Effective Recognition Training & Consulting

Problems with “Employee of the Month” Awards

We see it hanging on walls everywhere, from fast food chains to lavish corporate reception areas to the local grocery store. Perhaps it is even on your company’s wall.

What is it? The Employee of the Month Award. Unfortunately, many companies don’t realize that this popular type of recognition program creates problems instead of adding value.

As the name suggests, the Employee of the Month Award only recognizes a select few employees over the year. Many companies rely on this type of program as their sole motivational tool. In an organization of 100 employees, 1 person is officially recognized each month. Leaving 99 employees who may feel unappreciated and discouraged. Frequently, the same person wins over and over again, creating even more damage. The result is often low moral, jealously between peers, weak performance, poor customer service, theft issues and high turnover. Bottom line, companies that run Employee of the Month programs would be better off not having a recognition award at all versus keeping this type of ineffective program.

If your company does have it hanging on your wall, don’t despair. Here are some ways that you can enhance the effectiveness of your recognition platform.

Design a new program and launch it as you “sunset” the old one. As mentioned before, an effective recognition program is designed to impact your total employee base, not just a select few. Your investment is optimized since every employee has the opportunity to participate and be recognized in an attainable, yet challenging program. More employees will “buy in” to your program and actively participate if they believe that they have a realistic chance to be rewarded. One way to reach the majority of employees without breaking the budget is to implement an informal, peer-to-peer recognition system into your program. A sincere thank you goes a long way.

Celebrate the launch of your new recognition program. Develop a communications plan to promote the program throughout the year: email, company paper, team meetings, flyers, posters, orientation, video, website, voicemail. Communication is essential. Remember, a simple recognition program is more effective than an extravagant program no one has ever heard of.

Training is the other key to a successful recognition platform. Many companies make large investments in awards, trips and program promotion only to find out in surveys or exit interviews that a majority of employees do not feel they are receiving recognition. Why is this happening?

Managers’ intentions are good, but without training, most do not know how to recognize their employees effectively. For some people, the ability to motivate others to a higher level of performance is a natural gift. It is part of their personality. For the majority of managers, giving recognition is a leadership skill that can be developed.

A recent employee recognition survey found that 90% of employees stated, “Receiving recognition motivates me to improve my job performance.” Yet, only 47% of those surveyed said, “My manager provides ample and effective recognition.” The results demonstrate the significant impact a supervisor has on performance and morale.

An emotional link, between the manager and all employees, is essential to motivating a higher level of performance and improving retention. Loyalty and trust develop when the recognition is timely, specific, sincere, earned and attainable.

Incentive Magazine, Michelle Nold