Does Recognition Get You In A State?

Like most managers, Brian Reynolds believed that his team had its strengths and its weaknesses. When asked in an employee satisfaction survey "Do you recognize good performance in your team?" he answered with a resounding "Of course I do!" However the following question stumped him. "How frequently do you make a point of recognizing good performance face-to-face?" His answer had to be "Never". "Surely they already know they are performing well? What would be the point of me adding my comments?"

Recognition and reward for role-model performance and behavior is, perhaps, one of the most motivational acts that anyone can do for another human being and it is worth spending a little time to analyze the mechanism that converts recognition into the self esteem, high morale and motivation that results.

In everyday life we describe people who are fretting or upset as being in a "state". Although, in psychological terms, this is a very true statement, being emotionally troubled is only one of a vast array of "states" that we transition through as we live our lives. The "state" of motivation is the condition that all employers want their people to be in all day long. In this "state" they will be hard working, productive, efficient and will display only appropriate behaviors to those around them.

In reality people are only human; they have a limited amount of stamina, patience, capability and competence. They may only be capable of a limited daily amount of excellent performance.

To guarantee that someone will adopt the correct "state", it is a simple matter of attaching or "anchoring" that state to a good feeling. Somewhere deep in the psyche there is a storage vessel that holds the memory of all of these "states" and their associated feelings. When a set of circumstances come together in our lives we step into what we feel is an appropriate "state" and that brings feelings that have been filed away with it. This explains why some people "see red" when they are confronted by disagreement. This "state" is their only response to differences of opinion.

Compare the person who "sees red" with a skilled negotiator. The negotiator has spent a great deal of time training herself to be able to access a complete encyclopedia of "states" to deal with different situations. She may have to be calm, enthusiastic, skeptical, humorous, poker-faced or downright angry at the push of a button.

The principle of using recognition as an anchor for appropriate behavior works in the same way. A good example is the "Employee of the week" board in fast food restaurants. It may seem trite to the rest of the world but for those guys, having your picture up there in a frame provides reinforcement that the way they worked was good and they will be encouraged to repeat that set of behaviors because they have been publicly recognized.

Brian Reynolds has not yet discovered the importance of his role in life as an anchor to motivate his team.

Can A Reward Be A Sin?

To be motivational, reward and recognition must be appropriate in the eye of the receiver. Tickets for the big game are fine if you enjoy sport. If you don't enjoy sport but you would like the value of the tickets to spend on something else instead, your reward just turned into another task; selling the tickets. Although they may be easy to sell on to someone else, the motivational edge has been diminished slightly.

The following is a bit like the health warning on a pack of cigarettes. This short compilation of religious issues highlights what could arise if you target an inappropriate reward on a person with certain strong beliefs. That's not to say this will be the case for everyone in that sub-group of humanity but nevertheless a little care and attention to detail can go a long way.

Most religions are becoming more flexible and tolerant in their outlook on what their followers may or may not do in their day-to-day lives; however there are still a few taboos that it would be worth reminding yourself about.

Jewish

The favorite taboos always cited for those of the Jewish persuasion are food derived from the humble pig and any reference to the holocaust, Nazi Germany or World War 2. Apparently pork and bacon are not the issue they used to be however, it pays to ask. The use of the Nazi swastika emblem is actually illegal in some countries but the atrocities of the World War 2 live on in the minds of the Jewish people and should not be raised, even in fun.

References to non-Jewish festivals such as Christmas and Easter are also mildly insulting to some, but not all, Jews.

Muslim

Pork meat can also be a problem for followers of Islam. It falls under a set of rules called Halal, laid down by the Islamic faith. Strictly speaking, any foodstuff that contains fats or byproducts of pig meat will be forbidden. In addition many of them will not drink alcohol, so that free bottle of wine will just sit on a shelf. Interestingly vanilla essence, which is extracted using alcohol is also considered Halal; so no vanilla ice-cream either.

Christian

Although many people consider themselves to be Christians, it is only the devout Christians who may be offended by inappropriate gestures. Issues like sex, nudity, homosexuality and profanity may be acceptable to the majority of adults but a practicing Christian will be not only embarrassed but perhaps insulted much more than the average person.

Hindu

Hinduism has a tradition of not eating beef as they see it as the unnecessary killing of a useful beast. Many Hindus eat a predominantly vegetarian diet and will also avoid pork, veal, lamb, fish, chicken and dairy products.

Nudity and profanity are heavily censored in Hindu culture. They are less tolerant than the average western community.

In general, it seems, food can be a bit of a hot potato which makes an impromptu company barbeque a little complicated.

Coaching; The Language Of Recognition

As she rushed through the office, Kacy Dillon, the divisional Director stopped briefly by Ian Brechin's desk, gave him the "thumbs-up" sign and said "Great job, Brechin, you did well!" She then sped off in the direction of her next meeting leaving Ian a little bemused. He was struggling with this new computer system and had just crashed it for the third time this morning. Was she being sarcastic or was she referring to the major deal he had just closed with what was to be the company's largest client. Hopefully the latter!

From time to time you can see examples where managers act as spectators. Their behavior; the words they use and their body language would not be out of place at a soccer or baseball match. They would be sitting in the stands chewing on a hot dog, swigging a beer and shouting criticism at the players (their staff) on the field. There is very little connection between the manager and the staff other than they happen to be sitting in the same building.

This image is used to highlight the profound difference between the 'manager as coach' and the 'manager as spectator'. A coach works individually with each of the players, helping them to overcome setbacks and obstacles to progress. They understand how their players respond to different types of motivation and how their family life and health affect their performance.

Most of all coaching is carried out on a very frequent basis. You don't wait for the big match to give your advice to the team in the way that the 'manager as spectator' does. You work really closely with everyone in the team to understand the strengths and weaknesses of your defense and your strikers before they have to be tested under pressure.

The Language of Coaching

Spectator language is full of demands; "Do this, do that, do the next thing." There is no time or space for discussion, experimentation and, god forbid, failure. Spectator managers need results and they need them now.

The language of a coach is significantly different. First of all the coach is an integral part of the team; more often found on the field than in their fur-lined office. Team language tends to contain the word "We" and you will hear a softer tone to the questions "How can we improve this? How can we make that happen faster, more accurately or more consistently?" It is a relationship of trust between two adults rather than a critical parent talking down to a child.

Ian Brechin's co-worker, Joanna Collins came to his assistance with the new computer system. "I've found some work-arounds that avoid crashing the system, let me show you." Then, almost as an afterthought she added "I hope you realize how proud we all are that you closed the Grossman deal, you'll need to share some of your trade secrets with the rest of us." Ian smiled, wondering why Joanna's piece of recognition seemed more valuable than Kacy Dillon's.