Reward star performers

By Joseph Kabuye

Everyone wants recognition for doing a good job. Employee recognition is not just a nice thing to do for people. It makes them feel valued and may encourage them to increase their productivity.

There are several effective ways to recognise employee performance. Recognition is achieved in many ways, including cash and non-cash-based rewards and awards.

When you consider the employee recognition processes, you need to develop a strategy that is powerful for both the organisation and the employee.

Consider the following ideas if you want the recognition to be viewed as motivating and rewarding by your employees and important for the success of your organisation.

Say ‘thank you’ 

Take time out to individually thank employees for their contributions and added value to the company. This may seem like an obvious step, but it is an important one in order to influence the proper work ethic and instill confidence in employees. Recognising strengths over weaknesses encourages more productivity in workers. 

Promote a sense of belonging 

Recognise individuals for their contributions, no matter how small. Compliment good work behaviour, especially in the presence of other employees so that you influence, motivate and encourage others to maximise their work capabilities to the fullest. 

Praise 

Praise others by explaining how their accomplishments, contributions and characteristics make you feel. Promote their continual positive work behaviour by specifically stating what they accomplished and why it matters. Be very specific about their work value to reinforce that desired behaviour. 

Money, gift vouchers 

Give a monetary bonus or gift certificate to recognise your employee. This may provide incentive for other employees to perform at their highest level.

Everyone loves to receive money but a gift card to a restaurant or store is also a fun and useful reward for the employee. Check with your human resources department before issuing any monetary-related reward to ensure that it is within company guidelines. People like recognition that is random and that provides an element of surprise. 

But you should make sure that recognition doesn’t become a “given” or an entitlement or else it will no longer be rewarding. 

The writer is an industrial and organisational psychologist