Building a Positive Workplace Environment

Shake up your organization today! This week, my colleagues S. Max Brown and Roy Saunderson interview guests Matthew J. Grawitch, Ph.D. Director of the Organizational Health Initiative at Saint Louis University as well as David W. Ballard, PsyD, MBA, Assistant Executive, Director for Marketing and Business Development at the American Psychological Association and the APA Practice Organization.

Drs. Grawitch and Ballard will tell you how to make your organization a high performing workplace and a positive work environment. Discover how recognition, incentives and wellness programs can be leveraged to transform your organization into an engaged, productive and healthy one. Join Max and Roy for a great conversation!

Tune in here next Tuesday, April 27th, at 1 PM ET.

Past show episodes available on itunes!

Innovative Ways to Drive Employee Loyalty.... again

Not too long ago, I had the pleasure of participating on a webcast panel with Will Ng, Incentive Magazine Managing Editor and Dr. Lerzan Aksoy, co-author of “Why Loyalty Matters.”

We spoke about the intricacies of employee loyalty, recognition and engagement. The impact you can have on your people by deepening employee and manager relationships is amazing.

The webcast is now available online to download for free. You must register first, then you may navigate through the virtual conference to the presentation pages. Or once logged in click here.

Innovative Ways to Drive Employee Loyalty

On October 21st at 2 pm, I will be presenting with a group of very interesting panelists at Virtual Incentive World.

We will be talking about ways to drive employee loyalty. My fellow panelists are Will Ng, Incentive Magazine Managing Editor and Lerzan Aksoy, co-author of “Why Loyalty Matters,” a great book which I happen to be reading right now!

Hope to virtually see you there!

Register here!

Rewards and Recognition Providers: Where Do We Go from Here?

Incentive magazine has just published my article on the importance of recognition in the workplace and its effects on employee health, employee loyalty, retention and productivity. Click here to read!

Recognition Fuel to Outrun the Competition

On Wednesday august 26th, Rideau will be presenting a recognition webcast hosted by my colleague, special guest speaker, Tom Miller, Recognition Council Board of Directors’ Vice President.

Employee recognition programs can generate significant revenue and profits. Companies that recognize people outperform the competition by 30% - 40%. Having your talent perform at their best has never been more important–even during a recession. It is the key to sustainability and the hope for future growth. If you want to outrun your competition, this webcast is for you! Click here to register.

Can’t make it? Recast dates are also available for registration.

Who Are We To Preach?

Not too long ago I was on an International Panel discussing how recognition differs around the world.

As the discussion went on, I had an interesting thought…

“Who are we to preach?”

Research shows that close to 90% of North American companies have recognition programs yet 60% of employees don’t feel appreciated or recognized. (“How Full is Your Bucket: Positive Strategies for Work and Life” by Tom Rath & Donald Clifton, Gallup Press, 2004)

If anything, this is a powerful indication that what we are doing in North America isn’t working. It tells me we need to get our own house in order before we go off and tell other countries how they should be running recognition programs!

Without the risk of sounding too outrageous, perhaps we could even learn something from our “global friends”!

The Most Powerful Recognition Tool in the World

In World at Work’s Trends in Employee Recognition 2008 survey, it was found that nearly 90% companies in North America have recognition programs. Yet, according to research by Gallup, only 35% of people surveyed said they received recognition for good work in the last year. Why is there such a huge gap?

I believe most companies place far too much emphasis on “rewards” and far too little “real recognition.”

I live in Montreal, a wonderful multi-cultural and multi-lingual city (great food too!). Our local newspaper, The Gazette, is currently running an ad campaign to boost circulation and readership. Their full page ads feature lots of white space and the simple slogan “Words Matter.”

I couldn’t agree more… especially in the recognition business.

Words are the most powerful recognition tool in the world. If spoken from the heart, they can inspire us, lift us up and take us to a higher place.

In my opinion, it's not about “what” you give... it's about “how” you give it! And words play a huge role in the “how”!

The Golden Rule of Recognition

"Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms, greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind."
- Gordon Gekko from the movie Wall Street

Who can forget Michael Douglas’ lines from Oliver Stone’s classic movie Wall Street?

Although the characters were fictional, the times they portrayed were real. Consolidation and mergers were the rage. Those were the days of “right-sizing,” “down-sizing” all code words for “you’re losing your job!”

Isn’t it ironic that today’s managers bemoan the lack of loyalty from their workers? Is it any wonder? We have taught employee’s not to expect any loyalty from the corporation. So why should they be loyal to the corporation.

It is called the ethic of reciprocity. Don’t expect loyalty if you don’t give loyalty. Likewise, don’t expect commitment if you don’t give commitment.

At Rideau, we call this the “Golden Rule of Recognition”… treat employees like you would like them to treat the company. You’ll be amazed how far a little loyalty goes in improving your retention rates.

Practice the “Golden Rule of Recognition” because loyalty is a two way street!