Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER AUGUST 2018 18 FEATURES RECOGNITION Getting leaders engaged in recognition Show them it's more than an expense, it's an investment in the workforce By Roy Saunderson M anaging a company's various employee rec- ognition programs can be tough. Far more challenging is keeping senior leaders en- gaged with the initiative. It can be an uphill battle gain- ing leader endorsement. Program budget approvals can be a lengthy back-and-forth process if monies are tight. Often, budget submis- sions are cut along the way. e next battle is trying to get leaders to participate by using the programs. is can seem foreign to them — giving recognition may not come naturally. Here are some ways to tackle leadership engagement issues: Prepare properly Having plans approved for a rec- ognition program should happen long before they are needed. Re- verse-engineer all that a leader re- quires of you to obtain their sup- port for an initiative. Continually communicate and educate them about the program, and don't leave updates until the quarter be- fore approvals are needed — start ahead of time. It's about using the "CNN ef- fect" for all communication: Scroll bar advisories: Provide your vision or news in short and sweet sound-bites. Keep messages to about 25 words. Try to make a request or ask a question each time, and then follow up. Breaking news: Keep leaders informed immediately of updates and changes. Always accompany a situation message with a solution, and provide them with steps to address any damage control. Developing story: Tell them what happened and what's on the horizon. Keep them informed and educated on the latest recognition research. Show them the connec- tion of employee recognition driv- ing business results and improv- ing people metrics. Special report: Give leaders a review of the recognition pro- gram successes and challenges. Go deep on the business impact recognition has had in achieving strategic goals. Have the finance group monetize as many of the impact measures as possible. Take the focus off money ere's a critical need to move away from gaining leadership buy-in for employee recognition programs. Whenever people get into a "buy-in" discussion, they are talk- ing solely from a monetary or ex- pense perspective. Instead, gain each leader's per- sonal commitment — it's then that money conversations turn from expense to investment. Strategic budgeting: e focus should be on strategizing bud- gets. Demonstrate how recogni- tion can help leaders achieve the company's strategic initiatives. Consider where you will gain the greatest business impact and posi- tive response from people. Constant measurement: Help leaders by measuring recognition program effectiveness. Look at program usage and employees' perception of recognition effec- tiveness. Move beyond program reports to analyze and correlate data with objectives and key results. Sustainable budget: Create a sustainable recognition budget that is continuous year over year. is means you can more likely add to it instead of becoming a re- curring target for being cut when- ever financial problems arise. Solid accountability: Hold departmental leaders account- able for recognition and rewards budgets. Have external providers regularly review program usage and budget spend. Request that they flag you on where to reduce costs when programs are not hav- ing an impact. Demonstrate ROI: Provide leaders with the business impact and, where feasible, a return on investment for all recognition programs. Sometimes the ben- efit is relational and keeping good people happy, while other metrics can be monetized. Overall, it's about taking the focus off money when possible. Instead, use program analyt- ics to prove the cost/benefit and ROI that leaders will see, so they will then be more invested in recognition. Gain full participation Leaders are busy people striving to maintain and improve the triple bottom line of people, planet and profits. eir lives are strategically focused and visionary. It is difficult for them to be tactical on a day-to-day basis. However, their engagement and example are essential, especially with employee recognition. Encourage leaders to set a posi- tive recognition direction. ey must demonstrate consistent and effective recognition giving, as well as sponsoring recognition practices and programs. Invite leaders to personally commit to consistent and regu- lar usage of all the recognition programs. Have them schedule a daily recognition activity on their calendar, such as writing a few thank-you notes or sending messages of acknowledgement to workers with outstanding em- ployee performance. In essence, it's about working hard to gain leaders' personal commitment versus buy-in. It's about presenting information so recognition can be viewed as an investment versus an expense. And it's about having leaders personally experience the im- pact of meaningful, memorable and motivational recognition on employees. Roy Saunderson is chief learning of- ficer at Rideau Recognition Solutions in Montreal, which delivers recogni- tion and reward solutions that inspire employees to succeed. For more infor- mation, visit www.rideau.com. Start your free trial subscription * THE CANADIAN PAYROLL MANUAL ONLINE (CLASSIC)/ LE MANUEL DE PAIE CANADIEN EN LIGNE (CLASSIQUE) OR THE CANADIAN PAYROLL MANUAL ONLINE (ELITE) See how our newly enhanced Canadian payroll references meet all your payroll needs New in 2018 New enhancements to the Thomson Reuters online payroll products FREE ACCESS FOR 30 DAYS * © 2017 Thomson Reuters Canada Limited 00246WX-88906-NK Call 1-800-387-5164 and ask to start today. 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