Employee Engagement:Reward & Recognition

Source: “Love’em or Lose’em”

By Kaye & Jordan-Evans

Group Exercise

Part 1• Working individually, review the list of different forms

of non-monetary recognition which employees seek from their manager.

• Identify the ones which matter most to youPart 2• Working in small groups, review the individual lists and

see if there is any similaritiesTiming5 mins individual work10 mins small group work

Forms of non-monetary recognition

• An award, preferably given in front of my peers

• A plaque to hang on my wall• A thank you, in writing, from my

boss• A note to my boss’s boss about

my excellent performance• Frequent pats on the back• My boss actually implementing

one of my ideas• A chance to be one a really

exciting, cutting-edge project• A day off• Words of praise in front of my

family

• A chance to go to lunch with senior management

• An opportunity to work with people from other parts of the company

• A chance to be on one of the important steering committees

• A promotion• A change in my title• A small momento or gift• Some flexibility in my schedule• More freedom or autonomy• A seminar or training class

Exercise Debrief

• Many managers wrongly assume that everyone likes or wants the same type of rewards and recognition as themselves.

– Whilst one employee may feel rewarded by being presented with a trophy at the annual conference, another might be acutely embarrassed

Good managers take time to find out what type of recognition works for the individuals in their teams

It wasn’t about the money really. Oh, sure, a bonus would have been nice when I brought that new client in or when I finished those

specs ahead of schedule. But a “thank you – I noticed” would really have been appreciated

Money does play a part

• Pay fairly and pay competitively.

• But don’t stop there

• Research shows that money alone will not stop a person from leaving.

• Challenge

• Growth opportunities

• Flexibility

• Great co-workers

• Meaningful work

• Good boss

• Non-monetary recognition

Detailed Praise

• Telling a member of staff “You’re doing a great job!” is not going to make them want to stay.

• Praise can help a manager retain an employee – but only if it is detailed, relevant and personal to that individual

“Standard-Observed-Impact” Model

• The STANDARD is that client reports are completed by the 5th of the month

• I have OBSERVED that you consistently complete the reports ahead of the deadline and to a high quality

• The IMPACT is that the front office staff appreciate your support and have voiced this to me on several occasions

Individual Exercise

• Use the Standard-Observed-Impact model to devise some positive feedback for a member of your team or a colleague in your team.

“so many otherwise able managers act as if compliments comeout of their bank accounts”

Warren Bennis, author / consultant

Pairs Exercise

Instructions

• Working in pairs:

• Round 1 – one person to act as the ‘manager’ and use the prepared text to recognise the ‘employee’. The ‘employee’ in this exercise to feedback to the manager how it felt

• Round 2 – swap roles

Timing

5 mins

Finessing the Standard-Observed-Impact Model

• Rather than always starting positive feedback with “the standard is ....” why not try an alternative starting line:

– “You really made a difference by ...”

– “I’m impressed with ...”

– “You got my attention with ...”

– “You’re doing top quality work on ...”

– “We couldn’t have done it without your ...”

The line manager has a huge impact

• In a study in Incentive Magazine, 57% of respondents indicated that they preferred to be recognised by their immediate line manager, compared to only 21 % who placed a higher value on a presentation from the company president.

Individual exercise

• Working individually, identify:

– Someone in your team who you will take to lunch (at your expense) to show your appreciation for work well done.

– Someone in your team who you will thank verbally in private

– Someone in your team who you will thank verbally at the next team meeting

– Someone in your team who you will thank via email (perhaps copying in higher-level management)

Summary

• Session has identified that there are other motivators than money

• Different people like to be recognised and rewarded in different ways

• The standard-observed-impact model to giving praise

• The line manager’s impact is huge – line managers need to find ways to recognise their direct reports