One-word answer: VERY

Rewarding exemplary performance is just as important as managing, motivating, leading, and monitoring performance.

Let’s remember that happy employees are productive employees. Employees are productive when they have a sense that they are contributing positively to the organization and its goals. Rewards reinforce all of this. They are an AMAZING tool!

Time and time again I witness or hear the lament, “I just didn’t get to it.” Rewards fall under that challenging category of “important but not urgent.” When it’s not urgent, the crisis of the moment takes precedence, and in many situations, rewards are an afterthought that become lackluster or forgotten as time moves on.

So the challenge is not only how to reward the behavior you want to see repeated, but how to actually GET TO IT and do it in a timeframe that is useful.

Here is today’s suggestion: build a habit around considering and providing rewards and feedback.

One great manager who I admire has a routine that he does at the end of each workday. Before he closes up for the day, he takes a few short moments to reflect on actions and behaviors by his coworkers that are deserving of recognition. He then writes a personal note to those deserving employees, with specific detail as to the behavior, and leaves it on their desks for them to find in the morning.

Another manager makes it a habit to walk to a person’s desk and thank him or her specifically for the positive behavior she noticed.

Both of the these examples most likely take less than 15 minutes, probably 10. The bottom line is that sharing rewards does not have to take a lot of time, and the returns can be monumental. Oh yes, and they cost nothing.

These may not work for you, but I challenge you to find something that fits well with your personality and work culture.

What can you do to incorporate a new habit of reflection and sharing positive feedback among your coworkers and staff? Start it today!

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