What the workplace needs now is . . .

 

What the world needs now is love, sweet love

It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of

What the world needs now is love, sweet love,

No not just for some but for everyone.

– Burt Bacharach, songwriter, What the World Needs Now

That world includes workplaces, where love most appropriately takes the form of staff recognition.

What brings this to mind is a recent column in Vue Weekly, Edmonton’s alternative weekly newspaper. Columnist Ashley Dryburgh reflected on the power of love to overcome white supremacy in the aftermath of events in Charlottesville, Va., during the summer.

One passage particularly resonated with me:

“It means, firstly, that love demands that we do something. Good intentions are not enough. Secondly, that these actions are ongoing. Thirdly, that love is not passive and finally that love is not ill-informed: action in ignorance is not an act of love.”

Each of her four observations about love are equally true when we think about how we let staff know that they are appreciated for what they do:

1. Appreciation demands action. Feeling appreciation for what an employee did doesn’t mean anything if you don’t let that person know how you feel. Express your appreciation with a few words of praise delivered in public or in private. Put your thoughts in writing. Reward the behaviour you appreciate and want to see more of.

2. Recognition needs to be ongoing. During some of my workshop programs, I tell the story of a couple who are sitting in their living room. Both are reading; he a newspaper and she a book, which she puts down before addressing her husband. “You never say you love me.”

He sets aside the newspaper. “I told you I loved you on the day we got married, 30 years ago. If that changes, I will let you know.”

Most of us would agree that this is not a strategy on which to build a long-term relationship. Why then, would we expect it to be any more effective in the workplace? We often welcome newcomers with enthusiasm, telling them how glad we are that they have joined the team. Then nothing—those initial words are followed by years of silence. They never hear any words of appreciation or encouragement. Whether we are talking about love or recognition, silence is never effective. These messages deserve to be repeated.

3. Recognition is never passive. Recognizing staff in ways that recipients will value and feel is meaningful requires effort. You need to know what the person did and why it was important. It also helps if you know the recipients well enough to recognize them in ways that match their interests and recognition preferences.

4. Recognition is not ill-informed. When “recognition” is delivered by someone who does not know the recipient or understand what he/she did, it’s obvious to everyone that the person is just going through the motions. It’s simply an empty ritual.

It reminds me of the 1970’s British television comedy Are You Being Served? which frequently featured visits by the elderly owner of the Grace Brothers to the ladies’ and gentlemen’s clothing department. These visits always took the same form—a ritual, which began with the owner’s words, “You’re all doing very, very well,” to which the staff would respond in unison, “Thank you, Mr. Grace.”

The essential ingredient of staff recognition was missing. To be meaningful, recognition must be motivated by a Genuine sense of appreciation.

 

Assume that candidates’ responses will be incomplete. Ask followup questions to learn more

No one should walk away from an interview wondering how a candidate responded to situations like those your staff encounters. Sometimes you do ask questions about past performance and what you hear sounds good, but reflecting on the conversation you think, “What did he/she really do?”

You realize that you settled for a superficial answer, which is what candidates want you to do. Anticipating the questions they might be asked, they began rehearsing their answers as soon as you invited them to an interview.

To gather high-quality information upon which to base your hiring decisions, you need to go beyond those well-rehearsed words. You must probe to learn more about what the candidate has said.

Approach interviews assuming that candidates’ initial responses to questions will be incomplete. You will need to ask for more details.

While you could rely on your ability to generate good followup questions on the spot, it’s better to be prepared with questions before the interview begins.

Thinking of what to ask next can cause you to stop listening to the rest of the candidate’s response as you compose your next question. As a result, you may miss some important information.

In this way, interviews are plagued by problems akin to what researchers have found happening in many conversations (interviews are a type of conversation, but with higher stakes than most).

Rather than listening to what the other person is saying, the “listener” is more focused on composing what to say next. To make the right hiring decision, it is important to really hear what the candidate tells you.

To develop possible followup questions before the interview, ask yourself, “What type of information is necessary to have a complete picture of how the candidate responded to this situation?” Prepare followup questions that will aid you to fill in the gaps in the candidate’s initial response.

Some followup questions are obvious: When? (best if the incident is recent); Where? (best if the circumstance were similar); and What was the candidate’s role at the time? Also, What action did the candidate take? What was the outcome of this action?

Depending on the question, there may be other details, which would be valuable when making your hiring decisions:

• How did you respond? Why did you respond this way?
• What other options did you consider? Why were these approaches rejected?
• What obstacles/challenges did you encounter when dealing with this situation? How did you overcome them?
• What did you mean when you used the term “_________?” Define/explain “__________” for me.

[If you would like more suggestions for followup questions, let me know. Email your request, including your snailmail address, to nmscott@telus.net and I will send you a card, which includes several followup questions you could use. I distribute this card during my Interview Right to Hire Right and “Unlucky” when Hiring? programs, during which I discuss writing and asking followup questions.]

The quality of these followup questions will go a long way to determining the quality of information you have when you are deciding to hire or not.

A good way to keep track of what you want to hear from the candidate is to list possible followup questions as a checklist. In the initial response to your inquiry, the candidate may provide information that answers some, even all, of these. As this happens, check those questions off. There’s no need to ask these questions. You already have the information you need.

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Through his writing, speaking and training, Nelson Scott assists leaders fulfil their commitment to hire, engage and retain the right staff. He can be contacted at nmscott@telus.net or (780) 232-3828 to learn more.

7 steps to unleash the power of peer recognition in your workplace

From the moment a few years ago when a primary school teacher told me how good she felt after she received a compliment from a colleague, I have understood the value of peer recognition. This may be the most powerful type of recognition that staff members will ever receive.

“I really appreciate getting students who have been in your class,” the colleague said. “They are so ready to learn and excited about school.”

What made this recognition so meaningful to the person receiving it was that it came from someone whose opinion she trusted—a respected colleague. This gave these comments instant credibility.

Source: Thanks! GREAT Job!

Peer recognition has the potential to strengthen the relationship among staff members and to contribute to building a culture of appreciation in the workplace, creating a place where people want to be and where they are inspired to work harder. In this environment, turnover will be low and employee engagement high.

The reason that peer recognition works is that unlike recognition from the boss, who is expected to recognize staff, recognition from co-workers is unexpected. A requirement to “Recognize colleagues when they do a good job” is never part of anyone’s job description. Often what a colleague says is more credible, because it comes from someone who understands what is required to do a good job because he/she does a similar job.

Encouraging peer recognition in a workplace is not as simple as announcing that staff members should recognize their colleagues more, which was illustrated in a previous article. On other hand, following this seven-step process is an effective way to unleash the power of peer recognition in your workplace:

1. Be a recognizer yourself –– Peer recognition will never thrive in a staff recognition vacuum; it will flourish in a recognition-rich workplace. As a manager, you can’t just preach staff recognition, you need to practise it. You need to become a staff recognition role model. Staff will follow your example. Those who have felt the impact of recognition are more likely to recognize others when they observe behaviour they believe is recognition-worthy. The more you acknowledge staff for what they do, the more they will recognize their peers.

2. Schedule time at staff meetings –– Schedule time for recognition during staff meetings, preferably early on the agenda. Prepare staff ahead of time by telling them what will be happening so they can come prepared to acknowledge the contributions of colleagues. You can also “prime the pump,” by approaching a few individuals before the meeting to help them identify reasons to recognize their colleagues. These will be people who you can rely upon to get the ball rolling.

During the meeting, limit the time devoted to peer recognition to ensure that the reasons to recognize colleagues are not exhausted before the time allocated to this activity expires. You never want to be in the position of having to beg for more peer recognition. Before moving on to the next topic on the agenda, acknowledge that there wasn’t enough time to recognize everyone and encourage staff to recognize co-workers between meetings.

Related Article: 7 Dos and 7 Don’ts of Staff Recognition During Meetings

3. Make it fun –– Here are a couple of fun ways to encourage peer recognition:

Give Your Meetings a Recognition Bounce: Set aside a few minutes at staff meetings to toss around a “recognition ball” (always a soft sponge ball, never a hard baseball!) Start by inviting those staff members who wish to recognize co-workers to raise their hands. Throw a soft sponge to one of these people. After expressing appreciation to a co-worker, this staff member tosses the ball to someone else, who then recognizes another staff member. Continue this process until several people have had the opportunity to hold the recognition ball, but stop before everyone has had a chance, to avoid a situation where someone will feel left out because no one thanked him/her. Remind staff they can always recognize their peers anytime—not just at meetings.

Create a pass-along award: This could be a new or repurposed trophy, a stuffed toy, or an item that reflects what your organization does. This symbol of success is passed from one staff member to another. Each recipient becomes responsible for passing it along to a deserving co-worker within a specified time period, such as two to five days.

Related Article: Encourage Peer Recognition with a Pass-Along Award

4. Introduce the tools of peer recognition –– These may include greeting cards (thank-you, congratulations, etc.), sticky notes, access to small gifts, etc. Make these available where it’s easy for staff to access them. Remind staff to use thank-you notes by distributing them at staff meetings or including two or three cards with their paycheque or pay advice.

For additional ways staff members can recognize their peers, check out Peer Recognition cards available from the SEA Consulting bookstore.

5. Observe Peer Recognition Day –– When I discovered the power of peer recognition while gathering material for Thanks! GREAT Job!, I proposed one day a month—the third Tuesday—be designated as Peer Recognition Day, to remind us of the importance and value of this form of recognition.

6. One-on-One Conversations –– One-on-one meetings can be a valuable way to strengthen the relationship between you and members of your team, and for you to keep in-touch with what’s happening. These conversations are also opportunities to encourage peer recognition. Ask staff members to identify a colleague whose contribution the staff member appreciated. Follow up by asking, “How did you let Howard know that you appreciated what he did?” Based on the response, either congratulate this person for recognizing a colleague or encourage him/her to do so. Perhaps you can suggest or brainstorm ways to express appreciation.

7. Recognize the Recognizers –– Recognition is about encouraging more of the behaviour that you want to see. Because peer recognition is about increasing the amount of recognition, whenever you become aware that they recognized colleagues you should let them know that you appreciate them for doing this.

How can I help you become a better interviewer?

Here’s an idea that seems to make sense: authors should write books that answer questions that potential readers have about the topic.

With that thought in mind, I am requesting your input.

I am working on a book about avoiding the hiring mistakes that lead to bad hiring decisions.

Let me know what you feel would help you make the right decisions when hiring staff. What questions do you have about interviewing? What type of information could I provide that would help you conduct better interviews and consistently hire the right people to fill your vacancies?

If you provide input, I will answer your questions in the book, which will include information that’s important to you and others likes you who are committed to hiring the right people.

Your name will be included in the acknowledgements as someone who contributed to making this a better book, and as soon as it is published, I will send you an electronic version of the book.

The bottom line: I will write a better book and you will receive the information you want to help you make better hiring decisions.

I look forward to receiving your input. Email your questions and comments to nmscott@telus.net.