From Stickers to Shoutouts: Why Recognition Still Matters
Elementary teachers have it figured out; they are aces of recognition. Few people make you feel like you’re succeeding more than an early elementary teacher. The praise, popcorn parties, and the piece de resistance: the scratch and sniff sticker.
If you didn’t grow up a child in the 80s, you really missed out. We all had sticker books and the we carefully picked off the variety of stickers that graced our assignments, tests and projects, including the coveted scratch and sniff ones.
But somewhere along the way, recognition faded. We started believing that people didn’t need it—that they should take pride in their work and that should be enough.
I taught junior high predominantly and I had expectations that these “mini adults” shouldn’t need stickers or recognition. They were way too cool to care about praise from their teacher (spoiler alert – they weren’t and they ate up recognition!)
I’ve come to realize the importance of recognition for everyone. As humans, we feel good when someone notes what we’ve done well, or thanks us for doing something. In fact, we do not outgrow this need (see the middle of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs – belonging, love, and esteem). Despite this universal need, recognition often takes a backseat in workplace, but the data suggests that needs to change.
In my work with adults, I’ve realized that this need is alive and well, yet, there is a competing force that thinks either people are too busy, recognition is a low priority or that people shouldn’t be thanked for just doing their job.
Recognition builds trust and engagement which then positively impacts motivation, retention and performance as it fosters trust and psychological safety.
Employee retention is a serious concern for organizations, and recognition plays a major role in keeping top talent. Consider these statistics:
Over half of employees say they would be less likely to entertain a job offer if they felt regularly recognized at work. (SOURCE).
Organizations with formal recognition programs experience 31% less voluntary turnover than organizations without such programs keeping your most values engaged, rather than searching for other employment opportunities.
Employees who receive regular recognition are:
5x more likely to feel valued
6x more likely to invest in their work
7x more likely to stay with their current employer for at least one more year.
Recognition leads to a 14% boost in productivity and performance.
Positive Impacts
What would change for your organization if your employees were more engaged, productive and didn’t leave? How much time (and money) do you spend recruiting for open positions as a result of voluntary turnover?
Recognition programs increase employee satisfaction and morale, but it’s more than coffee machines, snacks and the cool office amenities. All these considered, these can help, but they aren’t enough to keep disengaged employees from leaving.
Well-designed recognition programs create loyalty, encourage collaboration and feedback (especially when peer feedback and recognition is incorporated) and they strengthen relationships.
Patrick Lencioni’s Five Behaviours of a Cohesive Team model places trust as the base for any strong team. He writes that trust is evidenced in the psychological safety of the team, and recognition programs build that trust and psychological safety.
Tips for Effective Recognition
Be Specific
Saying good job may be easier, but it won’t get you the results you need. Praise should tell people what you want them to do more of, so focus on something specific that they did.
Ex: “I appreciated how you answered the customer’s emails within 15 minutes of receiving them; it helped us move the project forward.”
Tie Recognition to Values
Gino Wickman’s Entrepreneurial Operating System states that you should hire, fire, reward, promote and recognize based on values. Tie your recognition to how people live your values.
Ex: Congratulations and way to go finishing the course; your commitment to a Growth-Mindset is awesome!
Timeliness
Try to recognize people as soon as possible; don’t wait until their quarterly review.
Switching recognition from quarterly to monthly can boost the likelihood of engagement and productivity by 40% and job commitment by 25%.
Recognize Effort, not just Outcomes
Sometimes perseverance and tenacity can be demonstrated without the outcome you desired, and recognizing these are critical too; it helps tell your people that effort matters even when they can’t be sure of the outcome.
Ex. I know we didn’t win the proposal, but I appreciated the effort you put into the proposal anyway; it was really well done and demonstrated our deliverables very clearly.
Challenges and Barriers to Effective Recognition
Lack of Time
Contrary to the story we may tell ourselves, recognition does not need to be a huge time suck. If you do it regularly and keep it timely, it can take just a few minutes.
Consider the time you would spend recruiting someone, or managing poor performance (and you would find the time for those) and consider time recognizing people as a fraction of the time investment (with better results)
Fear of Favoritism or Bias
The key to overcoming this fear is consistency. If you regularly recognize people, you'll naturally start noticing contributions across the team. If fairness is a concern, keep a simple informal record to ensure everyone gets recognized over time—but avoid forcing absolute equality, as people will see through that.
Need a Fancy or Expensive Program
You do not need a specific recognition program. I’ve implemented various programs that only cost time, yet were very effective.
It can be as simple as an email, Teams or Slack message or channel. In one organization, a piece of Lego was given as part of their program (which was extremely popular).
Regardless of whether you have a basic or more formal program, ensure you keep it tied to your core values.
Beliefs around Recognition
Some managers believe that people do not need recognition – after all, they are getting paid, that’s good enough; they are just doing their job.
We all appreciate a thank you or comment even when it is something we need to do. When my husband notices that I’ve cleaned the kitchen (a job I hate doing even though it’s necessary as an adult), I feel appreciated and am more likely to do it again.
When I was a teenager, I worked at McDonalds and they taught us that every time you ask someone to do something you say please and you always say thank you as an acknowledgement. I carry this lesson with me even today. It costs me nothing to say please or to thank someone and it can make them feel appreciated; it’s worth it.
How to Make it Work
Micro-Recognition
Start small; a simple thank you, Teams/Slack message, email – it takes seconds.
Block Time in your Calendar
Block 15 minutes in your calendar two or three times a week to share recognition and appreciation to others (and then honour that time and actually do it). Try making notes in a Notes app as you see things and then reference those during your recognition time.
Leverage Technology
You can implement a more formal program which often is technology based, but you could also just create a Kudos channel in your Messaging App (eg. Teams/Slack). You can review these and like or comment on them too.
Encourage Peer to Peer Recognition
Manager to employee recognition is important, but don’t ignore the power of peer to peer recognition too and ensure there are opportunities for his avenue of recognition.
Consider Individual Preferences
If someone is really uncomfortable with public praise, find alternate ways to recognize them. Maybe they do not want to be the centre of attention in a meeting, but they are OK with a private email or a Teams message.
Tangible Ideas
Implementing a recognition program can feel overwhelming, but starting with something is better than waiting to create the perfect system. A few ideas to start include:
Start meetings with a 5 minute lightening round where people can thank and recognize others
Create an internal Wall of Recognition: use a Slack/Teams channel, a SharePoint site
Create certificates for Employee of the Month that includes why they were nominated; or display nominations on a SharePoint site or Teams/Slack channel
Commit 5 minutes a day (or 15 minutes a couple times a week) to recognize, thank and acknowledge others.
Tie your recognition and acknowledgements to the organization’s core values
What’s Next
If you’re ready to build a culture of recognition in your organization, try one of these ideas:
Implement one new recognition habit this week (a quick thank-you, a shoutout in a meeting, or a Slack/Teams message).
Encourage your team to try peer-to-peer recognition.
Sign up for Leadership Toolbox to get access resources related to building trust and being a great leader.
Read these blogs:
Listen to my radio show (episode 26 will be about Recognition)
Contact me and let’s talk about how I can help you set up a simple recognition program to start!
What is one way you can incorporate recognition into your leadership this week? Let me know in the comments.
