Does Awarding an Employee of the Month Help?
Awarding an employee of the month has been a tradition for several companies. It helps motivate employees to do a better job to reach that goal. While it has been effective for several companies, it doesn’t always yield desirable results. If you wish to practice doing it in your company, you have to take these things into consideration.
What does the award give?
Not all employees work hard to receive a reward. Others work to earn money and provide for the needs of the family. Unless that award provides monetary rewards, it doesn’t motivate anyone to achieve that goal. However, if monetary rewards are available, it could also lead to terrible results. Employees could end up hurting each other in exchange of the coveted reward. Therefore, it’s not necessarily the right option especially if not done right.
Set clear standards
If you believe that awarding an employee of the month is an excellent motivator, you should have clear standards. You can’t have it out for the sake of doing it. Your employees should also be aware of your standards. Otherwise, they might think that you chose recipients randomly. Each time you award the prize to someone, it could lead to controversies. Instead of motivating employees, you sow the seeds of unhealthy competition and hatred.
Check the number of employees first
If you have plenty of employees and you can have a real competition for this award, it makes sense to give this award. Otherwise, there’s no point. You might just end up rotating this award to every employee. It won’t hold any value at all. Worse, if you end up with the same recipient each month, it could cause an obvious tension. Given how small the team is, this decision is counterproductive.
What do you want to recognize?
Recognition is important. People feel good when recognized. They feel valued. They’re also motivated to do better. However, when you give out awards, what do you intend to recognize? If you do it because all other companies have the same culture, it’s not ideal. Besides, you can always find ways to recognize other people’s efforts. You can leave a note on the desk of your employees to show that you noticed the hard work placed on specific projects. You can also show it through salary bumps, promotions, or bonuses. These methods are even more appreciated. Even simply trusting your employees to lead future projects is a good step. It shows that you trust the ability of the employees to lead the team. Some forms of recognitions can also be repeatedly done. There’s no need to wait until the end of the month to make employees feel good. They can receive recognition whenever they deserve one.
The point is that you should reward employees who deserve to get it. Whether it’s through an employee of the month award or other means, you should do it. Make sure that you justify your decisions and reach the goal of encouraging your employees to do better.
Photo Attribution:
1st and featured image from https://www.snacknation.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/pexels-photo-450271-1.jpeg
2nd image from https://gethppy.com/employeerecognition/the-employee-of-the-month-criteria-for-success
