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Make it Special
By Heidi Waldrop Bay
Don't Dismiss the Details When Rolling Out Your Next Reward Program
The executive vice president at the bank was convinced that he had the perfect recognition program. Nominations would be made over a period of several months, then he and his staff would review them and the winner would "Get to go to a Rolling Stones concert with me."
When Stillman St. Clair heard his friend's plan he was aghast at the potential for failure. Would every employee see it as a great reward to go to a rock concert with their boss? What if they didn't like the Rolling Stones? What if they were completely intimidated by that kind of casual intimacy with the top dog at the bank, or their spouse was scared silly by the whole idea?
The usually savvy executive hadn't considered any of these questions: He simply chose the reward because he himself loved the Rolling Stones and figured it would be what an employee would want.
In fact, this notion is exactly opposite of what makes an employee recognition program impactful, according to St. Clair, who is director of the workforce performance group for St. Louis, Missouri-based Maritz Incentives. "An effective recognition is a very personal thing, and making it special means paying close attention to the employee's preferences, interests and personality," he says. "It is critical that you know your people or you could completely undermine the program."
Approach to Presentation
Presentation can make or break the entire award, and for many people it is more meaningful than the gift item itself. "We can't stress enough how important it is to make presenting the award compelling and relevant to that individual. Know your audience and what they would enjoy," says Michelle M. Smith CPIM, vice president of business development for Salt Lake City, Utah-based O.C. Tanner. "For those people who love public recognition it is best to gather the person's peers around in the office and say 'Guess what Joe did that was so great.'"
Others might like a semi-public reward, like an awards dinner where several people are highlighted. But there will be some people who are absolutely mortified—and certainly not feeling rewarded—by a public display. They might appreciate being brought into the manager's office to be praised and given a reward for their efforts one-on-one.
 Method of Delivery
Making the recipient feel special is critical. It is also important to make sure the presenter is both sincere and specific, according to O.C. Tanner's
Smith. "Think of something quantifiable
that you can speak to and bring in
the details so that the recipient understands
exactly what they are getting
the reward for," she says. "I might say,'Jane, the other night when we had the
power failure and you stayed, using
the flashlight to hunt through the files
for that information for a client, that
was great.'"
When calling out those details it is
vital to make sure they are right, from
pronouncing the name correctly, to
knowing the facts about what exactly
the person did. "And tie those facts
back to the specific mission, vision or
value of the corporation, saying something
like 'Boy, when you stayed the
other night Jane, that is what we mean
when we talk about our corporate goal
of supreme customer service. For that
effort, we want to recognize you,'"
says Smith. The added benefit of such
specificity when the presentation is
public is that everyone else learns from
that experience what it looks like to go
above and beyond.
An Individualized Reward
A little knowledge goes a long way
when it comes to having an effective
award impact. Do recipients value
being able to choose their own
award—and therefore feel special
because they are given that choice—or would they be bowled over by getting
presented with a specific gift?
If it is the first, experts emphasize
making sure the assortment of gift
options is broad enough to address the
various demographics of the audience.
If presenting a specific gift is the order
of the day, Stillman St. Clair of Maritz
Incentives suggests spending the effort
to do some brief research and key the
reward into their particular interest. "It is easy to make a person feel special
if you know something about their
interests and their family," he says,
explaining how just a bit of customization
goes a long way. "Say you have a
guy who works for you and you know
he is very into golf. He has done something
above and beyond, so you say'Why don't you take the afternoon off
and we'll cover your work while you go
play a round of golf at this really wonderful
golf course.' There is a bit of risk
there, because you are choosing for
the person, but it has huge impact.
He's thinking, 'Wow. My boss knows
I love golf, and he went to all this
trouble to arrange this because I did something for the company.'"
A Personal Note
In the hearts of most employees,
nothing beats the power of a personal
note from an executive. The higher the
level of management, the more special
it becomes. "In our industry we tend
to focus on the big stuff, that 'wow'
reward, but it really is the simple pat
on the back that matters most to people.
Those handwritten notes are worth their
weight in gold," says St. Clair. "They
end up getting posted on office doors
and bulletin boards and stay there for
months, or even years."
St. Clair believes it is even okay
to type some of the notes on the computer,
as long as the personal piece is
there. "If I want to recognize someone,
I might send her an e-mail, but I would
also want to print it out and deliver it
in person," says St. Clair, likening this
practice to exercise—something is
better than nothing. "If I have a frantic
schedule and only have time to do it
on the computer, then it is better than
nothing. But it is always best if I can
hand-write a note to the person."
© 2006, Incentive Magazine, www.incentivemag.com, VNU eMedia Inc.
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