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Re-Recruiting Your Top Talent in 2013

Recognize This! – Passive talent is not as passive as you think. Join our webinar to find out how to retain them in the new year.

What’s your retention outlook for 2013? Are you keeping a close eye on your critical talent to be sure they don’t walk out the door? Passive recruiting is rising (and passive talent is not as passive as you think) – what are you proactively doing to understand what your employees need from the organization to re-engage and what you can do to re-recruit those you already have on staff?

If any of this is a concern for your organization in 2013, join us for a webinar on Wednesday, 28^th January, at 3:00pm Eastern (Noon Pacific, 8:00pm GMT).

Employee turnover is not a singular event — it is a long process of disengagement that can take days, weeks, months or even years until the actual decision to leave occurs. How can you spot an employee who is planning to leave? How can you prevent it?

Join author Leigh Branham and Globoforce to discover some of the surprising reasons behind why employees leave companies. Based on the research and information in Branham’s acclaimed book, The 7 Hidden Reasons Employees Leave, this webinar will isolate and discuss each reason that employees jump ship. It will share the warning signs to look for, translate the needs and desires of employers and employees alike into a common language, and enable companies and their most valued human resources to better understand one another.

Register for the webinar to discover:

How companies and employees can better communicate their expectations of one another.
The importance of finding the right people to fill the right positions at the right time. Why coaching and feedback are critical to engagement and retention, and how companies can form deeper relationships with their people.
What the new career realities are in today’s business climate.
Why some managers are hesitant to recognize employees, and what senior leadership can do about it.
How to help employees maintain a consistent work-life balance and minimize their levels of job-related stress.
How managers can regain the trust and confidence of their employees.

In the webinar, we will also share Globoforce’s research and lessons learned about the connection between engagement, employee recognition and turnover.

Learn How to Crowdsource Performance Management – Webinar Nov. 14

Recognize This! – More feedback, freely given, in a timely and relevant way makes the performance management process more useful for all participants as well as the company as a whole.

It’s that time of year again. The time HR Pros, managers and employees alike dread. The annual performance review. Fraught with anxiety on all sides, no one likes the annual performance review process. There is simply too much tied up into it for all parties.

HR needs the results to justify merit increases (once again a paltry average 3% increase, barely 1% above the cost of living in the U.S.).
Managers feel like they have to justify their headcount and ensure none of their employees appear in the bottom 10% of the performance bell curve, or else how would that reflect on their own managerial skills?
Employees feel this is their one chance at getting good feedback from their manager, the results of which will end up in their permanent file.

Who could possibly ever enjoy this process? What’s the benefit to the organization of putting everyone through this every year, anyway? Nearly everyone agrees the annual performance review in its existing form needs to be kicked to the kerb. But what should replace it?

My CEO, Eric Mosley, has written a new book that lays out that path – The Crowdsourced Performance Review: How Social Recognition Transforms Performance Management. Think of this as a 360-degree review without all the drawbacks, hassles and concerns. (To be released next week…)

Eric will be presenting the key constructs of his book on a webinar November 14, at 1:00 pm, Eastern (10:00 am, Pacific; 18:00 GMT). In “How Social Recognition Transforms Traditional Performance Management,” Eric will discuss how crowdsourcing feedback can fix the employee performance review. He’ll debunk the myths surrounding the traditional review and share how to build a smarter performance management system that:

Uses social recognition to inject new life into the troubled traditional performance review
Offers managers new insight into performance, based on crowdsourced data
Provides a vision for 2020 that realigns performance management with top level business objectives

Be sure to register for the webinar, or leave me a comment on this post to receive your free copy of the eBook when it is released next week.

Webinar Wednesday: Winning the Talent War on the Home Front

Recognize This! – If you focus on creating a culture to keep the top performers you have, it becomes much easier to attract the top performers you need.

To win in the war for talent, you need to win the battle on the home front. And in this case, the home front is your existing workforce.

Winning the hearts and minds of your existing employee base is the foundation of true competitive advantage in the marketplace. Increasing engagement in the workplace not only correlates with higher revenue and profits but also lowers turnover rates. Holding onto to your talent should be an imperative that is continually examined and managed as a priority Rewards and recognition are an important tool in accomplishing that goal.

Join me this Wednesday, 26^th September at 3:00 (EDT), for a discussion on these key tactics for winning the talent war on the home front.

Top predictors of employee retention: Examining a massive database of 4 million employee records, we look at the top predictors of why employees stay at companies for the long haul.
The impact of financial and non-financial rewards on retention: There are many ways to reward employees – financial and non-financial. We look at which ones matter most.
The correlation between recognition and retention: We take a look at survey data about the difference between employees who feel recognized versus those who don’t.

I look forward to an interactive discussion on Wednesday. Register today!

Intuit Case Study: Top-Down & Bottom-Up Recognition Works Best

Recognize This! –Don’t limit options for recognition, but combine multiple into one program for easy governance and best results.

Last week, I had the honor and privilege of participating in a webinar (Spotlighting Recognition: How Intuit Has Reinforced a Culture of Innovation and Elevated Employee Engagement, now available for download) with Jennifer Lepird, Senior compensation business partner for Intuit.

We’ve worked with Intuit for many years now and have benefited from their culture of innovation as well. That culture is deeply ingrained across the company and supported from the top-down by Founder Scott Cook as well as from the bottom-up in a grass-roots movement of innovation that is an experience in itself.

Top-Down Culture Management through Recognition

For example, Jennifer shared how Scott Cook regularly brings in special guests so the entire company can watch and learn innovative programs and techniques to challenge current beliefs about what can and can’t be done. A culture of innovation is the core of how Inuit operates and how employees are evaluated.

There are also several formal innovation recognition and awards programs spearheaded by Scott Cook and senior leadership, including:

Scott Cook Innovation Awards: Only a few people each year receive this honor of placement on an innovation wall of fame, a coveted trophy, an all expenses paid trip for two, increased access to senior leaders and innovators, and more time to work on projects. Notice how this award caters to all aspects of our fundamental need for esteem – professionally, personally and directly.
Patent Awards: These are given throughout the year and are awarded for ideas submitted, patent submission, and patent completion. Note especially how these reward progress (the number one employee motivator) as much as final result.
Founders Innovation Award: I’ve written about this one before and I encourage you to read that post for the video showing Hugh Molotsi receiving this first new award from Scott Cook of a $1 million dollar prize. This is a powerful illustration of my point that cash awards only serve a useful purpose if their big enough to be easily differentiated from compensation. I think $1M meets that criteria.

Bottom-Up Culture Management through Recognition

As powerful as recognition from Founder Scott Cook is, equally as powerful is regular, timely and specific feedback and recognition from colleagues and peers across Intuit. That’s the beauty and power of Intuit’s Spotlight Recognition Program, the focus of the webinar. The goals of the program are to elevate employee engagement, build a globally unified culture of innovation and recognition, inspire employees, and help Intuit be an employer of choice everywhere.

Everything about Spotlight was a bottom-up effort, including the creation of the program name. Spotlight also made recognition easy by consolidating multiple programs onto one platform for easy access for leaders and employees alike who get a single, consistent recognition experience. Administrators also have a much easier time for program management, reporting and governance.

Included in this bottom-up recognition platform are programs for:

Performance, Milestones, & “Thanks” (on-the-spot recognition)
Sales contests
Wellness Incentives
Service Awards
CEO Sales Achiever Awards
Patent Awards
Employee Referrals

I’ve gone on long enough in this post and can only encourage you to watch the webinar for the full story. But I leave you with this image – the long-term double-digit improvement in engagement attributable to Spotlight recognition. (2010 reflects two things: the economy, and a shift in business strategy that took time for employees to adjust to.)

Can You See How Your Employees Live Your Values & Report on It, Too?

Recognize This! – Can you see how your employees are living your company values? LSI can.

I had the honor and privilege of joining Katie Scott, LSI’s director of compensation, for a webinar hosted by HCI yesterday. In the “3 Steps to Accelerating Engagement: The LSI Success Story” webinar (available for replay here), Katie went through their ambition for strategic recognition and the results they realized in just a few short months.

Global Recognition Works

A strongly engineering focused company, LSI is growing globally very rapidly with a very diverse employee population, including a large percentage of employees in India and China. Since one of the questions I’m frequently asked is “does recognition even work in Asia/Pacific countries,” I asked Katie if this was a problem for LSI.

On the contrary, LSI had universal acceptance of the program, though Katie pointed out one area of resistance. Managers with longer tenure were more wedded to their former version of “big bang” recognition – infrequent recognition with a fairly significant cash reward given only for extremely above and beyond behaviors.

Since the new “Catch the Spark” strategic recognition program is more focused on every day appreciation and recognition of employees who live LSI’s values in their daily work, LSI continues to work on re-educating these managers on the power and importance of frequent, timely recognition with much lower-value non-cash rewards.

Non-Cash Recognition Works Better

This approach to non-cash recognition is critical and was a key internal selling point for Katie and her team when presenting their goals for a new recognition program to their executive team. Katie shared a story about that executive meeting. When she was explaining why cash is not king in strategic recognition, one of the SVPs in the meeting said she had just given her subordinate, “Pam,” one of the standard $200 cash awards under the old recognition program (which was distributed through payroll in the regular pay slip). The SVP asked Pam, “What did you do with your reward?”

As is typical, Pam replied, “I didn’t even realize I received it.”

As I’ve said before, cash is transactional, recognition is emotional. They cater to two very different parts of our minds and psyches. Non-cash rewards that don’t disappear in a pay slip create a “stickiness” by creating an emotional, meaningful connection.

Impressive Program Results

The results LSI has achieved in just a few months are very impressive:

On target to touch 75-80% of employees with recognition in the first year (which is best practice)
Awards distribution is a perfect picture with the highest volume of awards being distributed at the lowest award level, which allows for more frequent, timely recognition with no increase to the program budget (again, this is best practice).
“Catch the Spark” has become part of the lingo of LSI and is heard frequently in hallways and meetings when discussing the good work people do.
And LSI is able to see how their employees are living the company values. I’ve included below one chart from the presentation. As Katie said: “Being able to show the executive team a pie chart like this that clealry illustrates our number 1 value being lived every day by our employee is customer success – how great is that?”

I do encourage you to watch the entire webinar to hear Katie discuss in more detail how the dynamic program UI catered to their very engineering-oriented culture, how the global rewards structure and multi-lingual platform catered to the unique needs of all employees around the world, and how the measurement and reporting tools directly in the program are driving behavior change.

Can You See How Your Employees Live Your Values & Report on It, Too?

Recognize This! – Can you see how your employees are living your company values? LSI can.

Global Recognition Works

Non-Cash Recognition Works Better

As is typical, Pam replied, “I didn’t even realize I received it.”

Impressive Program Results

The results LSI has achieved in just a few months are very impressive:

On target to touch 75-80% of employees with recognition in the first year (which is best practice)
Awards distribution is a perfect picture with the highest volume of awards being distributed at the lowest award level, which allows for more frequent, timely recognition with no increase to the program budget (again, this is best practice).
“Catch the Spark” has become part of the lingo of LSI and is heard frequently in hallways and meetings when discussing the good work people do.
And LSI is able to see how their employees are living the company values. I’ve included below one chart from the presentation. As Katie said: “Being able to show the executive team a pie chart like this that clealry illustrates our number 1 value being lived every day by our employee is customer success – how great is that?”

Spring 2012 Workforce Mood Tracker Results

Recognize This! – The only qualifier for needing recognition in the workplace is being a member of the human race.

Last week I had the pleasure of co-presenting with Thad Peterson the results of the Globoforce Spring 2012 Mood Tracker survey (which tracks the perceptions of full-time, currently employed U.S. workers). Now available on demand, the webinar revealed quite a few interesting results and I shared my thoughts around the trends we’re seeing over time with these surveys.

Here are just a few of the highlights from the webinar.

Recognition is a universal desire.

86% of all respondents want to have their efforts/contributions at work recognized.
46% are not satisfied with the level of recognition they receive for doing a good job.
These results are quite similar across all generations in the workplace. And guess what? It’s not GenY who is the most dissatisfied with recognition – it’s GenX (respondents aged 36-45).

This last point deserves to be more deeply examined. I’m not surprised by these generational results. Recognition is something we all need. As I often say, the only qualifier for needing recognition in the workplace is being a member of the human race. As my colleague, Thad, commented, “So all of the companies out there that are hiring humans, this applies.”

Frequent recognition is key.

41% of all respondents to the survey have not been recognized in the last six months.
90% of people recognized within the last month feel their manager effectively acknowledges and appreciates them at work.
20% of people recognized only in the last two years agreed their manager effectively appreciates them.

This proves that so many employees function in a recognition desert in their workplaces. Frequency of recognition is a very important topic because the frequency with which you reach out to and engage employees is critical to a successful recognition program. When people tell me their “good” recognition program only recognizes 20% of employees once or twice a year, I have to inform them that, in fact, they have merely a superficial program where you really need to be a superhero to get recognized. This type of program isn’t going to move any critical business metrics or have any real impact on engagement or performance.

This is also a fundamental question on engagement surveys – that your manager understands and appreciates what you do at work. Increasing positive responses to this question will increase your overall engagement results.

A few other highlights:

78% say would work harder if efforts were better recognized and appreciated.
3 out of 4 employees who are satisfied with the recognition they receive love their jobs.
2 out of 3 employees who are not satisfied with recognition received don’t love their jobs.
81% say receiving recognition makes them more satisfied with their work and position.
A full third of respondents plan to search for a new job in 2012, which means 33% of your workforce isn’t fully focused on the task at hand. Yet, out of employees who feel appreciated, 80% have no desire to leave.

Take a few minutes to watch the webinar for more results and how this impacts your workforce and your organziation.

Employee Loyalty Is Not Dead, It’s Just Changed Hands

Recognize This! – Join me for a webinar discussion of the latest Globoforce Mood Tracker Survey results.

Employee loyalty is one of those topics that can divide a room. Well, at least room full of HR Pros who live and breathe recruiting, retention and productivity. Some argue loyalty is long dead, thanks to corporate actions begun in the 1970s and 80s. Others believe loyalty is alive and well, but to fellow colleagues and managers, not to the organization per se.

Regardless of your position, employee loyalty can have a profound impact on organization culture and business results, not to mention individual employee engagement, performance and productivity.

This report out of Knowledge@Wharton is one of the best I’ve seen for hashing through the great majority of arguments around employee loyalty. In the article, James Harter, chief scientist, workplace management and well-being, for Gallup takes this position:

“Human nature, Harter adds, ‘doesn’t change when the economy changes. It might take on a different dynamic’ during a recession, but what remains constant is ‘the need to be connected — to a manager, a co-worker and/or a purpose, and also the need to be recognized… There is something about having a mentor, or someone in your life who helps you see the future in the midst of chaos, that can make a difference.’”

It’s that interpersonal connection that matters. And it’s that interpersonal connection that’s in jeopardy.

According to the Spring 2012 Globoforce Mood Tracker™ survey, recognition programs are on the rise. Yet, more than 50% would still leave their jobs for a company that clearly recognized employees for their efforts.

I’ll be leading an interactive webinar about the results of the latest Mood Tracker survey, including a discussion about why a strategic, frequent approach to recognition is essential to a more productive, motivated, and engaged workforce.

Along with my colleague, Thad Peterson, we’ll reveal survey findings, including the top three benefits of recognition done right:

Higher retention: 89%
Higher motivation levels: 82%
Higher job satisfaction: 81%

Why does getting this right matter? As the Knowledge@Wharton report reference above points out:

“Perhaps the most compelling argument for trying to retain good workers is that replacing managerial and professional employees can cost approximately 150% of their annual salary, according to various estimates. Harter suggests that for frontline, lower end workers, it costs about half of their salaries, while for high-level IT professionals, the figure could be as high as 200%.”

Register now for the webinar to learn more about emerging workforce trends in retention, loyalty and motivation, and how you can reap the benefits of strategic employee recognition.

4 Actions To Take After Your Employee Engagement Survey Is Done

Recognize This! — Strategic recognition is a powerful tool to align employees with your goals and take appropriate action after your engagement survey is done.

Like 80% of the people on our “Your Engagement Survey Is Done, Now What?” webinar yesterday (recording available here), do you conduct an employee engagement survey? Though we didn’t ask who was guilty, do you commit these common mistakes of engagement surveys as shared BlessingWhite Employee Engagement Practice Leader Mary Ann Masarech?

Run a survey, but then don’t do anything with the results
View the engagement scores as the prize

Mary Ann pointed out, “The goal of surveys should be to improve engagement, not just measure it. Surveys should only be a starting point to inform the actions you can take to create a more engaged workforce and create a culture of engagement.”

She went on to offer these four best practices with suggestions for successful implementation:

Know what you’re trying to achieve (so you can get executive buy-in and support)
Devote more resources to action than measurement (avoid analysis paralysis)
Equip your people (so individuals, managers and executives own engagement appropriately, and you can create a culture of engagement)
Align your practices (to make your desired a culture a reality)

I then discussed the difference between age-old, traditional employee recognition practices and strategic recognition – recognition done right so it works harder for your organization.

I referenced research showing recognition is the number 1 factor in employee engagement, accounting for 56% of the variation in an employee’s level in engagement. I also shared several case studies of the power of strategic recognition to create a culture of appreciation proven to increase employee engagement by double digits in less than a year.

During Q&A, we both answered an important question about what companies with high levels of engagement are doing, even in this time of economic instability and restricted budgets.

I pointed out McKinsey research that showed spreading out $1,000 in small gestures of praise and recognition throughout the year increased engagement by 10% vs. giving that $1,000 as a one-time bonus, which only increased engagement by 1%.

Then Mary Ann added this critically important point:

“The powerful thing about recognition is that it reminds people of what matters most. This is a key part of engagement – to redirect employee effort and attention to the top priorities of the organization. That is critical when you have a solid, broad definition of engagement as more than just satisfaction. Regular recognition throughout the year is a subtle reminder of what you need employees to keep doing.”

Indeed, keeping employees aligned with often rapidly changing goals and objectives is a powerful outcome of strategic recognition – frequent, timely, and very specific feedback.

If you missed the webinar, the recording is available here.

Your Engagement Survey Is Done. Now What?

Recognize This! – Surveys without action cause more harm than good. Join our webinar to learn how to take appropriate action on survey findings.

I’m pleased to once again be joining Mary Ann Masarech, Employee Engagement Practice Leader at BlessingWhite, in a webinar on Tuesday, 27^th March, at 3:00pm EDT (7:00pm GMT).

Mary Ann and I will be presenting “Your Engagement Survey Is Done. Now What?” We’ll discuss the frightening reality that, if you ask employees what they think are the two most fruitless activities they are asked to engage in every year and two of the top responses will be:

The annual performance review
The annual employee engagement survey

As I’ve written before, this isn’t surprising as employees rarely ever see action or results taken based on employee surveys or reviews. More often than not, companies spend endless hours analyzing the data and not nearly enough taking action.

If you survey employees and find out they crave more recognition for their efforts, understand they are telling you they need to know their efforts are noticed and appreciated. They yearn to know that their work has greater meaning and purpose.

Mary Ann will discuss BlessingWhite research showing why you want to increase engagement, not just measure it. She will also explain the negative impact on employee engagement of confusing the two.

I will then share how, when done right, implementing a strategic recognition program fulfills employee needs most commonly uncovered in engagement surveys.

In this webinar, you’ll learn how to overcome “analysis paralysis” and create a strategic plan to act on your engagement survey results. You’ll also learn:

How to avoid common engagement survey mistakes
Best practices for engagement surveys
How leading companies use strategic recognition to drive engagement

Be sure to register today!

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