Employees of companies large and small once worried about getting caught doing something wrong. Now the tables have turned and companies are focusing on catching their employees doing things right.
Because nearly one-third of new employees leave their jobs in the first year of employment and the competition for qualified professionals is tight in many fields, the employee recognition arm of human resources departments in local companies is developing new muscle and flexibility.
The offices are even tapping into the experiences and strategies of other companies to devise new retention plans.
Several area companies have signed on to share employee retention strategies through a Recognition Roundtable, and
"Companies typically have a loyalty program that recognizes things like the employee of the month, but on a day-to-day basis, those programs are not catering to the masses," said Kathe Ferris, a Medfield consultant who saw the recognition trend building more than 10 years ago. She founded the Boston-area Recognition Roundtable, which began meeting in spring 2007 and now includes representatives from companies such as Concord-based Welch's, the grape juice company.
Why do employees need more than free pizza once a month on a Friday?
Well-crafted recognition programs rally employee loyalty and productivity at all levels and improve the corporate culture, Ferris said.
In the absence of a structured program and an accompanying workplace philosophy about recognizing good work, it's easier for employees to leave.
"People don't quit jobs, they quit relationships," she said, paraphrasing the conclusion of a Gallup study.
Some companies that have instituted recognition programs are seeing real gains in productivity.
That's why Welch's chief executive, Dave Lukiewski, may be found serving his staffers lunch in the company cafeteria during special employee recognition days. "I have always been motivated by 'attaboys,' but as CEO I try to formalize that and make it more of our culture," said Lukiewski. "I believe in it and can see the effect on the organization."
Welch's went through employee recognition training with Ferris in 2004, then surveyed employees 18 months later. They found a nearly 7 percent improvement in positive responses, said Heather McGotty, director of employee relations.
"A lot of people think its giving somebody a tchotchke or a plaque, but there's a difference. This is a way to make them feel valued," she said.
At Johnston, R.I.-based AIPSO, a 400-employee nonprofit in the auto insurance industry, efforts to improve job satisfaction through employee recognition include a "buddy" program through which new hires get a mentor in the company. The relationship eliminates the period of new employee awkwardness and engenders loyalty from the start.
"We could have the right person in the position but may not know if he feels isolated or has questions," said Val Littlefield, the organizational quality services manager. "You never know how many people are lost early on who could have been helped by that program."
Littlefield said AIPSO just studied employees and found that 40 percent were affected by the recognition program, which the organization ties to departmental goals.
Recognition programs need not be complex, and should be spelled out to employees, said Joyce O'Donnell Maroney, managing director of the Kronos Workforce Institute, which will soon launch an information-sharing website.
"The criteria for achieving needs to be clearly stated. Otherwise it looks like a popularity contest," she said.
The underlying message is that the employees are valued, whether that means providing flex hours or simply ensuring personal safety when an one has to leave the building after dark, said Maroney.
"A sincere thank-you can mean as much to an employee as a $50 or even a $5,000 gift certificate," she said.
