Often, the reason that managers don’t use recognition programs is because they’re unsure when to recognize people.
By offering them clear tips and guidelines on what to recognize people for and when to do it, you can make it clearer for them how to use the system, and clear up any confusion or questions they may have.
The answer to these questions will be different for everyone depending on your company’s needs and the structure of your program, but here are a few simple, universal guidelines you can share:
Reward core values
At Guusto, we always recommend that you align your program with core values. Core values serve as a touchpoint to guide the behaviours of your people in their day-to-day work, and tying them to recognition helps to reinforce these values in your company.
Encouraging managers to think about their core values and paying attention to actions their team members make that reflect them. It might be helpful to suggest real-life examples of scenarios where your values come into play in their specific departments.
Using your core values as a starting point is a good way to help managers spot actions that deserve recognition in their team, and can help drive adoption more easily.
Reward growth and development
Managers should be inspiring their employees to grow and develop as professionals, and recognition can be an incredibly powerful tool for this.
Encourage your managers to reward employees when they learn new skills, take on new responsibilities, or push themselves to become better.
Not only will this help encourage your managers to use the system more, but they’ll also see the benefits of having a team that is more motivated to learn and grow.
Reward Collaboration
Fostering teamwork and building togetherness in their team is something that every manager wants, and recognition can be a way to help them achieve it.
Suggest to your managers that they reward collaboration whenever their team works together to tackle a project or solve a problem.
It might even be a good idea to suggest that they make an extra effort to reward team members who work with others outside their department, as this will help to create a more collaborative environment across your entire company.
Reward what they feel is important
As much as giving managers guidelines and suggestions for recognizing people will be helpful for them, it’s also important to empower them to recognize and reward their employees for the behaviours they want to see.
Emphasize to them that this is a tool that they have control over, and that they are free to use in a way that they feel is driving positive outcomes for their team by celebrating what they feel deserves to be celebrated.
Giving them this ownership will make them feel more empowered and invested in the program, and make them more comfortable using it regularly.
Reward in real time
Recognition is best when it’s instant. If there’s too much of a delay between an employee doing something and being rewarded for it, the impact in their mind is lessened, and they won’t draw as much of a connection between the two.
Encourage your managers not to wait to recognize employees when they take actions they feel deserve it. Suggest they recognize actions on the same day, or at the very least the same week, that they happen.
Reward equitably
It’s important that your managers spread recognition around their teams as much as possible, ensuring that everyone feels valued and appreciated.
While they obviously want to reward top performers, it’s important that they don’t neglect people whose contributions might be underrated or go under the radar.
Encourage them to keep an eye on how much recognition each of their team members is receiving, and pay special attention to anyone who might not be receiving enough.
It’s likely they’ll find that certain employees are doing plenty that deserves appreciation, but aren’t getting it. They can then rectify the problem, and help make the program fairer and more inclusive for everyone.