The 'big why' of recognition is your program's goals. Learn how to define them, drive participation, and tie them to larger business objectives.
Your program’s goals are the big "why" of recognition.
Simon Sinek talks a lot about "Starting With Why" and how that is essential to a clear path forward with anything you try to do, (you can check out one of his great Ted Talks here).
It's really important to have the main objective – the problem you're trying to solve or the need you're trying to meet by running a rewards and recognition program – top of mind. Once you have a clear objective, you will be able to align all your program initiatives to it.
This "why" can look like a couple of different things – some tied to greater business objectives (retention, boosting engagement scores, etc.) and some tied to employee adoption (program participation, employee sentiment).
You may already have some ideas of what success looks like for your program, but we would highly suggest having a formal record of this. This will help you report on and gauge progress with the program, gain internal buy-in if you're ever looking to expand, but also be able to look great internally with the success of the program.
Here are a couple of steps to establishing formal program goals:
- Gather all relevant stakeholders (HR team, finance [they often hold the purse strings of the program, etc.])
- Break down what the "why" is of the recognition program - what are you trying to accomplish? Here is a video with some examples of recognition program goals.
- Jot down this ‘why’ and any additional program goals to keep a formal record and establish a cadence for when you'll check in with these (quarterly, bi-annually, annually).
- Use some of these metrics to measure success and keep tabs on program progress.
- Reassess and repeat!