chapter 2
Finding Recognition
Everywhere
I am making a difference.
My company invests in my development.
I receive challenging assignments.
I am proud of where I work.
My supervisor trusts me to do my best.
When employees make statements such as these, they are describing recognition that comes from the work and the workplace. They feel valued without being told they are valuable. This is inherent recognition.
Every day employees everywhere look for proof they are valued. Not only do they want their managers to tell them they are important, but they also want them to show it. They want to work for a manager who builds recognition into everyday occurrences. They want to work where recognition is inherent in the way they are treated and in the work they do. Let’s look at how you can do that.
Plante & Moran
Company recruiters visit college campuses every year. They want to lure the best and the brightest to their organizations. They paint an appealing picture of what awaits these college graduates. Recruiters tell these potential hires that they will be a valuable part of their team if only they will choose to work for them. Once hired, these new employees often find the situation a little different from what the recruiters described. Only a small percentage of organizations demonstrate, in any meaningful way, that they really believe the positive things their recruiters say to lure new hires.
Plante & Moran, a Midwest-based midsized accounting firm, is an exception. Its new hires know from the moment they arrive that they’re valued. On their first day of work, new recruits receive business cards, manuals that will help them do their jobs well, and their own office with their name outside the door. They’re assigned two people: one a supervising partner, and the other an experienced coworker called a “buddy.” These two people help them adapt to work life and excel in their new careers. Plante & Moran provides concrete recognition of the value of new employees from the moment they are hired.
Employees see recognition in small gestures like receiving a nameplate on their first day and in bigger gestures like having a partner assigned to help them thrive and excel. The Plante & Moran new-hire process addresses the need for both respect and opportunity, two of the four elements of recognition. Employees there know they are valued. They know they are part of an organization where management wants to help them succeed.
It takes planning, preparation, and follow-through to make recognition part of the environment itself. The new-hire orientation at Plante & Moran is one example of how an organization does this. As a manager, you can learn from Plante & Moran’s success. Make a fuss over new hires:
Send “welcome to our team” cards to their homes.
Provide all the resources they need to get started.
Take the team to lunch on new employees’ first days.
Assign “buddies” to orient them to the workplace.
Connect often to see how you can assist them. them.
More examples in this chapter describe how you can create inherent recognition. First let’s take a brief look at motivation theory and how it impacts your ability to recognize employees.
Understanding the Motivation Connection
Motivation can be intrinsic, extrinsic, or some combination of the two. Extrinsic motivation comes from outside the individual. Extrinsic motivators are the incentives that you can offer: the promise of a bonus if certain criteria are met, the prize in a contest, and the lure of a raise if a project is completed on time. Used properly, these types of incentives can work well,
but there isn’t much recognition built into them.
Used improperly, incentives damage motivation. One seminar participant told me, “I have a supervisor who complains about employees in our unit and then gives them a cash award in hopes that they will improve. What she should be doing is working to get rid of them.” This supervisor has damaged employee trust and is no longer respected. Employees in her department are less likely to feel motivated to perform.
In contrast to extrinsic motivation, intrinsic motivation comes from within. Individuals motivate themselves based on their own personal needs and expectations. Intrinsic motivation varies from person to person, with each individual being motivated by something slightly different from anyone else. A model of intrinsic motivation developed by David McClelland says that what motivates us falls into three basic categories:
Achievement. People motivated by achievement want to do something important or create something of value. They want to be valued for what they do.
Affiliation. People motivated by affiliation want to belong. They want to be part of something bigger than themselves. They want to be valued for who they are and the company they keep.
Power/control. People motivated by power and control want to have an impact on others or the environment. They want to be valued for how they change the world.
In varying degrees, these three motivators drive all of us.
A biotech scientist might find motivation in her desire to make a discovery that would have an impact on the health and well-being of cancer victims (achievement and power/control).
A line worker might care more about producing quality work (achievement) and belonging to a team (affiliation).
What effective recognition does best is acknowledge and support people’s intrinsic motivators, and inherent recognition—recognition that comes from the work and workplace—often does this best. For instance, the biotech scientist in the example above would see additional funding for her research as a valuable form of recognition because it validates the importance of her work. Her manager’s efforts to get project funding, whether successful or not, recognize her potential to achieve and her ability to make a difference. The primary purpose of securing funding is to go forward with the research, not to recognize the employee. Yet the employee will feel recognized. That is inherent recognition—recognition that is built right into the work and workplace.
For the line worker who is motivated by affiliation and achievement, the supervisor can have a positive impact by supporting the team in its efforts to improve performance. The line supervisor might champion his team’s suggestion to change workflow in order to reduce the defect rate simply because he wants to see a reduction in the defect rate. Yet the employee motivated by affiliation and achievement will feel recognized because of the inherent recognition that comes from the supervisor’s support.
What are the intrinsic motivators for the individuals on your team? How can you reinforce these motivators through the work and workplace?
Achievement. Focus on results. Set individual goals and celebrate success. Provide new tasks that build on past achievements.
Affiliation. Focus on the team. Set team goals and celebrate team success. Provide social opportunities and awards that demonstrate that they are part of the team.
Power/control. Focus on positive effect. Are they improving the environment, making the streets safe, providing a phenomenal customer experience?
Recognizing Purpose and Quality
Purpose is a powerful motivator. The inherent recognition in having a common purpose comes from seeing progress toward goals that have a positive effect. Just ask the employees of most nonprofit agencies devoted to providing social services. If they know what their agency is trying to achieve and they believe they are making a contribution to those goals, they feel a strong sense of satisfaction. Many work willingly for much lower pay than they would in private industry because they believe they’re making a difference.
Contrast the nonprofit example with the bureaucracy of some large organizations. You have probably heard more than a few jokes that make fun of bureaucracies. But it’s no longer funny when you find yourself having to deal with a bureaucratic agency or giant conglomerate. Have you ever experienced a situation where you had a problem and couldn’t get anyone to help you? Did employees recite policies that made no sense? Did they shuffle you from department to department until you became frustrated by their lack of concern and caring? Coping with a bureaucracy can quickly wear you down.
Imagine how unmotivated the employees in these organizations must feel. They have to work all day, every day, in an environment that frustrates and drains you in only a matter of moments. In this type of atmosphere, it is difficult to retain a sense of purpose. There is little motivation to do good work. They produce results of subpar quality. Employees are disconnected from the recognition that is inherent in doing valued work.
Employees want to take pride in their organization. They receive a form of recognition when they say, “I work for XYZ company,” when XYZ company has a reputation for serving its community and producing quality products and services.
In the 2007 survey employees completed for Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list, nearly all Google employees said they were proud to tell others where they work. Googlers, as they are called, are proud of their product. One hundred percent of employees use the Google search engine over the competition. They believe their product is the best and adds value to people’s lives. They are also proud of the good works the company does, including green initiatives. According to one employee, “The ‘don’t be evil’ mantra is more than skin deep; it is the core of the culture.” Google provides a great example of the recognition that is inherent in purpose and quality.
Every job, unless it’s illegal or immoral,
can have a mission or purpose that makes work
meaningful and creates inherent recognition.
Consider the employees who work the counter at the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Many DMV offices act as purposeless bureaucracies with unengaged workers. Within that environment, a dynamic supervisor can still motivate employees by helping them recognize how they contribute to the public good. Suddenly those same workers aren’t just shuffling papers. They are doing their part to make the streets safe for the public by testing drivers’ knowledge, verifying that drivers are insured, and requiring proof that vehicles don’t spew pollutants.
What if you’re the broker of a real estate office? Do your agents and employees simply deal in property sales, or do they help people fulfill their dreams of owning a home? If you help them identify a purpose that creates a sense of pride, you have helped develop inherent recognition. Agents and employees with a higher purpose are far more likely to be enthusiastic and meticulous in their work. There is far more recognition in helping people fulfill their dreams than there is in selling houses.
Regardless of what your group does, it has a worthwhile purpose. Help your people find that purpose. Help them provide services or products of exceptional quality. Continually work to improve the group’s reputation within the organization and your community. Remember that one of the elements of recognition is opportunity. Give employees the opportunity to contribute in a meaningful way. Acknowledge their progress. Doing so will create inherent recognition. When people are part of a team that knows that their work is making a difference, they receive recognition that works.
Recognizing Trustworthiness
People want to be trusted to do the right thing. Managers who demonstrate trust by providing unlimited access to information and giving employees the freedom to work flexible hours, tele-work, make decisions without someone’s approval, or do the job as they see fit so long as they meet objectives are recognizing that employees have the best interests of the organization at heart and can be trusted to do what is right. Trusting employees provides two elements of recognition: respect and opportunity.
At Best Buy’s corporate offices, managers have used this concept to completely revamp their culture. They consider theirs a results-only work environment (ROWE). Employees are free to come and go as they please. They choose how, where, and when the work gets done. The only measure is whether the work gets done. Since implementing this change, voluntary turnover has decreased and productivity is up 42 percent.
According to Amy Johnson, Demand Planning Manager, who worked for a manager who offered ROWE-type scheduling early on, “She treated us like grown-ups. . . . It made me feel so energized.”
To manage effectively, the Best Buy managers I spoke with say you need to do all of the following:
Have clear expectations.
Ask your employees if they can commit to goals.
Eliminate roadblocks to success.
Trust and let go, but check in often for status reports.
Best Buy managers say that when you give people absolute freedom in how, where, and when the work gets done, some may test the boundaries for a couple of weeks, and then most will settle in. One or two underperformers will become obvious, and you will have to work with them to get them acclimated to working in this environment.
Ironically, they say that by focusing on results, it may feel like you are micromanaging. Frequent status meetings, until commonplace, can feel like you are checking up on people. You may also have people who aren’t comfortable with determining how the work gets done. You will have to work with that.
Tyler Rebman, Director of Local Insights, who manages a ROWE team, says he once had a manager who said, “You are a big boy/girl. I trust you to do what is right.” And according to Rebman, “That is the essence.” The freedom and flexibility at Best Buy shows employees they are valued.
Recognizing Individual Value
Opportunities for Growth
Employees want to be recognized for their achievements, but they also want to know they are valued as people—that they are respected for who they are, not just what they do. One way you show employees they are valued is by providing opportunities for growth.
The people at Plante & Moran know they are valued, in part, because the organization does such an exceptional job of helping people learn, develop, and grow. Managers focus on retaining people by meeting their need for new opportunities and challenges. They recognize people’s value by ensuring that they are doing a job that provides satisfaction. To do this, employees are encouraged to use Plante & Moran’s in-house vocational counselors. If someone is bored with auditing, the vocational counselors will help that employee find a new challenge appropriate to his or her skills, aptitude, and interests. Usually employees are able to stay within the company, perhaps moving to a position where they offer investment advice, expert testimony, or handle mergers and acquisitions. Occasionally, employees discover a passion that just can’t be filled within an accounting firm. Plante & Moran’s vocational counselors still assist these employees in the process and have, on occasion, counseled employees who go on to become doctors, priests, and even, in one case, a disc jockey. They lose a few people, but at the same time they develop a reputation of truly having their employees’ best interests at heart.
Bill Bufe, Plante & Moran’s Human Resources Director, joined the company directly out of college with a major in accounting. He started as an auditor, but it wasn’t long before he realized he had a knack for recruiting and training. As he expressed interest in this area, he found his responsibilities gradually shifting. Over time he moved from audit partner to human resources. His responsibilities changed as his interests changed. Thirtytwo years later, he is still with the company because he knows he is valued. Employees know the management at Plante & Moran wants them to do what they love and what they do best. It is one of the ways the management demonstrates that employees are important. It is one of the ways they provide inherent recognition.
Because the average employee changes jobs every few years, managers typically feel less of an obligation to provide growth opportunities to their employees than did their predecessors a few decades ago. Ironically, one of the reasons people leave is to pursue new growth opportunities. If managers focused more attention on creating new opportunities for their employees, they could reduce turnover and increase inherent recognition.
To improve both retention and enthusiasm, help employees take on new and different responsibilities. Recognize employees’ value to the organization by giving them opportunities to grow and learn. Invest your time and budget in helping employees develop skills that will move them forward in their careers—even if your department won’t benefit directly from those skills. The more opportunities for growth that you provide, the greater your reputation for developing people. You will attract people who particularly value this form of recognition—people who will work hard to make your department successful.
Pay and Benefits
Pay and benefits demonstrate individual value. Pay people less than they’re worth and less than others in similar positions are paid, and they will interpret that to mean, “You don’t matter to us.”
Underpaying Employees
A CEO once asked me to help implement a recognition program to address a problem his company was having. The problem? This company had 300 percent turnover!
The first question I asked was “What is causing this kind of turnover?” I didn’t have to dig too deep to find the answer. They were paying employees far less than the industry average. In fact, 75 percent of those working elsewhere were making more than they were.
No corporate recognition program was going
to undo the message that was inherent
in being significantly underpaid.
Underpaid employees feel exploited. Common benefits such as health insurance and vacation have an impact similar to fair pay. Provide less than is customary, and employees feel under- valued. According to Frederick Herzberg, pay and benefits don’t motivate, but their lack can cause dissatisfaction. In the same regard, people really don’t think of pay and benefits as recognition, but they can see their absence as a lack of recognition.
As a manager, you probably don’t have a great deal of say in how much your group, as a whole, is paid. If your group is paid well or has outstanding benefits, talk to employees about how they are valued by both you and the organization. If they are underpaid or have limited benefits, you need to counteract the negative impact by explaining the situation as best you can. Maybe your company is going through hard times, and the situation is temporary. Maybe your company simply doesn’t think that it has to meet industry standards. Whatever the reason, clarify that you think they are worth more than they are getting.
Work Environment
Do employees have the resources they need to do their work? Is their work area clean and safe? The work environment that you help create is another way that you tell employees that they are valued. Like pay and benefits, it’s not so much that they see these things as recognition; rather, they see a poor work environment as a lack of recognition of their value to you and the organization. Employees don’t say, “Golly, I have all this information at my disposal; they must think I’m important.” They don’t spend much time thinking about the work environment—unless it’s substandard. Then employees begin to question their importance to the organization. Public school teachers offer a classic example. Many teachers dig into their own paychecks to buy basic classroom supplies like paper and markers. When they have to do this, they’re likely to think, “The district [or community] doesn’t consider my work important.” Is it any wonder many teachers feel undervalued?
Many elements of the work environment are out of a manager’s control. School principals may have no budget for supplies, but that doesn’t mean they can’t work with parents, teachers, and community supporters to find a solution. Fire and police chiefs can’t guarantee a work environment that is always safe. They can, however, work with their people to create as safe an environment as possible. Anything a manager does to improve the employee work environment—successful or not—will recognize employee value.
One element of the work environment is within a manager’s control. Every manager can influence team spirit. Managers are the primary influence as to whether the work environment is oppressive or supportive. To create a more positive environment, you can introduce humor into the workday, have small celebrations, and encourage people to work together. People will enjoy being part of your group and will feel valued. They will recognize that you have their best interests in mind.
Recognition Is Everywhere
Anything that tells people they are valued and important has inherent recognition. It isn’t all about perks and special benefits. It’s about basic respect. A sixth-grade teacher told me that when he experienced a hearing loss, his principal refused to do anything to help him remain effective. Her indifference and lack of support showed him he wasn’t valued. Ultimately, he resigned.
Recognition, or lack of it, really is inherent in everything we do. Keeping employees informed and updated recognizes their value. Providing the best possible work environment does the same thing. Consider the Plante & Moran philosophy: managers believe they should rerecruit their employees every day. Bill Bufe describes rerecruiting this way: “Think of your best staff member. Think as if he is coming in to see you today. What would you do or say if he said he was leaving? Do those things anyway.”
TAKING ACTION
Provide appropriate opportunities. While you are delegating responsibilities, consider who has the appropriate skills and who would value a new opportunity.
Clarify your organization’s purpose, and make sure employees understand their role in achieving that purpose.
Provide the tools, resources, and information employees need to do their jobs effectively.
Treat employees as if they have just said they are leaving. What will you do differently in order to keep them?