How to Keep Employee Recognition Fresh, Strategic and Inclusive
When co-CEOs ask how to revitalise their recognition programme without falling into the favouritism trap, the answer reveals why 91% of companies have recognition programmes but only 31% rate them as highly effective.
Recognition programmes are everywhere, but meaningful recognition? That's rarer than you might think. This disconnect came into sharp focus during my conversation with Belinda and Amie, co-CEOs of COS, who were grappling with a challenge facing thousands of businesses: how do you keep recognition authentic when your current programme is "getting a bit tired"?
Why Recognition Programmes Fail
The numbers tell a sobering story. While 90% of HR professionals say effective recognition programmes improve business results, there's a massive execution gap. Only 31% of organisations rate their programme effectiveness as "high," despite 91% having programmes in place.
The financial impact is significant: organisations with formal employee recognition programmes have 31% less voluntary turnover, and companies with engaged employees experience 21% higher profitability.
Strategic Alignment: The Key to Fresh Recognition
The most effective recognition programmes evolve with business strategy. As I told Belinda and Amie, "The best recognition programmes are aligned to strategy, and strategy changes over time."
Cos already has "strategic bubbles"—annual focus areas designed to double the business. Instead of generic values-based recognition, they can align acknowledgements directly to current strategic priorities. When strategy shifts, recognition focus shifts with it.
Solving the Personalisation vs Favouritism Dilemma
Amie raised a crucial challenge: "How do you create recognition that avoids perceptions of favouritism and surfaces quiet achievers?"
The solution lies in systematic personalisation. Ask every team member: "How do you like to be recognised?" This prevents assumptions that everyone wants the same acknowledgement type and demonstrates thoughtful consideration of individual preferences.
Recognition preference categories include:
- Public celebration vs private acknowledgement
- Individual vs team recognition
- Immediate vs accumulated rewards
- Experiential vs material recognition
The Dream Catcher Strategy
Instead of generic rewards, ask team members to share three experiences they'd always wanted. One person wanted world peace (challenging, but we appreciated the ambition). Another wanted a six-pack—so we provided beer. A team member wanted to be a TV extra, so we arranged her appearance on "Packed to the Rafters."
This approach demonstrates genuine care about people as individuals, creating stories that become part of company culture.
Micro-Gifting Revolution
Rather than waiting for annual awards, micro-gifting allows frequent, smaller recognitions that employees can accumulate toward larger goals. This acknowledges that 92% of workers are more likely to repeat specific actions after receiving recognition.
Making Recognition Inclusive
Recognition preferences vary culturally and generationally. Build programmes with multiple expression formats:
- Public and private options
- Individual and team-based recognition
- Immediate and delayed acknowledgement
- Various cultural celebration styles
Implementation Strategies
Align to Strategic Goals: Connect acknowledgement to current business objectives, refreshing focus as strategy evolves.
Understand Preferences: Survey team members about recognition preferences and maintain this information in manager toolkits.
Create Stories: Design recognition moments people want to share, extending culture beyond the workplace.
Balance Frequency: Implement both micro-recognition for regular acknowledgement and larger recognition for significant achievements.
Build Refresh Cycles: Schedule regular programme reviews to ensure recognition stays strategically aligned.
The Bottom Line
Recognition programmes need regular refreshing to maintain cultural impact. The statistics prove recognition drives results, but execution—keeping programmes fresh, strategic and inclusive—creates competitive advantage in talent attraction and retention.
Listen to the complete Handpicked episode for more insights on reimagining recognition culture.
