On Monday this week, I wrote about Symantec’s incredible success with peer-to-peer recognition programmes that span departments and teams. But the only reason Symantec is able to allow employees from any department to recognise each other is because they launched their employee recognition programme globally – to all employees – on the same day. They didn’t do a “staged roll-out” to the employees in the US first, as so many solutions usually are – which leaves employees outside the US feeling like second-class citizens.

But the benefits of going global don’t stop at peer-to-peer recognition capabilities. The cost savings and programme governance abilities are greatly enhanced, too, as Bill McCullough, senior compensation analyst at Symantec explained in this recent Workforce Management article:

Companies with operations scattered around the world believe centralised reward plans reach more people and their value can be assessed more easily. Multinationals also reap financial benefits from a global approach.

“Our employees love it,” says Bill McCullough, senior compensation analyst. “Now, approximately 65 percent of employees are touched by the programme, and it has impacted our employee satisfaction scores.”

Now, with its centralised programme, Symantec says it can track the return on investment in employee recognition, as well as use job performance metrics to ensure that outstanding workers receive the appropriate kudos.

As discussed in more depth in our upcoming book, Winning with a Culture of Recognition, these results strongly reflect Symantec’s ambition for their recognition programme, including: “One global strategic recognition solution” and “Local impact and relevance for all employees globally.”

What’s your employee recognition strategy say about your company and what you really think of your employees?