Importance of Celebrating Successes
It’s always important to keep a record of the wins that are happening across the team. You need to build a culture of celebrating successes and recognition. Record the wins and share them with everyone. It can be hard to see all the good things that happen daily. Sharing wins promptly is essential. Make sure to recognize the contributions of others.
All leaders and teams should maintain a “Success Tracker” where accomplishments, both big and small, are recorded. Writing successes down as they happen, with the regular review, will drive you and your team forward.
Everyone Needs Recognition
All employees, regardless of industry, demographic differences, region, etc. want the same things. All employees want to be:
- Led by a capable leader who has a clear sense of direction who hears and acknowledges them.
- Able to use their skills and abilities to their full potential and find meaning in their work.
- They are appropriately compensated and treated fairly by their employers.
- Able to grow their skills and develop as individuals.
- Recognized and given credit for good work.
Why Recognize?
Leaders often get caught up in the day-to-day, unknowingly forgetting to recognize their team. Recognition is vital. Many leaders say statements like, “Why should I recognize people for just doing their jobs?” Without those employees doing their jobs, you, the leader, wouldn’t be able to do yours.
As the leader, you need to ensure you build, maintain, and celebrate behaviors that you want to see repeated. People are best motivated when they are recognized. Everyone wants to work for and with a leader who regularly recognizes employees who:
- Are consistent every day.
- Go the extra mile to help customers and others.
- Give suggestions that create benefits for the business and department.
Build Recognition Programs
Some ways to strengthen recognition is to:
- Make it peer-driven.
- You can’t see, hear or review everything that your employees do. While you are stuck in meetings, your team is working away on various tasks and responsibilities. As a group, everyone is supporting each other, often aware of great moments.
- Cross-functional and public.
- Many organizations operate in silos. The sharing of information, resources, or decisions can get tucked behind an iron curtain where only those who are part of specific teams have access.
- Random yet focused recognition.
- Work can sometimes be very negative. So, to shake it up, you may need to make the day more positive.
Peer-Driven Example
Purpose: To recognize team members who go above and beyond the call of duty.
- Every month, team members send through nominations, which they thought were deserving recognition.
- Ask for a brief example of why they are choosing that person to be recognized.
- At the end of the month, review all nominations, choosing the top 3 as that month’s recipients.
- Announce the winners each month in front of the entire team.
- Providing the winners with either certificate or trophy commemorating their achievement is a nice touch.
- Also, depending on your budget, allowing them to either spin a wheel or play games for prizes like gift cards helps too.
- The specific reason or story for why someone is selected should be shared with the entire team to help with encouraging similar behaviors.
Cross-Functional Example
Purpose: Acknowledge and recognize the contributions of individuals in other departments cross-functionally who make a significant difference to the team, helping achieve your goals, and providing support.
- This program can help not only to break down the walls between departments, opening doors, and access to more collaboration; it can also help with gaining a principal advocate for your team cross-functionally.
- From providing pizza lunches to opportunities to spin the wheel for prizes to providing a custom-made trophy, it is essential to recognize the individuals across the business who help you.
- Those with trophies may choose to display them at their desks proudly.
- This program presents a unique moment where you could surprise a recipient with the honor, prize, and applause publicly.
- Afterward, remember to email that person’s department or leader about the achievement as well as your own.
Positive Friday (or whatever day it is)
Purpose: Catch people doing things right.
- On a random day, ask some of your team to find a minimum of 3 things that others are doing right and thank them for it.
- Review all the positive moments.
- Regroup and discuss the positive moments together.
- Soon the collective mood and atmosphere around the team become more positive.
- Everyone will see there are more positives than negatives.
- If you regularly catch people doing things right enough, it will become second nature.
- Pick a day and call it “Positive Friday, Monday … whatever! You will instantly reap the rewards of a more favorable environment.
For more information about recognition and celebrating success or help with building a “Success Tracker,” contact us for additional information.
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