with a perfect record.
I worked hard. If I wasn’t at my place of employment, I was studying. I started preparing for exams at least a week in advance. I wanted to be successful for myself, but also wanted to make my family proud. But my family never pushed me. They knew I was doing enough pushing all by myself. It was funny, my Dad would say that I talked about getting straight A’s like it was my birthright! Hahaha, perhaps I did at times but that just showed my determination!
Finally, the day came when I walked across the graduation stage with a dual major receiving my Bachelors of Science in Business Administration for Management and Human Resource Management… and a cumulative 4.0 GPA.
My entire family was extremely proud, and I received congratulations from my extended family across the country. I was on top of the world. My family’s recognition facilitated validation for all of those sleep deprived nights and gave me even more confidence to take the next step in my life. Without my family’s recognition, I would have logically understood that it was a significant achievement, but emotionally, it would have felt like a hollow victory.
Unfortunately, I have also had many experiences on the opposite side where I worked my tail off going above and beyond only to have my efforts completely ignored. It was at these organizations that I felt far from valued and ultimately moved on to new opportunities elsewhere.
One such example was during a quarterly review conference call back when I managed a sales team. The calls were run by the sales manager who oversaw multiple sales teams each responsible for a particular territory within the region. All of the teams participated on these calls. While understaffed and facing a very aggressive quarterly quota, I poured in the hours not only with regards to my individual sales, but also the sales of my team. On my own time, I created a development plan for each member of the team and coached them through learning new skills and techniques to enhance their effectiveness.
At the end of the grueling quarter, my team was the clear leader amongst all the sales teams. We were the only team that surpassed the demanding quota, we had the best new release product sales, and the highest overall sales conversion numbers.
I was so proud of my team and what we were able to accomplish. How could the organization not recognize our team for our success? And yet, during the quarterly review conference call, my team wasn’t even addressed or given the opportunity to speak about our performance. The sales manager only focused on those who missed their targets and shelled out a number of indirect threats against their future employment with the organization. Not a single positive comment was mentioned during the entire demoralizing call.
“People work for money but go the extra mile for recognition, praise and rewards.”
— Dale Carnegie
Recognition is a big deal. Everyone wants to be appreciated for the things they do. Why else do we celebrate Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Memorial Day, Valentine’s Day, and other holidays? These days have been designated to make sure we recognize those important individuals in our lives…parents, spouse, boyfriend/girlfriend, those who protect our way of life, etc. It’s important that we try not to take for granted those who play important roles in our lives.
If anyone has any doubt that recognition is a big deal, just look at the entertainment industry. You have the Grammy’s, Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Emmy’s, Tony’s, Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, People’s Choice Awards, Country Music Awards (CMA), Billboard Music Awards, iHeartRadio Music Awards, and the Hollywood Film Awards just to name a few! One reason why there are so many different award ceremonies in the entertainment industry is because they bring in the ratings. A ton of people tune in. Some watch to see what the stars are wearing, some watch to see if someone is going to do or say something controversial, while a large contingent watch in hopes that their favorite performers receive the recognition they feel is warranted. Even if someone’s favorite performer doesn’t win the award, that person is still being recognized for his/her contributions to the industry by simply being nominated.
Of course, the entertainment industry is just one example. Recognition is such a core psychological desire that you see it everywhere from annual sports hall of fame inductions to graduation ceremonies to boy scout/girl scout badges to other coveted awards like the Pulitzer Prize and the Nobel Peace Prize.
Society as a whole seems to understand the unparalleled impact of recognition (because we all want it!) which is why it amazes me that 82% of employees polled in a study performed by BambooHR state they don’t receive enough recognition at work. Many organizations (but clearly far from all) have some type of formal recognition program whether if it’s an employee of the month program or a president’s club recognizing the sales team for hitting quota. While it’s a step in the right direction, the amount of positive return via employee motivation is directly tied to how the program is implemented.
In order to fully harness the motivational power of a recognition program, it’s absolutely critical that employees know the criteria of how folks are going to be assessed from the start. Any ambiguity that can lead to feelings of injustice or the perception of favoritism will destroy the effectiveness of the program. Depending on how strongly people feel about these apparent inequalities, it can potentially cause more damage than not having the program to begin with.
Formal award-based employee recognition programs can have amazing effects on the attitudes and motivation of employees if executed properly, but combining them with day-to-day recognition will take the organization to never before seen heights. Think about it. How would you feel if you received recognition for your hard work on a regular basis? How would that affect your daily motivation level? Would it help you navigate through a “rough day” more easily? The key to day-to-day recognition is that it must be genuine and it must be consistent. If seen as disingenuous or forced, it could very well have the opposite impact.
(Employees in a Cicero study in 2015 reported that recognition was the most important driver of turning out great work.)
One of the greatest elements about giving recognition is that in its most basic form, recognition is virtually free. There’s only a two-step process that needs to ensue. The party who will be providing the recognition needs to spend a thought cycle or two to identify an action with which to recognize and then communicate it to the recipient. Voila! That’s all it takes to make someone’s day. Just a few seconds of consideration.
The only cost associated with giving someone recognition is the five or so seconds of effort for you to hear a good idea, have your brain identify it as a good idea, and say “Jim, that’s a great idea!” There’s no monetary cost required. Your wallet won’t get any lighter. You can open your mailbox with assurance that there’s not going to be a bill arriving because you gave someone recognition. Again, in its most basic form, giving recognition is simple, quick, virtually free, and extremely impactful for the recipient.
“Nothing else can quite substitute for a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise. They’re absolutely free and worth a fortune.”
— Sam Walton
In my opinion, providing recognition has the highest ROI of any employee engagement strategy. Here are eight huge benefits that typically result from employee recognition…
i. Increased productivity levels (both on an individual and team basis).
ii. Greater levels of employee engagement and work satisfaction.
iii. Retention of quality employees due to lower employee turnover.
iv. Less time spent complaining and spreading negativity in the workplace, thus enhancing morale.
v. Fosters an environment for open collaboration and innovation.
vi. Less stress, anxiety, employee theft, and lower use of sick days.
vii. Improved customer satisfaction and loyalty.
viii. Safer workplace with fewer accidents.
Recognition is extremely powerful. Everyone seeks it, everyone values it, and all it takes is a few seconds out of someone’s day to show genuine appreciation for others. It deepens our personal relationships and enriches our professional ones resulting in unparalleled levels of employee engagement and productivity. Susan M. Heathfield (Human Resource Expert for About.com) summed up one of the greatest characteristics of providing recognition when she said, “Recognition is not a scarce resource. You can’t use it up or run out of it.” Recognition is a never-ending renewable resource. The possibilities are endless, so get creative and recognize someone today!
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here are my own and do not reflect the official position of my current or previous employers or the customers or partners doing business with them.
