Employee Engagement Solutions & Recognition ROI

Why Employee Recognition Fails

2012-01-20T08:45:00.000-05:00

The 2011 WorldatWork Trends in Employee Recognition Survey states that 86% of organizations have some type of employee recognition in place. So, one would assume if the majority of corporations have a recognition program in place then employee engagement must be high, right? But read on.

90% of the respondents indicate they have a service award program.
Almost 50% of the survey respondents indicated they have no written strategy behind their organizations recognition program.
Only 14% of the respondents train their managers on effective recognition.
37% of senior management shows a high level of support.

I see gaps in recognition when looking at these results. If you want to have an effective recognition program you need to determine the objectives behind the effort and how the recognition will align with the corporate mission, values and beliefs. What behaviours are important to the corporation? Design your recognition around rewarding these behaviours. Communicate the desired behaviours to your employees.
Train management how to effectively identify and recognize these desired behaviours. Educate employees on recognition and how to effectively promote peer to peer recognition. Educate your employees on the desired behaviours so that they understand what types of behaviour will be recognized, praised and awarded.

Senior management is always concerned with the bottom line. In order to get full buy-in and support from the senior executive you need to have a complete recognition strategy in place as well as the method to determine the real Return on Investment that truly takes into account all external and internal influences. The Phillips Methodology of determining ROI will give you both tangible and intangible results. Results which will garner the support you need to roll out a recognition program that will engage your employees.

We have assembled a team of Certified Recognition Professionals trained in the Recognition Professionals Best Standards. We have professional educators and recognition consultants as well as clinical professionals. We are trained on the Phillips Methodology of ROI. Our team will work with you to determine the direction and design of the recognition program and help you with management buy-in, provide training, communication, implementation, ROI, and evaluation. We have a scalable, global recognition platform with awards sourced locally by region.

Contact me for more information. Rick Clarke rclarke@rdcorporate.com 1-888-752-2238 ext 222 905-567-6706 ext 222

New Zealand Hot Air Balloon Crash

2012-01-12T13:15:00.000-05:00

Last weekend a hot air balloon crashed into power lines during its descent. What a tragic ending to all 10 passengers and the pilot as the vessel burst into flames and crashed to the ground. One of the passengers received the trip as a surprise birthday present in recognition of his 50th birthday.
Hot air balloon rides are quite exciting and have been used in many incentive programs over the recent years. We haven't offered these kinds of experiences simply because of the "what if" scenarios. What if something goes wrong. How would we feel as the provider of the incentive to find out that the recipient died while enjoying their award?
I know, the chances of anything like this happening are very slim, but would you echo that to the families of the passengers? Two balloons collided in central Australia in 1989 killing 13. Maybe the risk is part of the thrill? I'm not sure, but I will not ride in a hot air balloon.

My condolences to the families.

Deloitte Survey: Two Out of Three Employees at Large Companies Looking for the Exit Sign

2011-05-06T10:44:00.000-04:00

In a recently released Deloitte study titled "Talent Edge 2020: Building the Recovery Together—What Talent Expects and How Leaders Are Responding." nearly 65% of employees are looking for a new job.

Some other key findings from the report include:

Baby boomers, among all workforce generations surveyed, expressed the strongest discontent with their employers and the greatest frustration that their loyalty and hard work has been neither recognized nor rewarded.

Almost one-third (32 percent) of baby boomers surveyed say a lack of trust in leadership is a top turnover trigger—the highest ranking by any workforce generation.

Generation X employees are clearly the group most likely to be looking at exit strategies from their current jobs.

Citing lack of career progress as a top exit trigger (65 percent), only 28 percent of Gen X employees surveyed expect to stay with their current employers—a clear signal to employers to expect a significant exodus by employees viewed future leaders.

Millennials exhibit a sharply different view of a strong corporate culture, as compared to other generations.

By a more than two-to-one ratio (32 percent to 13 percent), millennials regard their employers' commitment to "corporate responsibility/volunteerism" to be very important, as compared to baby boomers. Millennials are also nearly three times more likely to say a "fun work environment" is important compared to baby boomers (55 percent to 19 percent).

Employees who plan to stay with their current employers (35 percent) say their companies have strong talent programs, characterized by clear career paths, leadership development initiatives, trust and confidence in corporate leadership, superior programs to retain top talent, and effective communication.

Nothing new here. We hear these kinds of responses regularly from corporations that do not have a recognition culture where an employee recognition program aligns with corporate mission, values and beliefs. A properly designed and administered recognition program with the associated training programs is the missing link.

We have addressed these concerns in our 6 step recognition consulting process. I would be pleased to discuss further.

Contact me at:

Rick Clarke
rclarke@rdcorporate.com
1-888-752-2238 ext 222

source: PR Newswire, Deloitte
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/deloitte-survey-two-out-of-three-employees-at-large-companies-looking-for-the-exit-sign-121094179.html

Making It Meaningful: Recognizing and Rewarding Employees in Canadian Organizations

2011-04-26T10:27:00.000-04:00

Interesting survey results from the Conference Board of Canada. According to the Conference Board of Canada 97% of organizations in a Conference Board of Canada survey have an employee rewards and recognition program in place. Less than half of the respondents believe their employees are satisfied with the organization's rewards and recognition practices.

The survey was made up of 166 medium-large sized organizations across Canada. The study "Making it Meaningful: Recognizing and Rewarding Employees in Canadian Organizations", found that the average annual amount spent on recognition is: $175 per employee.

The most common type of recognition program found is long-service recognition, with most organizations rewarding employees for their tenure. Types of reward given to these employees include gifts, pins, and plaques. Lastly almost half (45 per cent) of recognition spending is on long service recognition.

Some of the main challenges the survey found was:
•Getting employees and managers to actively participate in their programs;
•Ensuring employees are being rewarded and recognized fairly and consistently;
•Making the business case—finding the budget, showing a return on investment; and
•Administrating and communicating the program

"Organizations that take into account the preferences of their employees will see a greater impact from their investment in rewards and recognition programs" said Karla Thorpe, Associate Director, Compensation and Industrial Relations.

From this survey we can see that employee engagement is not being addressed consistently or at all in most organizations. The focus tends to be on the easy to measure achievements such as long term recognition but as we already know Generation-Y needs to be rewarded/recognized early on to be engaged and a positive member of the workforce. In order for managers to effectively recognize their staff a recognition culture must be created. Managers must desire to learn the ability to recognize and coach their team and also be measured on how well they apply their recognition training. This includes a planned schedule of training as well as application measurement and business impact.

R&D Corporate Services has Recognition & ROI consultants who can help you create the recognition culture that is required. Check out our web at:

R&D Consulting Services

Taken from: http://www.conferenceboard.ca/documents.aspx?did=4136

A Unique HR Perspective on the Jet Blue Flight Attendant

2010-09-30T10:19:00.000-04:00

I came across this interesting article published in HR Marketer.com by Eliza Polly for Payscale.com. Eliza talks about the importance of employee engagement in this interesting insight into the situation.

HR’s Perspective on the Jet Blue Flight Attendant
08/21/2010
A Look at Employee Behavior: The Case of the Jet Blue Flight Attendant
By now we’ve all heard about the tirade of Jet Blue flight attendant Steve Slater, although the ground swell of support and assignment of cult hero status seems to have shifted some since the story first broke. As an HR professional, it was disconcerting to see the acceptance and praise of his actions. While most people can relate to a time when they’ve been fed up at work, it’s irresponsible and potentially dangerous to reward and encourage the expression of that anger in destructive ways at the workplace.

That being said, there are certainly some good takeaways from this situation for HR practitioners. The economic climate’s impact on the job market has well-publicized consequences. Record high unemployment rates, massive layoffs, etc. But there isn’t as much attention placed on the impact on the “survivors.” We tend to think that those who have been able to retain their jobs are “lucky” and therefore they should just be happy to be employed. Companies start to think they can relax in their efforts to keep employees engaged and satisfied with their work environment. Wrong.

In a tight labor market, we get frustrated with employee’s levels of entitlement.

In a bad economy, we get frustrated with employees not being grateful.
Who’s to Blame for the Outburst of the Jet Blue Flight Attendant?
While some people resonated with Slater’s “take that” outburst, his behavior was inappropriate and irresponsible. The question that seemed to be asked for days was, “Who’s really to blame?” Slater? The government? The economy? Jet Blue? The answer could be all three to some extent.

Slater’s fault is clear. As an adult and an employee, he is responsible for figuring out how to manage his emotions and deal with them in an appropriate manner while at work without putting others in harm’s way.

The government, or whomever you hold accountable for our economic crisis, also carries some of the blame. People are worried, stressed out, under tremendous pressure to attain and retain work, to provide for themselves and/or their families, all without knowing how long this current situation will last. Companies are faced with the tug-of-war between trying to retain their employees and managing limited resources.

In most cases, those that were not laid-off have not had it easy. Employers have expected everyone to do more with less; to do their jobs and the jobs of those who were let go, all for the same or less pay. The hours, the pressure, the worry… it all takes a toll. Slater’s behavior, and the other workplace violence stories in the news recently, are not a big surprise. Bad economic times breed insecurity and fear. And after all, isn’t it said that anger is just fear turned outward?
HR and Management’s Responsibility for Employee Behavior
So what about the companies’ responsibility in these incidents? Employees are being pushed harder and harder without reward, yet the common response to their complaints is that they should just be grateful to be employed. While there is absolutely some truth to that, human nature dictates that this rosy view will not persist for long or at minimum, will not persist in the face all circumstances.

So what is the advice for employers?

1) Pay attention to employee behavior. It is a company’s responsibility to pay attention to what is going on with their employees. Keep a keen eye out for disruptive employee behavior, negative comments, strange behavior, anger, threats, and physical aggression. Violence and rage typically occur on a continuum and we have to be paying attention. Workplace incidents typically arise from conflicts that have been festering over time and ultimately reach a breaking point. There are often subtleties that lead up to an employee outburst. While there truly are situations where nobody ever would or could have guessed that an employee would act out, more commonly there were small clues along the way and others either weren’t paying attention or chose to ignore the sign. While we may not want to seem like we’re overreacting, it’s our responsibility as employees and employers to adhere to the age-old adage of “better safe than sorry.”

2) Never stop thinking about and investing in employee engagement and satisfaction. Never forget that tides will change. If we take our eye off the ball during this period, we run the risk of even more tough times ahead. As the economy recovers, we don’t want to be in a situation where our valued but frustrated employees quickly jump ship once their job options increase again. Rewarding the performance and behavior that you want is critical regardless of external factors. Paying attention to and investing in your employees’ engagement and happiness is always an employer’s responsibility.

Regards,

Eliza Polly
Solutions Consultant
PayScale.com

Gifts vs. Points

2010-03-03T15:09:00.000-05:00

Article quoted from Ignite - A Sp@rk of Inspiration - March 2010 www.ignitemag.ca

Update from the "money can't buy you love" files...

A new Rotman School study supports the idea that money – or points that can be exchanged like money – is seen as less fair for rewarding a group than tangible things like gifts. While fine for rewarding individuals, cash is not king when it comes to group performance, suggests Sanford DeVoe, assistant professor of organizational behaviour at University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management. “We’re finding that a group reward is seen as much less fair if it’s money or something that can be exchanged. If you want to give a team bonus, there are good reasons to do so with goods that have value in use.” Read the study in the Journal of Psychological Science.
Or just take our word for it!

March 5th is Employee Recognition Day!

2010-02-28T14:55:00.000-05:00

Here it is, an opportunity to recognize your employees! The following is quoted from the Recognition Professionals International website, of which I am a member and soon to have completed my Certified Recognition Professional designation.

Employee Appreciation Day first arrived on calendars in 1995. A Recognition Professionals International’s founding Board member, together with his publishing company, Workman Publishing, created Employee Appreciation Day as a way of focusing the attention of all employers, in all industries on employee recognition. It is always the first Friday in March.

Employee recognition is more powerful than any other motivator. We all know cash bonuses are spent on bills and many perks are soon forgotten. Personalizing recognition can create a memory and those memories build higher performance. Recognition can take a hundred forms and variations. Here are just a few ideas:

1. Ask an employee to write down six ways they would like to be rewarded. Anything goes. The only rule is that half the ideas need to be low cost or no cost.

2. Schedule lunch dates with employees. Give them an opportunity to select the luncheon site, and use the time to simply get to know them better.

3. Offer a free one-year subscription to an employee’s favorite business magazine and have it sent to their home.

4. Consider a gift certificate entitling an employee to lunch with you or another mentor of his/her choosing for the purpose of being coached on one or more topics.

5. Offer a shopping spree to a local supply store for an employee to get items (no staplers or paper clips allowed) to personalize his/her office or cubicle.

6. Give the gift of wellness. Have a limousine pick up an employee for a full day at a spa. Give gift coupons for ballroom dance, yoga or golf lessons.

7. Give a fun-loving employee a series of On your mark-get set-GO cards that they can redeem at their discretion. For example: Leave work early to go to a movie, or shopping, or play ball.

8. Send a handwritten note of thanks for the completion of a job well done.

9. If an employee stays late/goes above and beyond to complete a project, send the employee and his/her partner to a nice dinner.

10. Purchase a company “toy” your employees would most enjoy; a cappuccino machine, dart board, volleyball court, exercise room.

Click here for more recognition tips!

Dog Days of Summer?

2009-08-06T14:35:00.000-04:00

Hard to believe we are now into August with few real days of the hot summers we usually get here.
Maybe the recession has hit the weather man as well and he just can't put out like usual.
Glad to see that the recognition business isn't in the same boat. Business continues to increase here at R&D. More new clients are seeing the light and realizing that it is time to recognize their staff and need to do it right.
Gifts have to be inline with corporate cultures and strategies. Demographics must be considered in the design and implementation of the award programs. A cookie cutter approach no longer works. Let us show you what we mean.
Contact me for a personal analysis at rclarke@rdcorporate.com or via telephone at 1-888-752-2238 ext 22.

Enjoy!

Rick Clarke

Wiarton Willy goes south

2009-02-04T08:33:00.001-05:00

February 2nd has come and gone and so did the infamous Wiarton Willy. Yup, it was sunny in Wiarton on Monday so Willy saw his shadow and quickly retreated into his hole indicating another 6 more weeks of winter.

Interesting how much recognition this event gets around the world. Well, at least in North America. But it goes to show that recognition is important and should never take a back seat. Yes we are in challenging economic times. Yes, thousands are jobless or may be next on the chopping block. It is important to note that many businesses actually do well in recessionary times. You will probably find those that do well also value their employees.

Recognition programs should not be cut, but enhanced, evaluated and improved. Just because that is the way we have always done it doesn't mean it is the most effective. Have you determined what your real return on investment is? Are you getting the most effective R.O.I. for your spend? Now is the time to speak to R&D about how we make your job easier, motivate your staff with recognition they want and make you look good.

Does this sound like what you are looking for? Please let me know if we are on track.

Let us create a no-risk proposal for your consideration. I'll bet you'll be as impressed as our current clients are. The sooner you start, the sooner you reap the rewards!

Click the following link to contact me personally at rclarke@rdcorporate.com or call me at 1-888-752-2238 ext 22.

Our website is located at http://www.rdcorporate.com

Thank you for your interest in our products and services. We would value your business.

Searching for the Elusive Customer Service

2008-09-23T08:13:00.001-04:00

As always, Summer has flown by and we are into another busy Fall with lots of new business flocking our way. As the President of R&D Corporate Services I monitor our business and reflect on why we continually win so many new clients. Seems it is quite simple and always the same response... We at R&D have a reputation for outstanding customer service. We are approachable and ready to serve. Keep that in mind the next time you go to the Big Box store and try to find someone to help you. Customer service is not there when you need it. Our business is built on customer service.
Why not see for yourself?
Contact me personally at rclarke@rdcorporate or via telephone 1-888-752-2238 ext 22 and we will personally create an unforgettable recognition experience for your team from ours.

Milestone Awards

2008-05-20T10:22:00.000-04:00

“From tarnished lapel pins to trips to Mexico and everything in between, an organization’s long-service rewards program often says a lot about how it treats its workers,” writes Kira Vermond, journalist for Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail.
In her article, Milestone Awards, Kira looks at award trends as well tried and true ways to make service awards memorable.

Trends
Rick Clarke of R&D Corporate Services, a leading custom awards service company told her the trend is towards lifestyle awards like DVD players and cappuccino machines, instead of items engraved with the company logo.
Rick also reports that the typical dollar amount of an award can start at $10-15 per year of service and move up from there.

What do you think?
Is it really important to take preferences into account when giving a service award? Isn’t it okay to have set gifts, assuming they are something that the group as a whole values?
Have you ever received a service award that sent you a strong message, anything from you are really valuable, we are lucky to have you, to what - are you still here?

Employee Recognition That Works Webinar

2008-04-02T14:56:00.000-04:00

Webinar

April 22nd - Two convenient times!
May 21st - Encore presentation

Make Their Day Recognition for Managers is a 1-hour introductory workshop offered by author Cindy Ventrice .

You will learn about:

employee engagement and motivators,
what recognition can accomplish,
when recognition is a waste of money,
what makes recognition meaningful
lots of ideas for how to recognize!

Designed to increase understanding, enthusiasm, and the quality and frequency of recognition.

We will focus on the needs of those who lead teams or supervise, but anyone who works with others will benefit.

This 1-hour webinar is offered at two convenient times on April 22,: 9-10am Pacific and 1-2pm Pacific.

Click here to register

No travel - the webinar format allows your people to attend from anywhere there is a phone and a computer with access to the internet.

Any number can attend - send as few or as many as you like. The more you send, the less you pay per attendee.

Low cost - one attendee pays only $29, twenty or more from the same organization pay $10 per person (the discount chart appears below).

Bonus materials - registration includes a free PDF of Recognition Strategies That Work ($18 value).

So Now What?

2008-03-27T11:05:00.001-04:00

Okay, you know your employee has a service anniversary coming up in a couple of weeks. R&D has sent you the gift that the employee selected via our on-line gift redemption web site. So what do you do with it now? Drop it on her desk? Send it to her home? Give it to your secretary to deal with? Too many questions and never enough time... or is there?
The presentation of the gift and sincere personal recognition of the employee's accomplishments are even more important than the gift. While the gift is a continuous reminder of the presentation, it is the positive memory of the recognition event that you want to be remembered. Take some time to consider the presentation. Your HR Department may have suggestions or a corporate policy on the presentation of rewards and appropriate recognition presentation. If not, consult with us. We can provide many tips for effective presentations via email or on-line articles or even optional consultation at your workplace. Simply click on the following information link and we will be pleased to help.
Click here!

Long Service you say?

2008-03-12T13:14:00.000-04:00

Just today I was asked by a HR Consultant if we do a lot of long service awards or if I have noticed corporations pulling back on this form of recognition and instituting more performance based recognition. Our business receives several requests a week for long service programs. Probably because companies want to recognize their employees but are not sure how to keep score for performance other than the basic tangible methods of budgets, sales and safety. Yes, this takes more work to create a program but once done can reap huge rewards. We can help you establish your goals for a program and can also direct you to the right experts to help make your program all that you want it to be and work within your budgets.
Call us to find out how. 905-567-6706 ext 22 1-888-752-2238 ext 22

Second Chance?

2008-02-22T12:37:00.000-05:00

It always amazes me how people are so quick to give a vendor a second chance when they have been treated so poorly in the past. Recently I was asked to make a presentation to a potential client who said they were looking for a new vendor for their service award program. The reason for the shopping around was the poor service received from the current vendor. The strange thing is, not only did they want presentations from new potential vendors, but they asked their current vendor to make a new presentation as well. What amazes me is if a vendor is doing a crappy job up until now, why would you want to let them come back in once they have competition at their door step??? Seems to me they would just continue on as they were until the client gets fed up and starts to look around.
My way of operating is to keep the program fresh, give the client our best customer service ALL the time and they don't even think of considering another vendor. This philosophy has resulted in clients that have partnered with us for more than 18 years. Not a bad track record if I do say so myself. Maybe we are on the right track. Want to climb on?
email me at rclarke@rdcorporate.com or call me toll free at 1-888-752-2238 ext 22
Rick

Recognition Award Programs

2007-12-06T10:35:00.000-05:00

The Perfect Reward Every Time!
We provide a customized and highly motivating reward solution that is entirely managed online, with a powerful tracking and fulfillment mechanism.
Check out our online presence at http://www.rdcorporate.com