Rewarding Employees: Creating a Positive Work Environment Christine Pantoja-Young, MA, CMCP Mesa police communications

In the next 50 minutes, attendees will be able to state: reasons we fail to recognize employees reasons to recognize employees How to recognize employees effectively

Exercise Write down as many words you can think of which would be used to recognize an employee such as “Good Job” Go down the list and see how many times you have used those terms to recognize someone in the last 2 weeks. Score: 0-3 Poor 3-7 Good 7 + Great

Reasons We Fail Too busy Not paying attention The belief that pay is enough Don’t know how They didn’t get praise and don’t think its necessary Don’t want to seem phony Personality They believe they are too busy to take the time. This is usually a failure of the culture that has either overloaded their managers as doers rather than delegators or, has somehow communicated to managers that recognizing employees is not an essential part of their job. They actually have the time, but are not paying enough attention to the employee’s performance to notice the contribution. Many managers are simply more task-focused than people-focused, and have their heads down looking at their to-do lists. They believe “if you don’t hear from me, it means you’re doing a good job.” I’ve personally heard this one from more than one manager. It’s an abdication of manager responsibility in the guise of giving the employee autonomy. And managers should bear in mind what the renowned psychologist William James once said: “The deepest principal in human nature is the craving to be appreciated.”  They believe “employees shouldn’t expect me to pat them on the back all the time for just doing their jobs …their paycheck should be enough.” This perspective is quite common and reveals a basic misunderstanding of human psychology. On the contrary, the pats on the back should be reserved for acknowledging extra effort, not “for just doing their jobs.”  Yes, some employees have been given too many ribbons, but most know it when they have added value and when they have not, and they know it when a pat on the back is robotic and insincere.” They are unsure about how best to recognize, so they do nothing. This is easy enough to understand; people tend not to do things when they’re not exactly sure on how to do them. But this one is also the easiest to correct—by training managers in the basic principles and how-to’s of effective recognition. They never received much praise or recognition themselves, so they aren’t inclined to give it to others. Again, understandable but not excusable. In fact, many managers who practice recognition most effectively do so because they know what it’s like not to be recognized. They believe employees will think they are phony and insincere if they suddenly start praising them. It’s OK for a manager to tell their direct reports they’ve decided to start doling out praise when it’s merited. The key is to notice and praise a specific above-and-beyond contribution and describe how much it meant to the business, not just go around patting people on the back and saying “you’re doing a great job.” They are concerned that if they give special recognition to some, others will feel unfairly overlooked. Employees usually know who deserves to be recognized and who doesn’t. The mistake some managers make is praising the team as a whole when it was really one individual that carried the ball, or singling out one person when it was a team accomplishment. They harbor a fundamental disrespect for some types of work or workers. I once heard a manager say “A monkey could do that job.” I’ve also noticed a tendency to devalue employees in support departments in companies that are otherwise sales-or expertise-driven. This is clearly a massive mistake; all jobs and contributions are worthy of respect. They believe employees know they’re replaceable and shouldn’t expect to receive special treatment. This one is endemic to the current economy. Too many leaders are counting on a poor job market to motivate employee loyalty. Are we really motivated by “You should feel lucky to have a job”? They don’t believe they should have to pay employees above market for sustained high performance or provide bonuses for special achievements. The fact is only about a third of employees believe their pay is linked to their performance. The best employers pay a premium for high performance. They believe the employees they recognize will respond by asking for a raise. Some employees will indeed ask for raises, but that is a question that every manager should expect and be prepared to discuss. They don’t know enough about the employees’ jobs to distinguish between average and superior performance. I’ve heard this one many times from employees in describing their managers, often in technical organizations. Managers who can’t make distinctions between average and superior performance among their direct reports should not be managing them.

Reasons Why We Fail

Why take the time? Interesting Work Good Wages Appreciation Job Security Working Conditions The ranked order of motivating factors were: (a) interesting work, (b) good wages, (c) full appreciation of work done, (d) job security, (e) good working conditions, (f) promotions and growth in the organization, (g) feeling of being in on things, (h) personal loyalty to employees, (i) tactful discipline, and (j) sympathetic help with personal problems. Expectancy Theory The following example compares the third highest ranked motivational factor (full appreciation of work done) to Adams's equity theory. If an employee at the centers feels that there is a lack of appreciation for work done, as being too low relative to another employee, an inequity may exist and the employee will be dis-motivated. Further, if all the employees at the centers feel that there is a lack of appreciation for work done, inequity may exist. Adams (1965) stated employees will attempt to restore equity through various means, some of which may be counter- productive to organizational goals and objectives. For instance, employees who feel their work is not being appreciated may work less or undervalue the work of other employees. Recognition is more powerful than any motivator. Research shows that, more often than not, cash bonuses get spent on bills and perks are soon forgotten, but recognition becomes a memory that is relived time and time again, continually building recognition. Recognition is more powerful than any motivator. Research shows that, more often than not, cash bonuses get spent on bills and perks are soon forgotten, but recognition becomes a memory that is relived time and time again, con

I have no budget? How can I do this? The number one choice for recognition is sincere praise given in a timely manner with specific examples. Basketball games ---lots of good jobs Random Praise Element of surprise Dispatching and calltaking can be thankless…just a thank you

Decide what to reinforce Recognition Steps Decide what to reinforce Be Authentic Formal or Informal Keep Surprise In the moment – Be timely with your feedback and recognition. Think of yourself as a sports coach. Don’t wait until the end of the season to tell your team how they did. Whether it is positive or constructive feedback, your employees will have the opportunity to improve as of that moment. Also, feedback and recognition in real-time increases employee engagement at the workplace. If an employee finishes a project in the morning, giving immediate feedback can help motivate the employee to be engaged throughout the rest of day. Authentic, not automatic – Show your employees that you know exactly what they did to contribute to the success of the project. Be specific and descriptive. Take the time to write a personal note with the recognition. This will tell your employees that they are not just a human body working for you, but they are part of your team. For example, Sheldon Yellen, CEO of Belfor Restoration, hand-writes birthday cards to every single employee. His deep caring for his employees has positively influenced the corporate culture. In context – Link the recognition to the company’s bigger goals and core values. Explain to your employees that their effort is not only contributing to their team, but also to the overall success of the organization. You want to make them feel part of the team. For example, “You rock for making cookies,” means nothing to an employee compared to “We thank you for making the cookies as it gave the team good energy to work through the night, which ultimately allowed us to finish the client’s project before the deadline”. You want your recognition to help your employees have a clear line of sight on how their contributions benefit the organization. Not everything revolves around money. By recognizing your employees for their accomplishments and not putting a dollar amount on their contributions, you are giving them the gift of esteem. In return, you will definitely get higher employee engagement and retention. Be the leader in rocking your employees’ recognition program without tying it to financial rewards.

Daily Recognition Stop and talk. Put it in writing. Go public. Be Consistent. Stop and talk. Put it in writing. Join in. Change the pace

Pitfalls •Popularity Contest •Forgetting Average Employees •Acknowledging a group but not the individual •Over-praising False enthusiasm

Ideas Training class or a conference like APCO/NENA Post a thank you note on an employee’s console. Wash the employee’s car in the parking lot during the lunch hour. Create and post an “Employee Honor Roll” in the break room for the highest stats. Acknowledge individual achievements by using employee’s name when preparing a status report Make a photo collage about a successful project that shows the people that worked on it, its stage of development and its completion and presentation. Make a thank-you card by hand.

Ideas Cover the person’s console with balloons. Inscribe a favorite book as a gift. Establish a place to display memos, posters, photos and so on, recognizing progress towards goals and thanking individual employees for their help. Establish a “Behind the Scenes” award specifically for those whose actions are not usually in the limelight. Nominate the employee for an APCO or NENA formal award Give special assignments to people who show initiative.

Ideas At a monthly staff meeting, award an Employee of the Month and have everyone at the meeting stand up and say why that person is deserving of the award. If your team is under pressure, bring a bag of marbles to work and take a break to have a contest – a sure stress reliever. Serve ice cream sundaes to all of your employees—for instance if they meet ringtimes. Give employees an extra long lunch break. Have staff vote for top manager, supervisor, employee and rookie of the year.

Christine Pantoja-Young Questions? Christine Pantoja-Young Christine.pantoja-young@mesaaz.gov 480.644.2238