Recognise This! – Know your goals for recognition versus incentives: broad impact on all over the long term, or short-term impact on fewer.
Are you as tired of this endless winter as my New England-based team is? Check out my most recent post on Compensation Cafe my reaction to news stories pointing out: “It’s weather, not climate.” What’s the difference? Weather is immediate. It’s what’s happening outside your window right now. Climate is long-term trends. It’s what’s happening across the globe. Sure, the Northeast U.S. is suffering through one of the coldest, snowiest winters in years, but the overall climate trend is for on average warmer temperatures year-round. And while New England might be suffering in the cold now, Europe suffered through a terrible, hot summer last year.
Why am I discussing weather and climate in a compensation-focussed blog? Because the difference between weather and climate reminded me of the difference between incentives and employee recognition. Incentives are immediate and focussed on short-term goals and fast results. Strategic recognition programmes are focussed on the long-term business goals and reinforcing the underlying behaviours necessary to achieve those strategic objectives and goals.
