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| DESCRIPTION | |
| When it's lacking: - Major milestones come and go with no apparent recognition from management. - Great effort and performance go unrecognized because "that's what we pay you for." - Everyone seems too busy to acknowledge anything. "Quick, on to the next project!" |
When it's thriving: + Employees are acknowledged for a job well done -- not with extrinsic rewards but with genuine appreciation. + The organization takes time to celebrate its major efforts (the journey) and successes (the destination). + Following a big project, people are able to pause, get a sense of closure, and savor (however briefly) their accomplishment. |
| EXAMPLES |
| When she was hired by a Fortune 500 manufacturing company, Kimberly led a team that
developed an advanced quality-improvement training program. It was the first of its
kind in her industry, and soon after, a national group selected the program for special
acknowledgment at its annual conference. Kimberly assumed that her team -- or at
least a few of the members, including herself -- would be making the trip to receive
the award. Wrong assumption. Her boss went alone and brought home the award, even
though he had no direct role in developing the workshop. What should have been a
time of celebration turned into a tempest of hard feelings. Mary works as a first-grade teacher in an elementary school, and when asked to explain why she finds her workplace so meaningful, she always comes back to the principal. "Whenever I see him at the end of the day, he always thanks me for my service," she says. "And the way he says it, you know he really means it. I'd climb mountains for him." In his work at an interior-design firm, Carl worked on project after project after project. In fact, after a while it seemed as if all the projects were going past in a nonstop blur. "My boss (the owner of the company) saw it as a sprint, and he had us going flat-out all the time," Carl says. "It should have been thought of as a cross-country run -- one where you have time to pause, celebrate your accomplishments, and refresh." |
| ACTION IDEAS |
| Think back to the past six to twelve months. What major workplace milestones came
and went without acknowledgment? Press the pause button and pull folks together.
Take time to reflect, celebrate, savor. Look down the road. What milestones are quickly approaching? What will be done to reach them in style? How will the organization celebrate them and collectively learn from all that happened? Start thinking and planning. At this very moment, think of all the people around you whose efforts have made a difference. Perhaps it's the printer whose stunning work helped you meet that ungodly deadline. Maybe it's the designer who transformed your ordinary report into a masterpiece. Or it could be the folks who constantly do the "small things" that add up to "big things." As the next two weeks unfold, make a point of acknowledging them for their great work. Keep in mind the sharp distinction between acknowledgment and praise. The latter -- with its gold-star, grade-school roots --is extrinsic and patronizing. It can fuel internal competition. It's a manifestation of our worst top-down inclinations. Acknowledgment, on the other hand, is grounded in respect and gratitude. It knows that people do great work because of deep interests, passions, commitment -- stuff that comes from within. |
| Copyright 1998-2002 by Tom Terez and Tom Terez Workplace Solutions, Inc. P.O. Box 21444, Columbus, Ohio USA 43221-0444. Tel. 614-571-9529..mail@BetterWorkplaceNow.com HOME | 10-Minute Briefing | Free Online Tools | Insight and Inspiration | Laugh and Learn | Buzzword Bingo | Kits, Books, and Tools | Keynotes and Services | Meet Tom Terez | Tell a Friend | Bronze Access |
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