Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER FEBRUARY 2018 FEATURES 23 © 2017 Thomson Reuters Canada Limited 00246WX-89064-NK Start your free 30-day trial today. Order today and receive 15% off your first year subscription. Quote promo code 67030 for your free trial or discount when you place your order * *Offer available to new subscribers only of The Canadian Payroll Manual Print (Classic), Canadian Payroll Manual Online (Classic)/Le Manuel de paie canadien en ligne (classique) and Canadian Payroll Manual Online (Elite) (formerly Carswell Payroll Source). Discount cannot be combined with any other offer from Thomson Reuters. Test drive the powerful new Canadian Payroll Manual Online (Classic and Elite versions) for 30 days free and enjoy 15% * off your first year Get more done, more efficiently, more features and functionalities NEW: Hotline chat enhances popular payroll hotline. Enjoy one-on-one support from payroll experts – now with the added convenience of real-time online chat. 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RECOGNITION 5 non-negotiables for recognition Meaningful moments, strategy, data analytics can have greater impact By John Mills A s managers fine-tune their goals and imple- ment their plans for a successful 2018, there will be several who overlook the use of employee recognition to engage and motivate employees to end- of-year success. But no matter the business industry, internal challenges or external climate, a solidly crafted recognition program, coupled with a knowledgeable and caring manager, can make all the differ- ence to a company's results. Smart managers understand the power of these five recogni- tion non-negotiables to attain their goals and keep people happy: Recognize their own gaps: Managers should be honest and access their own recognition knowledge and style. Are they doing it frequently enough? Are they being sincere when they do? Is it timely? Is it specific? ese are the questions (among oth- ers) they should ask themselves to help translate their employees' contributions into meaningful moments of appreciation. Recognize employees cor- rectly: Make recognition a part of the daily routine. Leaders should think about employee recogni- tion as they would daily hygiene. Initially, people may have to be trained on how to do it correctly (yes, there are right and wrong ways to recognize people), but if practised enough, this will even- tually become habit. Recognize and appreciate people's diversity and contri- butions: Often times, managers think employee recognition can be done by simply buying a cake for an employee's birthday or giv- ing her a gift on her employment anniversary date. While those things are important and have a place in an employee recognition strategy, they are not the things that are going to engage employ- ees to work harder. Aligning words with actions in a timely and sincere manner buys more engagement from employ- ees than a watch from a catalogue ever will. Employees want to know their manager "sees" them and their contributions. They want to know their manager values the diversity they bring to the team. is is the fundamental aspect of any good recognition program, and is paramount to engaging and retaining top talent. But re- member, it's about "quality versus quantity," as too much recognition can be seen as insincere and lose its effectiveness, and can even jeopardize the culture leaders are trying to build. Use data analytics: e science and strategy of employee recogni- tion is a match made in employee engagement heaven. Big data or data analytics has permeated most industries, so it's about using recognition data to identify man- agers who do employee recogni- tion well, identify managers who need improvement, and providing specific tools and training oppor- tunities to bridge those gaps. Make it a strategic contribu- tion: If a company's employee recognition program is not in- cluded as a key business objec- tive, it is missing a major piece of the overall strategic plan. Engage- ment from employees through a well-designed, management or employee relationship-focused and culturally integrated recogni- tion system will play a major role in helping a company hit its key performance indicators. Smart managers understand the connection between their relationship with employees and the company's bottom line. An employee's immediate manager represents the company to most employees. It is important that managers realize how important they are to that culture and to the success of their company. Of course, there are more than five things to know about em- ployee recognition, but if employ- ers make sure these five areas are well-covered, they will be on their way to making people feel appre- ciated. In turn, they will perform better than ever. John Mills is vice-president of busi- ness development at recognition and engagement solutions provider Rideau in Montreal. For more information, visit www.rideau.com. Credit: evencake (Shutterstock)

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