Terryberry

Free Gift from Terryberry at SHRM

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 22:15:34 PDT

We're looking forward to seeing you at SHRM this weekend in New Orleans. Terryberry will be unveiling two new employee recognition services at SHRM that we're very excited about, and we hope you will be too. Stop by and see us at Terryberry's booth #2429. RSVP for a special free gift when you stop by.

Improving Award Presentations

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Mon, 18 May 2009 08:41:57 PDT

Sign up for a free webinar on how to improve award presentations called "Creating a WOW! Moment." The webinar takes place Thursday, May 21 and is free to HR professionals and business leaders while space is available.

Mike Byam, author of "The WOW! Workplace" and managing partner of Terryberry will present best practices for award presentations that make a lasting impact on recipients and align with business goals.

Business is Difficult, Make Recognition Easy

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Byam) — Mon, 18 May 2009 08:34:01 PDT

I recently participated in a video interview series for SHRM during their Staffing Management Conference in Las Vegas. It was a great opportunity to share Terryberry's experience as it relates to recognition in a challenging economy, and other than the intense lighting that made me feel like a Big Mac @ McDonalds under heating lamps, it was painless.

As you can imagine much of the interview centered on employee recognition during a recession or economic downturn. We talked from a couple different angles about whether or not employee recognition was more, less, or equally important in an economy like we are currently facing. This wasn't the first time this line of questioning came up and it will most likely not be the last time we'll address it. However, it was the first time I was sure that my response was being recorded so I was ready and bit into it: Effective employee recognition strategies are vital regardless of the state of the economy. Certainly, in a tougher business environment where organizations are asking more from their employees and they have less to give in the way of merit increases or bonuses, it serves a different purpose. Consistently communicating to your people the value of their contribution and the impact they are having is one of a limited number of tools left at a manager's disposal.

As business leaders could we maybe "get away with" less recognition? Sure, you could probably make an argument for this short-term move as employees have fewer opportunities than they have in the past. But we're fooling ourselves if we think people won't remember how they were treated during this time period (they will), and if we don't consistently recognize their efforts, they'll jump ship when the economy begins to turn around.

Short answer: Yes, effective employee recognition practices are as important now as ever!

Onboarding - First Impression Recognition

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Byam) — Tue, 05 May 2009 04:44:45 PDT

"You never get a second chance to make a first impression." A line that should probably go down in the Catch Phrase Hall of Fame, right next to "Where's the beef?" and "Silly Rabbit, Trix are for kids!"

Clearly one of the reasons it has stood the test of time is the simple truth of the message. First impressions impact our perceptions of people, situations, and organizations. As business leaders, we have a unique opportunity to make a great first impression with new hires from a recognition standpoint at the onset of an employee's tenure with our business. Setting the tone for a new employee's career early will better align you for long term successful relationship. Ensuring that the on-boarding process is a real positive experience lays a strong foundation for a fruitful relationship.

More and more businesses are taking steps like Pre-Hire Recognition Survey

(http://www.terryberry.com/recognition_resources.htm) to learn more about these individual's personal recognition preferences. Does he have a favorite candy bar or soft drink? Does she enjoying being singled out or would she prefer a lower key celebration of her achievements? This type of information allows the manager and the business to recognize the new addition to team in a manner that insures the highest level of engagement and appreciation.

Oh, it also lets you make a great first impression, when the new team member gets to their workspace on the first day to find a Twix Twin bar and a Vitamin Water along with a personal "welcome aboard" note waiting for them!

National Nurses' Week

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 08:23:11 PDT

Don't forget - National Nurses' Week is May 6-12! Leave a comment and share what your organization is doing to show your appreciation for your nurses.

Here are just a few recognition ideas that have come from different Terryberry webcasts and events:

"We give 'care awards' for people that go above and beyond."

"Our recognition events have a healthy theme."

"We have a fun travelling trophy that is passed to someone new each day during the week."

"To make our award presentations exciting, we ask some trivia questions about the recipient. Employees who guess right receive a small gift such as pens or pencils with our logo on it."

"The awards we use are a star pin presented to the recipient with a note from a patient who experienced exceptional care."

"We purchased small, stuffed alien toys. Managers present the aliens to nurses when they are caught doing something 'out of this world.'"

What Does Your Recognition Program Say About Your Company?

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 10:09:56 PDT

I once received a birthday card from a friend. When I opened the card, my name was hand-written above the message, but the sender had forgotten to sign their own name.

I feel like some recognition programs have a similar piece missing. You wouldn't send a letter of recognition to an employee who accomplished a great achievement and address it "to whom it may concern." Why do so many businesses send recognition "from whom it may concern?"

In my experience, the best employee recognition programs reflect the image and the 'personality' of an organization throughout the entire experience...Program communication materials do more than explain the program to employees; they communicate the business' mission and values. Award selection packets don't just show award options; they include a message of appreciation from the CEO. Award presentations are taken to the next level to reflect the company culture in details like decor, invitations, theme, and even venue. And special achievement awards go beyond being just a gift; they have the subtle "signature" of the organization that will serve as a reminder long after the award presentation is past.

Why is branding your recognition program so important? The message means so much more when it comes with the stamp of authenticity that says the organization supports it.

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Need help branding your recognition program?
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You don't have to be in marketing to incorporate your company's brand into your recognition program. Recognition companies like Terryberry can be a resource when it comes to helping you find ways to communicate your organization's image and values to your employees.

How does your employee recognition program stack up?

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 12:26:16 PDT

Curious about what kinds of awards businesses are using today for employee recognition?

Want to find out how other employers are recognizing performance and when they recognize for years of service?

Wondering how your employee communication strategy compares with the competition?

Check out Terryberry's Global Employee Recognition Survey. Take the survey yourself and see how your results compare with other employers. Survey results are updated in real time, so you can bookmark your results to see how the statistics change over time.

Spooky Recognition Story

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 13:00:10 PDT

I heard a recognition horror story the other day. It seemed appropriate to share this story on Friday the 13th. Here's how it went.

A large tech company had been working on a big project for nearly a year. Recently, the project team completed a major milestone.

With great intentions, the site leader put together a glowing email commending each member of the project team by name. He addressed this email to the division director, and copied all employees. Proud of the great accomplishment, the division director forwarded the email onto the President with his own compliments to the team. Problem was, one individual on the project team - a person who had been in a leadership role on the project since the beginning - had been accidentally left out of the recognition. Now this well-intentioned recognition actually had the opposite effect on that employee, who was left demoralized, demotivated, and more than a little steamed.

Morale of the story: getting it right matters. Good recognition is going to be remembered for a long time, but a bad recognition experience is going to be remembered even longer.

Do some managers in your group need a little help with recognition? Check out Terryberry's Corporate Recognition Training.

Recognition in a Recession

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 07:41:50 PST

If you're forced to manage your recognition budget with fewer dollars, check out this article by Mike Byam, Managing partner of Terryberry Company. Byam gives 5 ideas for saving costs on your recognition program without sacrificing the impact on your people.

All Employees Are Brand Managers

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 07:02:22 PST

Traditionally, the task of promoting a company falls on an organization's salespeople and marketing team.

But these are anything but traditional times, and businesses are forced to think outside the box about new ways to market their products and services. Many businesses today are taking seriously the idea that every employee in the organization is responsible for the company's image among customers and the public.

The fact is, a customer or potential customer will perceive any interaction with an employee as a reflection of the business.

I ran across this article on a sales and marketing website that identified Employee Recognition programs as a strategic tool for improving customer impression and ultimately, sales. The article mentions a real estate business that implemented a program to recognize employees for creating "Wow" moments with customers or potential customers.

From the article: "One employee recently attended a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert in which the audience was invited to text a message to the Jumbotron. The employee posted Signature's tag line-"Love the place you live. Live in a Signature Community property."

This made me think. Every employee has opportunities to represent their employer positively both at work and outside of work. What if companies encouraged their entire workforce to be marketing people? I think this real estate firm is on to something. When employees feel empowered to help their businesses succeed, and feel appreciated when they do, they really can make a difference.

Wells Fargo responds to criticism over recognition spending

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 09:59:03 PST

Wells Fargo, the mortgage financial giant, has been under some scrutiny lately for the company's spending on employee award and recognition events in light of their financial situation.

Recently, John Stumf, Wells Fargo's CEO, had had enough. Responding to the harsh criticism, he took out a full page ad in USA Today to publicly defend his position and communicate with his employees. Read his message reprinted below. We had mixed feelings after reading his impassioned plea. We might argue his math when it comes to calculating profitability, but I think we have to admire his passion for his people. What do you think? Leave a comment.

--Below reprinted from USA Today Monday, February 9, 2009--

The Value of Team Member Recognition

Okay, time out. Something doesn't feel right.

Everyone agrees that in this economic environment, all employers should re-examine how much they spend on recognition events for their employees. Especially publicly-traded companies owned by their shareholders. Especially institutions that received investments from U.S. taxpayers through the U.S. Treasury's Capital Purchase Program.

The problem is many media stories on this subject have been deliberately misleading. These one-sided stores lead you to believe every employee recognition event is a junket, a boondoggle, a waste, or that it's for highly-paid executives. Nonsense! Because of the misperceptions these stories have created, Wells Fargo has decided to cancel all its major annual recognition events for its team members for the rest of this year.

So who gets hurt when this happens? The Wells Fargo team members across America who are most deserving of recognition and our gratitude. Tellers, Personal bankers. Phone bankers. Financial advisors. Mortgage salespeople and processors. Operations clerks. Technology specialists. Credit analysts. All of those who make it possible for our customers to save, invest, own homes, and build businesses that create jobs - team members who enabled us to make more than a half trillion dollars in new loan commitments and mortgage originations in the last year and a half. These team members work long hours to support their families and to make sure we give our customers the very best service we can possibly give.

Annually, for the past 20 years, we've recognized our top team members from various businesses at several special four-day events, like the one we had planned for our terrific mortgage team who helped us originate $230 billion in mortgages in the last year. For many, it's the only time in their lives that they're publicly recognized and thanked for a job well done. This recognition energizes them. It inspires them and their team members to want to create an even better experience for our customers. Another annual event - which our top performers in community banking had all looked forward to - was to have been held in May. But not this year. Who loses besides our team members? The workers who depend on our business. The hospitality industry. Hotel housekeepers. Restaurant servers. The airlines.

The funds to pay for recognition events such as these do not come from the government. They come from our profits. We believe our profits actually increase by rewarding and recognizing our best performers in sales and in service. Competition to be recognized inspires everyone to work harder and smarter. We're as frugal as any company in spending our shareholders' money thoughtfully and responsibly. Events such as this are the heart of our culture because our product is service, delivered by caring, energized, talented, loyal team members who earn competitive, fair wages and benefits.

We just hope the hardworking people of America understand, appreciate and support employers who try to do the right thing for their team members, customers, communities, and shareholders.

Since we aren't thanking our award winners in person this year, we'll have to do it this way. Thank you, all our 281,000 team members.

You are the best!

John Stumpf
President and Chief Executive Officer

Reprinted from USA Today
Monday, February 9, 2009

Recognition on a Budget - Get Creative!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 06:49:22 PST

Earlier this week, Terryberry hosted a webcast on "Creating a WOW! Moment". Over 150 business leaders from around the world attended to learn and share ideas for how to WOW! their employees in spite of the slow economy.

What did we learn? The economy certainly isn't stopping businesses from showing appreciation for the efforts of their people. Instead managers and business leaders are just getting more creative.

Here are just a few WOW! moments that were submitted by businesses:

"In addition to the annual employee recognition program with specific award, we give two awards each term (we're in a university setting) - one for individual achievement one for team work. The individual is the Bow Tie Award in honor of our president who wears bow ties and the Scepter Award for the team in honor of Charlotte, NC, the Queen City." - Charlotte, NC

"We have a fun travelling trophy and recognize someone every other week." - Hoffman Estates, IL

"We have a quarterly breakfast to recognize those promoted in the previous quarter and give them a "Rising Star" cup and publish their picture and brief bio in a company publication." - Louisville, KY

"To make the presentation exciting, we also ask some trivia questions about the recipient, and the employee which guesses right, receives a small gift, such as, pens or pencils with our logo on it." - Sun Lakes, AZ

"We do a "who am I video" that we loop at the beginning of the lunch. We ask award recipients for a quote about themselves--something the rest of the Team wouldn't necessarily know, then we create a video where other employees try to match the quote with the award recipient." -Oscaloosa, IA

"Our annual recognition event is theme-based. So far we've done Under Construction (our first year in existence), Movies/Oscars/Red Carpet, and Kentucky Derby Day. Each theme some special event like a hat decorating contest for Derby Day; we had "Joanie" Rivers interviewing people on the red carpet for the Oscars. Both were very fun for all of the employees and set a positive fun tone for the presentation portion." -Charlotte, NC

Employee Recognition Survey

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Byam) — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 13:35:18 PST

In today's challenging economic environment business leaders, HR professionals, and supervisors at all levels are asking how their employee recognition efforts are measuring up. Employers have been forced to cut back on personnel, frequently compensation, and often a portion of the remaining fringe benefits. This perfect storm of employment has left businesses forced to do more with the remaining core group.

Smart business leaders have determined that now more than ever effective employee recognition techniques are essential to fostering employee morale and insuring engagement. To help organizations, Terryberry has recently developed a dynamic employee recognition survey that allows participants to see confidently how their recognition initiatives compare to other employers worldwide.

Frequently, there are areas within a company's achievement program that can be enhanced without cost other then some additional effort and attention. If budgets are tight and you are looking for some suggestions for cost effective employee recognition solutions, we encourage you to try the survey. It is a great a tool that can help you and your company weather the storm.

Warning: Gift Cards Might Be a Bad Idea This Holiday

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 14:04:54 PST

We're probably all a little tired of all the doom and gloom surrounding the recent economy, but the current financial situation might be another reason to consider alternatives to gift cards this holiday.

There have been a number of studies released in recent years about the down side of gift cards. Research shows that as much as 20% of gift cards are never used. Today most of us are watching carefully how every corporate dollar is spent. Trends indicate that many businesses are planning to invest their gift budget in tangible items that are a better value this holiday.

Another reason to rethink gift cards is that a discouraging number of challenged retailers are scheduling location closings after the holiday due to the economic slow down. This means that countless gift cards will be rendered useless, or recipients may find that they need to drive for miles to find a location.

Thank a Co-Worker Today

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 09:32:53 PST

There's no getting around it. These are challenging times for many businesses. Leaders are put in the difficult position of juggling leaner budgets and asking for more from fewer people.

At times like these, there are a lot of tasks on a manager's plate, but one that shouldn't be pushed to the backburner is acknowledging team members for their extra effort and dedication. Simple appreciation can do world of good for the morale and motivation of your team.

Fortunately for pocketbooks that are forced to stretch dollars further, recognizing employees in a meaningful way is one of the least costly ways to make a big impact on your people. In fact, saying 'thanks' doesn't cost a thing.

Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Why not challenge yourself to thank one co-worker every day this week? It won't cost you anything, and you can have a positive impact on someone's perspective of their job.

Now is the time to WOW!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 09:13:13 PST

If you're looking for creative ideas for how to recognize your employees, Mike Byam's new book "The WOW! Workplace" is a worthwhile read. Check it out.

Building Blocks of Recognition

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:08:43 PDT

I was at an HR Conference this week in St. Louis and heard a neat recognition idea from the University of Texas at Austin. A creative manager there came up with the idea to recognize positive contributions from employees on the spot by presenting a Lego. The Legos represent a dollar value which can be accumulated and redeemed for special awards. As employees receive recognition over time, they build little Recognition towers made of Legos which occupy a spot on their desks. For this university, it's a fun way for employees to keep a visible reminder of management's appreciation for their extra effort.

Length of Service No-No

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Byam) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 12:12:15 PDT

Determining qualifications for length of service awards is generally a pretty straight forward process. If your awards are presented after two years then on their second anniversary with an organization an individual should be in line for that award. Certainly, the same holds true at the various intervals businesses recognize (1 year, 3 year, 5 year, 10 year, etc.). This simplicity is part of the appeal of this type program as it allows organizations an opportunity to systematically acknowledge team members that continue to contribute year in and year out.

Recently, we stumbled on an uncommon process that was taking place at a hospital in Louisiana. The medical center had numerous employees who had changed status from time to time, going from part time to full time and back (or vice versa). The HR department was thrust with determining when and if people had worked enough hours to qualify for the various year levels based on a full time schedule. What the HR group soon determined was that this time consuming process created confusion for the department and the employee base as they couldn't determine when and if they were due to receive an award. With this in mind the leadership team simplified the process and based their criteria simply on the hire date math. What they quickly found out was that this created a sense of relief through the hospital and employees began to further embrace the program.

Terryberry helps thousands of companies with their length of service award programs on a daily basis and the most common approach to qualification is "hire date math" where employees reach milestones based on the same date of different years. We do see an increasing trend where companies are recognizing their employees early on in their career to engage them into their culture of recognition early and often. Often times the initial award will be given prior to one full year with the business.

Customer Service Awards

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Byam) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 08:54:39 PDT

Frequently companies are looking for different ways to celebrate outstanding customer service. We recently became aware of a company in the Midwest that has a unique way of commemorating achievement in this arena. Annually sales representatives from across the country submit letters of reference from their client base. Representatives can submit as many letters as they want from the last 12 months and are required to offer at least one prior to a predetermined deadline.

Once all the client letters have been received, the Management Team reviews each letter looking for those notes that highlight and/or adhere most closely to business's mission, vision, and values. Each Management Team member selects the five submissions that support those corporate objectives. After every member of the Management Group has made their final selections, the totals are tallied and the awards are given for the top 3-4 entries.

The awards, which are presented in front of the entire sales team, are engraved plaques that are a replica of the winning reference letters including the letter (word for word), the letterhead, and the signature. In the course of the award presentation, highlights of the letters are read for the group to understand why they were selected and the plaques are received with a rousing round of applause! The award recipients leave that event feeling great about what they have achieved and no doubt thinking about what would be an appropriate place to display this award.

Finally, the company's Leadership Team makes it a practice to send a "thank you" note to each client that wrote a letter on their salesperson's behalf and also takes the opportunity to thank them for their business. In addition, they post the letters so everyone in the business can see how the work they do impacts their clients. At the end of the day, it is a pretty simple program that has the ability to positively touch people at all levels of the company.

Power of Presentation

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 09:22:08 PDT

by Chad Zamler

I was recently given the task of analyzing the data from a company's employee recognition satisfaction survey. Being new the field of employee reward and recognition, I was not sure what to expect. After analyzing the responses and reading the comments, there was one thing that certainly stood out to me. These surveys showed me how essential the award presentation is to the success of a recognition program.

The presentation can make-or-break the entire recognition program. The results of the surveys proved to me that no matter how much employees like their reward, most will not be completely satisfied with the program unless there is some type of personal/meaningful presentation. Some of the employees who were satisfied with their reward, but not satisfied with the overall program commented that they would be more satisfied if "my GM would have known and acknowledged", if there was "actual acknowledgement of my time, dedication, and energy towards the company's success", and if the reward was "handed to me by my manager with a handshake and thank you, not just sent in the mail".

As you can see from some of the employee comments, most employees do not require an extravagant presentation (even though many would like this). They simply want to be recognized by someone that they know and respect. Something as simple as a 30 second acknowledgement with a handshake, "thank you" and "congratulations" by a manager when presenting an award can greatly increase the overall employee satisfaction of a recognition program and employee satisfaction with their job and employer.

No more "Employees of the Month"

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Byam) — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 05:53:26 PDT

One of the emerging themes that we are seeing from our employee recognition clients throughout North America is a shift from traditional manager only nomination schemes. Businesses are doing away with initiatives that could be viewed forever as "favoritism" or talked about as "it's your turn to get recognized this month."

In order to address this organizations shifting away from processes that single out an individual, such as "Employee of the Month" and moving towards more open-ended programs that allow multiple employees to be recognized when goals are reached. The objectives is to insure that more team members are eligible for recognition and in order to be truly effective recognition needs to reach as many people as possible not just a select group of high achievers.

The results have been encouraging in building employee engagement. To add another level excitement consider offering a peer nomination process.

The Pen is Mightier...

noreply@blogger.com (Jenny Watkins) — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 14:08:54 PDT

True story: this past weekend my friend Joe hosted a little soiree at his home, and several friends and co-workers were invited. Over the course of the evening, somehow a conversation about homebrew morphed into talk about handmade wooden tap handles. At this point in the conversation (...and I promise, soon this will relate to recognition...), Joe disappeared momentarily and when he returned he held in his hand a finely crafted wooden roller pen accented with gold.

Joe says, "If you're looking for a good woodworker, you should talk to my line manager.

"When we rolled out our last project, to celebrate the accomplishment he made each of us on the team one of these pens. We each got to pick out the piece of wood that our pen would be made from."

Joe passed his pen around, and each of us "ooh'd" and "ahhh'd" over it and secretly coveted it. "See, mine has this wormhole that make it unique," Joe says.

So, what can we learn from Joe's weekend party? Here it is: Joe's manager did a remarkable job of giving his team members recognition for their work through this treasured memento of their blood and sweat that they gave to the project.

Not to wax too sentimental here, but that homemade pen is possibly the perfect award, and it's what so many of us at Terryberry give our blood and sweat to every day. To capture the shared vision of a group of people working together toward something big, and to crystalize it into a personal and memorable symbol that recipients will remember for years to come.

Work Day Bingo

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Byam) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 04:34:14 PDT

Recently when presenting to a Human Resources group in North Andover, Massachusetts about motivating employees there were some great informal ideas flying around the room. One Human Resource professionals from a nearby retirement community talked about a practice they have of quarterly Cover-all Bingo.

If the employee teams hit certain metrics over the course of a quarter then the group is rewarded with a day long bingo game. Over the course of the day, there are periodic announcements over the intercom that could include; B-14 or O-68. Employees, who are actively engaged at the time with facility residents, then mark the Bingo card they were given at the start of the day as they work towards being a Bingo winner.

The game goes on throughout the work day until a certain predetermined number of employees reach the cover all level. This HR Director indicated that it makes for festive day with numerous winners (who are then able to select from a group of nice awards) and spontaneous celebrate often contingent on the numbers being announced. She indicated, you will hear YIPPEE or DARN echo through the halls facility but at the end of the day everyone seems to have a good time!

Informal Worksite Recognition

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Byam) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 09:43:09 PDT

Earlier this month I was in Amarillo, Texas speaking to a group of Human Resource professionals about recognition and we were sharing informal recognition ideas. A Human Resource professional from a local contractor firm spoke about a coveted award in their organization. She talked about how often times on a worksite when an individual is performing at an extra high level and deserves acknowledgement that the foreman in charge of the group will frequently take advantage of a lunch break to make an informal recognition presentation. The presentation requires more then just pulling the crews heads out of their lunch pails and mentioning the individual's contribution.

The foreman does a little pre-work to insure the presentation is memorable. Without notifying the recipient the crew passes around an extra 2 x 4 and the group all signs it, often times thanking the soon to be recognized crew member. This inexpensive yet, one of a kind award is then presented over the lunch break.

According to this Human Resource Manager, these signed 2 x 4s are consistently held closely by those who have received them. Like we see so many times the act of recognition is very important and then having a unique award that evokes memories of their achievement creates a lasting memory that drives people going forward!

Nice Catch

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Byam) — Thu, 01 May 2008 05:25:52 PDT

We recently heard about a great informal peer to peer recognition program being used by a company in Mentor, Ohio. This manufacturing facility was looking to encourage employees to catch fellow workers doing extraordinary things and was charged with finding a way recognize these actions.

The program they developed, the NICE CATCH award, started when Human Resources and other company leaders initially saw an employee doing something above and beyond their normal responsibility. The awarded would be presented with a full-size football and a Sharpie marker. The recipient would sign the ball and then it became their responsibility to "catch" fellow employee. When they were able to locate the individual, the football and marker would be passed along for signature and of course, it became the next recipient's job to locate the next winner.

The program took off very nicely and the business had 8-10 footballs in circulation at any given time. When a ball was covered with names it would be retired to a display case near the door where employees entered the building. In the display case the balls were supported by tees that were signed by the company's leadership to symbolize the fact that management supports the program and the employees.

The feedback from company leadership has been very positive. They feel they've developed a traveling trophy that acts as continual reminder to employees about what the company values and how great catches happen every day!