'Employee expectations have evolved towards immediate, continuous and transparent recognition'
In a talent-scarce market, all employees are searching for organisations where they understand and feel connected to the mission and values, according to Reward Gateway’s director of consultancy, Kylie Green.
Green told HRD that Millennials, in particular, are looking for an employer where they know they will “receive visibility for their contribution to that journey”.
“But we talk to many organisations that can’t seem to find the success that the research shows,” said Green.
In fact, companies are spending more money on employee recognition solutions than ever before, but engagement levels are staying stagnant.
“We want to help change that statistic and have learned from many companies the common reasons why programs fall short, and how they have overcome them to increase employee connection and achieve their business goals through the power of recognition.”
To help further understand this pressing issue, Green will be speaking at the upcoming webinar: Tackling Common Recognition and Reward Frustrations.
According to Green, there are a number of recognition and reward frustrations which HR professionals face.
“The three we hear often are that employees don’t use the program, that employees become disenchanted with the program due to how the reward is delivered to them, and that cumbersome processes makes the program burdensome for HR,” said Green.
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She added that other frustrations relate to timeliness and transparency.
“Employee expectations have evolved towards immediate, continuous and transparent recognition, from both peers and managers with a focus on reinforcing values and behaviours - ‘what great looks like around here’,” said Green.
“Many recognition frameworks are outdated with a focus on delayed recognition from leaders to a very small part of the workforce through things like service awards or employee of the year.
“When done right, recognition and reward programs can create some powerful results like higher productivity, enhanced attraction, reduced employee churn and people costs, and better customer satisfaction.”
So, if Green could give one piece of advice relating to ‘Tackling Common Recognition and Reward Frustrations’, what would it be?
For people just beginning their recognition journey, Green recommends making sure the foundations are in place around clearly communicating how to use the program with the manager and champions in the company. This will help drive usage, while aligning your purpose, mission and values will create behaviours that support the business.
“For companies that have the foundations in place, my key piece of advice would be to think about how they ‘wrap up’ and deliver recognition and reward to their employees,” added Green.
There is a lot of time and focus that goes into designing recognition workflows and approvals, but of even greater importance to recognition success is how you communicate and deliver the recognition experience to your leaders and people. This involves looking at:
How does it bring your mission and values to life and make them part of your company’s DNA?
How does it create showcase your unique culture?
How does it create immediate visibility for employees who are living your values and behaviours?
How does it create greater awareness for what ‘great looks like’ in action around here?
How much does it ‘feel’ like you, by including your language, videos and photos of your people?
Green added that ultimately, the way you package up, communicate and deliver your recognition program will impact the employee experience and leader experience.
“Done innovatively, it’s a really powerful way to increase connection between your people and your business and provide employees with what they crave at work.”
Reward Gateway in partnership with HRD are hosting a FREE webinar, Tackling Common Recognition and Reward Frustrations, being held on Thursday, 21 February at 10:00am – but you need to register soon!
Click here to register now!