It seems so simple, almost as if it should go without saying. But so many of us forget to do it that it is the number one reason employees quit their jobs. What is this simple thing? Recognition. Recognition for a job well done on big projects as well as for small, daily contributions.
Studies have shown that the overwhelming reason people leave their jobs is because of bad managers. A 2010 Towers Watkins Global Workforce Study showed that 80% of companies in 2009 said that leadership was a top driver for engagement. But “confidence in leaders and managers—particularly their competence and support—is low, especially in terms of interpersonal or “relational” (versus operational) aspects of their roles. Employees appear hungry for an emotional connection to their management teams that they feel is conspicuously absent right now. This is especially disturbing given the central role that leadership continues to play in driving employee engagement.” And the biggest complaint about leadership is that managers ignore their employees. Why is this such a widespread, destructive phenomenon?
Managers are often not trained to become managers – many are promoted to management positions because they did their prior job well. Of course, the skills for doing a particular job don’t necessarily lend themselves to knowing how to be a good manager. Management primarily entails planning, directing, supervising, monitoring a group of individuals to accomplish goals and directives, but very few new managers are given adequate training for these new responsibilities.
It’s been said that it takes five compliments to outweigh negative feelings from a single criticism. That’s a lot of positive feedback to counteract the negative! And yet, being ignored completely can be even worse than being criticized. People who are ignored by their managers dislike their jobs, and feel that they are not doing anything important. They feel invisible, their productivity drops, and they are merely at their desks to put in their time until they can find a better job.
Engaged employees, those who like their jobs and who stay with their employer longer, feel like valuable members of a team, that their contributions count. They are significantly more productive. Studies have shown that the energy level of engaged employees stays high throughout the workday, while the energy level of unhappy employees falls dramatically from 9 a.m. until they are ready to go home, according to Tom Rath and James K. Harter, authors of Well-being: The Five Essential Elements (Deckle Edge).
In the 2008 Blessing White Study “The State of Employee Engagement,” the correlation between engagement and retention was clear, with 85% of engaged employees indicating that they plan to stay with their employer through 2008. Further, the study states that “engaged employees stay for what they give (they like their work); disengaged employees stay for what they get (favorable job conditions, growth opportunities, job security).”
The difference between happy, productive and engaged employees and those looking to find another job usually boils down to managers who recognize their employees on a regular basis, versus those who do not. Some managers use salaries and titles to motivate their employees, but these have proven to be less effective over time than praise and recognition.
Recognition must be genuine and specific. It must be tied to a particular act or accomplishment. General statements, such as “good job,” are usually meaningless and ineffective. Better to say, “I really appreciate your comments in the meeting today – you gave us something to think about.” And while praise should be given on a regular, ongoing basis, it must be sincere. Saying something just to do so will sound hollow. If you can’t find something positive to say, either work harder at it, or perhaps you actually have a problem employee.
Recognition for small things goes a long way towards keeping employees engaged on a day to day basis. But if you want to motivate your employees to go to an entirely new level, consider combining praise with rewards. Rewards can range from inexpensive gift cards given on a sporadic basis to larger, more expensive prizes for accomplishing major goals.
Praise, especially when given publicly, combined with valuable rewards, can excite employees to go beyond their normal duties, to think outside the box, and to take “ownership” of their work. Now, that’s employee engagement!
More from GreenNurture
- The Heart of Change – Making Change Last
- Sustainability and Employee Engagement, joined at the hip
- Employee Engagement Starts at the Top
