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| Message From: madure |
Total Posts: 261 |
Rank: Thinker |
| Post Date: 14/07/2006 21:08:29 |
Points: 1355 |
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Most children have experienced it at least once—the glee of ripping open a Christmas gift turning to horror as the child is confronted by the ugliest sweater in the world. The kind of sweater with reindeer stitched on the front and glitter sprinkled across it—the last sweater on earth a self-respecting kid would ever wear in public.
Generally, these dreadful sweaters are gifts from well-meaning grandmothers who intend to make the child happy, but are regrettably not attuned to the child’s wishes and desires.
Sadly, employees often receive similarly irrelevant tokens of appreciation from equally out of touch managers. Rather than an honor, many efforts to recognize employees are seen as jokes or embarrassments by the ones receiving them. Fast-food coupons, cheap trophies, and engraved plaques fall miserably short in their goals of encouraging and motivating employees.
Andy Holloway examines how to adequately appreciate employees in his article for Canadian Business magazine entitled “In Praise of Praise: Employee Recognition.” As Holloway points out, proper gestures of gratitude enable managers to lift employee satisfaction while reducing turnover.
While receiving a hideously unattractive sweater was never fun, at least you knew grandma was thinking about you and expressing her love as best she could. Far worse, imagine a birthday passing by without a single call or gift from family. Few feelings are worse than those of being forgotten or ignored, yet that’s precisely the experience of employees across America.
Underappreciation is a pandemic sweeping through workplaces in the United States. Holloway cites a 2004 study by Gallup in which a whopping 65% of American employees report getting no recognition for their accomplishments at work. According to Gallup, poor performance by overlooked or alienated employees translated into a $300 billion dent in the U.S. economy in the year 2000.
How can managers pass along praise that is genuine and well-received? Holloway makes some recommendations:
Personalize your praise
While cash bonuses are good, a round of golf or a day at the spa communicates gratitude personally by recognizing the favorite pastimes and hobbies of an employee.
Be specific with your praise.
Highlighting specific behaviors or achievements shows more thankfulness than blanket statements and generalized praise.
Present praise with care.
Think through and intentionalize your delivery of praise. Oftentimes what is said is not as important as how it’s said.
For more suggestions to properly praise your people, go to the Canadian Business Online at: www.canadianbusiness.com
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