The Power of Authentic Appreciation with Dr. Paul White
The TwoTen team received wisdom from Dr. Paul White, a Christian psychologist, speaker and consultant who makes work relationships work. In the article below, Dr. White explains that not everyone feels appreciated the same way and offers tips on how to make employees feel valued...
Over the past few years, business leaders have been told: "You need to recognize your employees for the work they do. You can't expect them to feel important just because you pay them." This has been repeated to the degree that now 90% of all companies in the U.S. have some form of employee recognition program in place.
Unfortunately, both research and individual reports show that most employee recognition programs aren't effective in helping employees feel valued. During the same time frame that these programs have been implemented, the levels of job satisfaction and "employee engagement" (the degree to which employees are emotionally engaged with their work) have actually declined at the same time!
If you take the time to actually talk to front line workers and their supervisors, their primary reaction to their employers' employee recognition program is, at best, apathy and more frequently, cynicism.
Realization: Recognition Isn't the Same as Appreciation
The key lesson is to understand that recognition isn't the same as appreciation. Recognition, as it is practiced in most organizations, focuses primarily on external behavior, and specifically, employee performance. Team members receive a verbal compliment, or possibly some tangible reward, when they are observed to be doing well in the behaviors desired by the company.
By itself, rewarding desired behavior is not bad (in fact, it usually is good to do). However, if employees only feel recognized or appreciated when they perform well, or "above and beyond," then resentment can build. Why? Because employees don't just want to be viewed as a "machine" or valued for what they can produce. They also desire to be appreciated for who they are.
If you would like to read the rest of this article and find out how Christian leaders in particular can stand out from their peers regarding employee appreciation, subscribe to TwoTen Magazine for free here.
