Bring out the Positive: The Power of Employee Recognition

When we talk about feedback, most of us will associate it with an unpleasant experience. Feedback sessions we had as subordinates or the session we conducted as a supervisor is invariably, is to bring out the negative behaviour of an employee into the open. In almost all the cases, the feedback unfold the power of destruction. Effective managers recognise the power of negative feedback. High performance managers direct their energies to bring out the positive elements of an employee’s behaviour, thereby creating opportunities to reinforce the positive behaviour.

Effective managers focus on bringing their subordinates towards the desired state of affairs - the target. What should we do to make this possible? Recognition and staff appreciation are the two best approaches to motivate employees . Unfortunately majority of the managers do not offer adequate recognition and appreciation to their staff. The best way to a get started towards our journey to bring out the best in our employees through recognition and appreciation is to ask the following questions:
How often we provide feedback in the form of appreciation?
How often we recognise good performance?
What is the ratio of our positive and negative feedback?
Are we in a position to say that our positive feedback outweigh the negative
feedback?

The feedback that emphasise the negative behaviour, attempts to tell the person that he/she need to change towards a positive level. Unfortunately most people will not accept negative comments. The worst is the receiving party criticise not only what was said, but also find fault the person who was gave the feedback. This would mean the feedback would no longer bring about any meaningful change at personal level.

Almost all the motivational theories highlight the human craving for attention and recognition. Unfortunately, our normal day-to-day managerial activities do not take note of this important fact. Some argue that the negative feedback is one form of recognition. That may be true. Recognition with punishment element along with creating low esteem is not going to work. Recognition should focus on highlighting the positive aspects of the person, so that the person feel recognized and praised.

Recognition can take the form of ‘Praise’. Praising employees is not an easy task for many of us. Some may ask: Praise an employee for what - for the quality of work they are expected to do, or praise only when the work exceed the set standard. You praise on both occasions.

The next question is how do we praise? Remember the following points:
Praise immediately - the sooner you recognise the better is the effect
Praise sincerely - your words and body language should harmonise the message.
Be specific - refer to the specific situation/action
Highlight the contribution - as far as possible try and quantify the results
Praise in public, whenever possible.


What else can we do to recognise employees contribution, other than praise. Recognition can incorporate rewards. Rewards can be in the form of financial or non-financial. At operational level, the best option is to focus on non-financial rewards. What are our options at this stage? Bob Nelson’s 1001 ways to reward employees (obtainable at www.Amazon.com provides practical and inexpensive ways to reward employees. Adopting spontaneous and informal rewards initiated by line managers and immediate supervisors are some of the best ways to reward employees.

To take full advantage of the power of recognition, we must make sure the reward practices are fair, just and reflect the element of equity. Any employee who meet the standards should be recognized. Employee recognition meet almost all the human needs identified by Abraham Maslow.

Arul John Peter, is a Facilitator with the Centre for Creative Thinking, a training agency based in Singapore (www.creativityasia.com). He conducts training workshops on creativity and related soft skills for clients in Asia and Middle East. He holds an MBA and majored in strategic human resource management. He is a member of the American Creativity Association.