26 Jul

Highlighting The “Why” Behind Your Rewards

Posted in Synergy Suggestions on 26.07.13 by John Meloche

staffOffering your symbols of thanks and recognition is an excellent business practice. As you would expect, Synergy Marketing believes strongly in this concept and, as a result, we provide the best promo products in our industry. As we’ve been detailing over the past couple of days, however, there are many ways to offer thanks in addition to promotional products.

This offering of thanks, let us remind you, should be directed toward both your customers and your staff members. But as Susan M. Heathfield writes on About.com, there must be sentiment behind the recognition so that it is properly taken. In other words, you’re not just giving out rewards for no reason. Your show of thanks is also your way of communicating what you expect from your employees in future.

Heathfield offers up a number of effective ways to recognize your employees. In this case, it’s not so much about how you acknowledge them, but instead why you are acknowledging them. Making clear your reasons for offering your show of thanks is what will make the gesture most effective. As she writes, “employee recognition is a communication tool that reinforces and rewards the most important outcomes people create for your business.”

“All employees must be eligible for the recognition.” There should be a message of equity in your office. And that is that all members of your staff are potential reward-recipients. What you want is a motivated staff that feels that they are each equal to their co-workers. That way, when members of the team are rewarded, it is known that individual efforts are being recognized, and that it’s not about favourtism.

“The recognition must supply the employer and employee with specific information about what behaviors or actions are being rewarded and recognized.” It is important to be crystal clear about what is being celebrated. Rewards don’t work as well when they are given out randomly – and to everyone. Your show of thanks is also your way of saying “this is what is expected of you going forward.”

“Anyone who then performs at the level or standard stated in the criteria receives the reward.” As mentioned earlier, your office should be one that provides equal opportunities. This means that unless an employee is performing at the level required to receive recognition, he or she won’t be recognized with a reward. However, several people can be acknowledged at once if they all make the grade.

“The recognition should occur as close to the performance of the actions as possible, so the recognition reinforces behavior the employer wants to encourage.” In other words, don’t delay. If you want a productive staff, be sure about being diligent in the way you recognize its members. Provide your rewards as often as necessary. Keep motivating your team to work towards being recognized.

Finally, Heathfield writes that “you don’t want to design a process in which managers ‘select’ the people to receive recognition. This type of process will be viewed forever as ‘favoritism’ or talked about as ‘it’s your turn to get recognized this month.’ This is why processes that single out an individual, such as ‘Employee of the Month,’ are rarely effective.”

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15 Jul

Creating Your Team Of All-Stars

Posted in News, Synergy Suggestions on 15.07.13 by John Meloche

jaysMajor League Baseball’s All-Star Week is finally upon us! It all gets started tonight with the ever-popular Home Run Derby. The official All-Star Game takes place tomorrow night. And it all goes down at Citi Field in New York, which is the home of the Mets. No less than four Toronto Blue Jays will be taking part. Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion, and Brett Cecil were all originally chosen as All-Stars.

Reliever Steve Delabar made it in through fan voting last week as the fourth Jay. The team led an excellent #RaiseTheBar campaign that gained the attention of baseball fans from all over Canada. Now that the All-Stars are ready to take the field, it brings to mind the concept of recognizing a job well done on your team. Baseball All-Stars, after all, are chosen based on the excellence of their play thus far in the season.

To truly create all-stars at your business, it’s important that they be recognized. The recognition in and of itself can help inspire your team members to do better jobs on a regular basis. On Careerealism.com, Susan Ruhl lists a number of methods to help business owners get the most out of their employers. Looking to acknowledge your own all-star team? Here’s how…

Connect Individuals To The Bigger “Why”. Ruhl asks entrepreneurs a number of questions. What inspires you? What gives you passion? Consider the answers to those questions and attempt to inspire your employees. They should be on board with you when it comes to doing a good job for the betterment of the entire organization. Find out what makes them tick and tap into it to get them to want what you want.

Personalize Recognition. It’s important to recognize individual achievements. That’s exactly what Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game does. It doesn’t matter how well the team is doing, people who excel deserve personal acknowledgement. This will, in turn, inspire the other members of the team to step their games up. Be sure to publicly thank your individual employees for jobs well done.

Reiterate The Significance Of Each Role. Remind each contributor on your team of the importance of each role they play. They need to know that their involvement in your projects really matter. You should keep your team members informed of how their roles help the company to achieve its greater purpose. Include them and their contributions in your meetings and newsletters.

Celebrate. Bonuses. Wage increases. Promotional gifts. There are a number of ways to show your team members that you appreciate them. Who says you can’t throw a party because of their great work? Give your employees reasons to enjoy their work and they will work better, as a result. If you want a team of all-stars, you need to inspire them through creative and fun activities as well as prizes that reward their work.

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