Employee of the Month
3 08 2009Last week, I was having a conversation with my parents, and I mentioned off-hand that I had earned an employee of the month award at my retail job. Judging by their reactions, you would’ve thought that I had forgotten to mention to them that I got married last time I was in Vegas. (I’m still looking for the right words.)
The funny thing was that I wasn’t trying to hide it from them. Really, I just didn’t think it was that big of a deal. The most exciting part for me was when the general manager of the store bought me dinner, and the knowledge that I’ve got a little something to beef up my resume.
Since receiving the reward, my work behaviors haven’t really changed. I’m still doing what I was doing. Essentially, then, the return on the time, energy, and hamburger that were spent by the company was zero.
So the question I’d like to leave you with is this: If they’re getting no ROI, why do my bosses still have an employee of the month award?
I’m pretty sure that employers do not use “Employee of the Month” as a means to motivate their employees towards any particular goal or achievement. Well, let me rephrase that– no employer should use “Employee of the Month” as a means to change employee behavior! This award is intended to serve as recognition for a job already well-done, and if you weren’t already doing such a great job, you probably wouldn’t have earned it! While you’re right, it does not provide an immediate ROI, it is a pat-on-the-back to your hardest working employees and if nothing else, it lets them know that you appreciate the job they do. I’d rather “waste money” to keep all of my best employees continuing their excellent behavior than to try and drag it out of the less than stellar team members (who would be kicking and screaming the entire way!) Just my two cents… :o)
Maybe some of your fellows are more motivated with such an award?
@Jenna - I agree wholeheartedly that Emp. of the Month awards shouldn’t be used to try to develop poor performers, but I still think there are better ways to use those resources to encourage your top performers. For instance, rather than the recognition of the reward, I’d prefer to get two hamburgers. Now that’s motivating!
@Jens - A good possibility there - I think that there are some who might be, so it’s going to be important (as always) for management to know what will and won’t motivate their employees.
I find this entry rather ironic. Over and over I read your blog entries describing frustration at the fact that you or a fellow gen y employee have done this or that and not been recognized for your efforts. Here is a prime example of an employee offering exactly the public recognition that generation y seems to thrive on and yet the simple act of being awarded and fed is not enough. “One hamburger was great but why can’t I have two instead?!!” It is frustrating enough dealing with the mentality that employees should somehow get a cookie and a standing ovation just for showing up to work, how are you supposed to train, retain and reward when nothing short a plasma tv is good enough?
@Kari - I certainly see and understand the frustration you’re dealing with, and I think that a bit of what I was aiming to communicate fell victim to brevity.
There are a couple reasons the Employee of the Month falls flat for me, and explaining them is relevant:
First, it’s impersonal - at my company there are 3-4 employees of the month each month, so in a store with fifty to sixty employees, that means there’s a better than 50% chance of getting the award, regardless of your performance. (Assuming there are no repeats, which there aren’t.)
Second, given that they need to have some employees of the month each month, I can’t connect the award to a specific set of behaviors that I want to improve. Maybe I’m a nice guy, maybe I really nailed my numbers that month, or maybe they just drew my name out of a hat. I can’t tell from this award.
So, what we have with this award is not the recognition that Gen Y thrives on, but a well-intended attempt to give that. And while I’ll happily give out A’s for effort, Yoda was right when he said “Do or do not. There is no try.”
So, what - short of a plasma tv - would that entail?
Something personal. Something I know I earned. Something that doesn’t have to happen every month like clockwork. Something I want so badly I’ll bend over backwards for the company to get it.
If your Employee of the Month Award can do that - awesome! If not, don’t bother having one.
(Complete non sequiter: I can’t believe I managed to blog for over a year w/o quoting Star Wars.)
Kari:
I’ve thought about this more since this post went up. I know it’s not enough to just tear things down - you’ve got to offer a solution. Check out my newest post to see what I’d propose.
http://www.generationwhy.com/whysperspective/management/manage-gen-y-like-youre-marketing-to-them/