Make Their Day!

Cindy Ventrice is president of Potential Unlimited Seminars, a consulting company that helps improve performance by improving work relationships. Her clients include Wells Fargo, Cisco Systems, MIT, Stanford University, State Farm Insurance, and Bell Canada.

How is it that companies spend billions on recognition programs, yet most employees feel unrecognized? Here Cindy Ventrice zeroes in on what truly makes employees feel valued and lays out proven recognition tactics that will provide a genuine, lasting boost for your business. Ventrice demonstrates that integrating the intangible rewards people crave praise, thanks, opportunity, and respect into the daily routine is far more effective than typical recognition awards, events, perks, and privileges, and she shows exactly how to do it. Follow her advice and you ll save money while obtaining better results than ever before.

This second edition features new examples from innovative companies like Best Buy, Cisco Systems and Google, as well as detailing how to provide recognition in increasingly virtual workplaces, account for cultural differences in reward preferences, and ensure that rewards are perceived as fair and equitable.

Foreword
Preface
INTRODUCTION Real Results

PART ONE - Employees Want to Love Their Work
CHAPTER 1 Recognition That Works
Missing the Mark
What Makes Recognition Work
The Elements of Recognition
CHAPTER 2 Finding Recognition Everywhere
Understanding the Motivation Connection
Recognizing Purpose and Quality
Recognizing Trustworthiness
Recognizing Individual Value
Recognition Is Everywhere
CHAPTER 3 Recognition Starts with Your Relationships
Sticky Recognition
Everything Else Is Secondary
Employees Have Their Say
Filling the Other Guy s Basket
Creating Loyalty
How Do You Measure Up?
The Dangers of Intra-Company Competition

PART TWO Whose Job Is Recognition Anyway?
CHAPTER 4 Managing for the Greatest Impact
The Most Important Role
The 50/30/20 Rule
The Manager s Opportunity and Responsibility
Building on the Relationship Foundation
What Exceptional Managers Do
Going It Alone
CHAPTER 5 Leading with Vision, Visibility, and Momentum
Developing a Recognition Culture
Showing Value Through Action
Leading Recognition Programs
CHAPTER 6 Partnering with Program Administrators
The Administrator s Supporting Role
Their Good Intentions
Leveraging HR s Work
CHAPTER 7 Making Recognition the Responsibility of Every Employee
What One Person Can Do
Understanding Peer Recognition
Taking Responsibility
A Simple and Effective Tool
CHAPTER 8 Using Self-Recognition to Improve Quality
Taking the Initiative
Celebrating Recognition Days
Individual Development Plans
Adding Self-Recognition to the Mix

PART THREE Making Recognition Work
CHAPTER 9 Getting Specific and Relevant
Lesson from a Fortune Cookie
What Do Values Have to Do with Recognition?
Linking Goals to Individual Performance
Specific Recognition Makes Their Day
CHAPTER 10 Measuring for Results
Why Measure?
What to Measure?
Collecting Data
CHAPTER 11 Aligning Recognition with Culture
Doing a Culture Check
Considering Industry and Job Preferences
Identifying Generational Preferences
Dealing with a Dispersed Workforce
Challenges in Global Team recognition
CHAPTER 12 One Size Doesn t Fit All
Personalizing Individual Recognition
The Process of Individualization
Identifying the Contribution
Determining Personal Preferences
Putting It All Together
Case Study Recognition Misses the Mark
CHAPTER 13 Dealing with the Fairness Paradox
Treating Everyone the Same
The Four Rules of Fairness
Setting Expectations
CHAPTER 14 Recognition Is a Work in Progress
The Importance of Commitment and Planning
Keeping One Ball In the Air
Making A Plan
Step One: Determine the Current State of Recognition
Step Two: Plan Your Recognition Strategy
Step Three: Commit to a Continually Evolving Implementation
Where Do You Go from Here?
Appendix: Sample Employee Surveys
Resources
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
About the Author