Rules for Recognition
- Spirit: Have some spirited fun when you recognize. Don't be afraid to show how happy you are about the performance of your employee. I remember another story about a boy scout leader who told the boys that if they grew the troop to 65 scouts, he would put on a grass skirt and do a hula dance. Well, they did it, and danced the hula at the next meeting. Needless to say, it was a lot of fun. I'm not saying you should go out and do a hula dance, but just realize that a spirited presentation like that can be quite effective.
Show spirit: Be spontaneous!
- Spontaneity: Don't be afraid to be spontaneous when recognizing someone. You don't have to necessarily schedule or plan a formal awards ceremony. We encourage supervisors to recognize employees "on the spot" when they see an employee doing something that impresses them. Unplanned recognition is more likely to be perceived as heart-driven than policy-driven: Thus, more effective.
- Stability: Keep your recognition program stable and predictable. Don't change the rules of the game, or the criteria for recognition too often. And, if you do make a change, make it a small one. You may intend to improve the program, but the change you make may actually function to make the program less effective. If you make many changes in a program, and the program is a disaster, you won't know which one of the changes is causing the result. Bottom line, employees need to know that the performance criteria, and the form of recognition, won't disappear or change before they've worked so hard to achieve the criteria.
Knowledge Check Choose the best answer for the question.
2-5. If you find that your recognition program is not working as intended, what should you do?
You forgot to answer the question!