Make Their Day Blog

Is the economy affecting employees’ sense of being valued? Are the lack of raises, reduction in benefits, and increased workload having their toll? People who don’t feel valued aren’t usually engaged or motivated, so knowing the effect of economic changes on sense of value is important information for companies struggling to stay productive.

Over the course of  six weeks Make Their Day conducted a survey that asked:

“Do you feel more or less valued than a year ago?”

Of the 247 people who responded, the largest percentage (42%) said they feel less valued than they did one year ago. In contrast 31 percent reported no change and 28 percent said they feel more valued. Given the circumstances in most organizations: cutbacks, downsizing, extreme budgeting, it doesn’t seem surprising that people might feel less valued than they did a year ago. What you might find surprising is why they feel less valued.

The most sited cause of significant change in the way they feel was not pay, benefits, or work overload. It was the behavior of the manager or supervisor (49%)!

It always seems to come down to the relationship of the individual to the manager. People can tolerate just about anything but a manager who doesn’t seem to care. Here are a few comments from respondents who stated that they feel significantly less valued now than a year ago:

My manager is less positive.

There is less communication.

Managers are too busy trying to be heroes to their managers.

My manager is angry and disengaged.

These comments seem to indicate that there are more than a few managers who also feel less valued. Organizations often forget the importance of manager engagement in maintaining employee engagement. The following comment is from a respondent who says he/she feels significantly more valued, shows the value of engaged managers:

We have had no cost of living increase for two years in a row, the bonus plan has been stopped, and staff meetings no longer have lunch provided. My “living” costs continue to go up even though my bring-home income has decreased. This, obviously, does not feel good.

A few months ago we (”the staff”) put together three pages of grievances for and about “the management” along with suggestions for improvement. The management responded immediately and positively! We’ve been working with an outside consultant to ensure that everyone treats each other with dignity and respect. What a turn-around! It was risky, because there’s good talent out there that could potentially replace us. The way management handled this has made all of us feel more valued, as you can imagine.

This respondent doesn’t say what the grievances were, but clearly feeling respected was at the core of their concerns. Their managers’ engagement and interest in making improvements in spite of the economy really turned around a difficult situation. I hope employees recognized their managers for  coming through for them!

To see the results of this survey click here.

An article in HR Magazine (January) looks at taking a recognition program online.  Discovery Communications (Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet) had a recognition program that was introduced in 2006.  For this program managers nominated staff and then were responsible for gathering up to five levels of approval. Each nomination then went to a recognition program administrator who reviewed the nominations to ensure that award sizes were consistent with achievement. Expected turnaround: 30 days.

A program  guaranteed to frustrate managers

Put yourself in the  shoes of a manager who wants to recognize an employee and give them an award under this program.  You complete a nomination. Now you need to walk the nomination form around for six approvals. What goes through your mind? Here are a few of my thoughts:

• I don’t have time for this!
• Is this person exceptional enough to justify the hassle?
• Does HR think I’m incompetent?

Not surprisingly, according to HR Director Leah Coyne,  under this program “Very few awards were granted each year.”

Goals for the new system

Globoforce worked with Discovery to create a new system that

• encouraged rather than discouraged use,
• provided faster turnaround, and
• resulted in more awards to more employees.

These strike me as important goals for improvement.

What they implemented and the results

The new system handles the nominations online, but still requires that 3-4 people review/approve a nomination for award. With less approvals and online administration, they are handled faster than before. The result is a significant increase in the number of employees awarded, from 2 to 20 percent of the workforce. The article doesn’t mention the new turnaround time.

I still wonder about the number of levels of review required. The article never mentions the dollar value of the awards, so I don’t know if this amount  of control seems reasonable. I certainly hope they aren’t putting managers through this in order to give out $25 gift cards.

The results do seem to speak for themselves, in addition to increased usage: “a 2009 survey of award recipients and managers reported having more connection to the company, being more engaged in their work, and feeling more satisfied and appreciated as a result of receiving awards.”

Copyright 2010 Cindy Ventrice

Yesterday, CareerBuilder.com posted the results of a recent survey.

They reported that those who were laid off in the past twelve months showed a strong preference for working for a small business. After job growth potential, the reasons given  included:

• A family-like work environment (56%),

• More employee recognition (49%),

• A sense that you can make a difference (48%), and

• An absence of corporate red tape (46%).

What I find interesting  isn’t that employee recognition appears on the list, but how all the listed reasons relate to the kind of employee recognition that I write about in Make Their Day! The key message of the book being that everything that contributes to an employee’s sense of visibility and value adds to their feeling of being recognized.

Let’s look at each of their reasons for preferring a small company in a bit more detail:

A family-like work environment. No one expects to feel invisible in a family or a small company. The expectation is that in a small company everybody knows and supports each other. People believe they will be more than a cog in a big machine. The assumption is that in a small company people are valued for who they are as much as what they do.

More employee recognition. When potential employees expect more recognition from a small company they certainly aren’t expecting more big incentives and awards. They anticipate being “seen” for what they accomplish in a much more meaningful way. I honestly don’t know why this is the case. I haven’t found that supervisors in small companies are any more accomplished at providing recognition. I have to think it goes back to the inherent forms of recognition found in the other three reasons for the small company preference.

A sense that you can make a difference. Throw a pebble in a pond and you see the ripples. Throw it in the ocean and, well… nothing much seems to happen. It is the same with big company versus small. Unless a manager takes on the responsibility for connecting the dots from an employee’s actions to corporate goals, employees in a big company tend to feel inconsequential and not very valuable.

An absence of corporate red tape. Bureaucracy sends a powerful message. That message is  “we have to regulate everything because we don’t trust you.” Being trusted and respected is a key component of feeling valued and recognized.

This careerbuilder.com survey tells us a great deal about the work environment that people find most motivating and luckily for the large company, it can be replicated by great managers and organizations of all sizes.

Cindy Ventrice

2008 Study by Make Their Day author Cindy Ventrice

This employee recognition study of over 800 respondents reveals a number of generational preferences including:

Millennials Expect More Feedback from their Managers

Time Off Is Most Preferred Spot Award

Millennials Expect More Structure from Work Environment

Emerging Workforce Places Greater Value on Work/Life Balance

Emerging Workforce Values Socializing at Work

To order your copy of the complete research report: Order

The press can contact Cindy Ventrice for a copy of the report.

A recent study of over 800 respondents found that our youngest workers and those new to the workforce expect more feedback than other workers.
 
Santa Cruz, California (Press Release) October 1, 2008

Both those who have been in the workforce 4 years or less and those who are 25 and younger strongly prefer frequent feedback according to a recent study completed by Cindy Ventrice the author of Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works.

On a scale of 1-5, with 5.0 most preferred, those 25 and under rate weekly feedback a 3.7 and those employed four years or less rate it a 3.6, while overall respondents rate the importance of weekly feedback a 3.4.

According to Ms. Ventrice, “When it comes to weekly feedback, it is important to note that there is virtually no difference between the preferences of young workers and those who are new to the workforce but entering at an older age.”

The survey also looks at the preference for daily encouragement. Those 25 and younger have a more pronounced need for this frequent encouragement than other newer workers and more so than the overall which rates it a 3.0.

Ventrice recommends managers and supervisors meet this need for frequent feedback by offering occasional corrective feedback and generous amounts of praise. “Don’t keep employees guessing,” she says, “Let them know they are on track, and they will reward you with increased enthusiasm.”

About the author:
Cindy Ventrice is the author of the best-selling book Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works and the companion guide Recognition Strategies that Work. She has been quoted in The New York Times, Harvard Business Update, Workforce Magazine and on CNBC. She has worked with managers in 14 countries and has helped hundreds of organizations improve employee morale and loyalty through effective recognition strategies.

Cindy Ventrice

831-476-4224

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To order your copy of the complete research report: Order

The press can contact Cindy Ventrice for a copy of the report.

A recent employee recognition study of over 800 respondents found that the most popular low-cost award for recognition of work on a project or assignment is time off.

Santa Cruz, California (Press Release) October 1, 2008

A full 56 percent chose time off over gift cards or certificates, electronics, or trophies or plaques for spot awards to recognize short term achievement.

While there was variation according to age, the majority of respondents in each age group listed time off as their number one choice. In second place were gift cards and certificates, with 34 percent listing these are their first choice.

36-45 year olds showed the strongest preference for gift cards and certificates, with 41 percent listing these as their first choice.

A second finding of the study focused on long term achievement. When asked to choose between a raise, bonus, reduced hours, recognition, or promotion for consistent top performance, respondents across all age groups chose a raise as their top preference (49 percent overall). Those 25 and under chose a raise 54 percent of the time, while those 26-35 chose it 58 percent of the time.

Overall the second most popular selection was recognition, followed by a promotion. Viewed by age those 25 and under and 46 and over prefer a promotion over recognition.

About the author:
Cindy Ventrice is the author of the best-selling book Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works and the companion guide Recognition Strategies that Work. She has been quoted in The New York Times, Harvard Business Update, Workforce Magazine and on CNBC. She has worked with managers in 14 countries and has helped hundreds of organizations improve employee morale and loyalty through effective recognition strategies.

Cindy Ventrice
831-476-4224

www.maketheirday.com
###

To order your copy of the complete research report: Order

The press can contact Cindy Ventrice for a copy of the report.

A recent employee recognition study of over 800 respondents found that those 25 and under want the most structure to their work.

Santa Cruz, California October 1, 2008

The study found that those 25 and under want the most structure to their work. This group was most inclined to agree with the statement “To be productive, I need to be told not only what to do but how to do it.”

On a scale of 1-5, with 5.0 most preferred those 25 and under scored 2.8 compared to 2.1 for all respondents. Preference for structure decreased with age.

According to Cindy Ventrice, author of Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works ”It is important to note that, even though millennials have the greatest desire for structure of any age group, as a group they are basically neutral in their preference. This means that many millennials, while inexperienced, do not want to be told how to do their jobs.”

Ventrice recommends that managers and supervisors adopt a results-oriented coaching model for both delegation and reinforcement:

• Set goals,
• Ask questions,
• Aid the employee in developing a plan,
• Set milestones,
• Check in frequently,
• And offer lots of positive feedback!

About the author:
Cindy Ventrice is the author of the best-selling book Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works and the companion guide Recognition Strategies that Work. She has been quoted in The New York Times, Harvard Business Update, Workforce Magazine and on CNBC. She has worked with managers in 14 countries and has helped hundreds of organizations improve employee morale and loyalty through effective recognition strategies.

831-476-4224

www.maketheirday.com

###

To order your copy of the complete research report: Order

The press can contact Cindy Ventrice for a copy of the report.

A recent study of over 800 respondents found that those who have been in the workforce 4 years or less are most protective of their personal time.

Santa Cruz, California October 1, 2008

The study found that the emerging workforce (those 25 and under) is most inclined to agree with the statement “My workload should never infringe on my personal time.”

On a scale of 1-5, with 5.0 most preferred those 25 and under scored 3.8 compared to 3.4 for all respondents. It is worth noting that those respondents who have been in the workforce four years or less, regardless of age, also rated the work/personal time question at 3.8.

According to Cindy Ventrice, author of Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works “It appears that the emerging workforce’s insistence on work/life balance is driven more by their transition to work than it is by generation. Employers have been focused on this as a millennial expectation, but those who have delayed entering the workforce and are now beginning careers as GenXers or even Boomers have the same expectations.”

About the author:
Cindy Ventrice is the author of the best-selling book Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works and the companion guide Recognition Strategies that Work. She has been quoted in The New York Times, Harvard Business Update, Workforce Magazine and on CNBC. She has worked with managers in 14 countries and has helped hundreds of organizations improve employee morale and loyalty through effective recognition strategies.

www.maketheirday.com/

A recent study of over 800 respondents found that those who have been in the workforce for four years or less are most interested in opportunities to socialize with coworkers.

Santa Cruz, California (Press Release) October 1, 2008

This study found that those who have been in the workforce for four years or less (the emerging workforce) are most interested in opportunities to socialize with coworkers than other groups. This group included employees of all ages although it was predominately those 35 years and less.

On a scale of 1-5, with 5.0 most preferred those employed four years or less scored higher in all four categories positively associated with socializing with coworkers. The study also tracked the age of the respondents.

According to Cindy Ventrice, author of Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works “While age was a factor and this is a generational issue to some degree, it is worth noting that the strongest variations came from those who have been working for four years or less, regardless of age. Our emerging workforce has not yet built a strong work network. They need and want opportunities to do this.”

About the author:
Cindy Ventrice is the author of the best-selling book Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works and the companion guide Recognition Strategies that Work. She has been quoted in The New York Times, Harvard Business Update, Workforce Magazine and on CNBC and has worked with managers in 14 countries and has helped hundreds of organizations improve employee morale and loyalty through effective recognition strategies.

http://www.maketheirday.com

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To order your copy of the complete research report: Order

The press can contact Cindy Ventrice for a copy of the report.