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Put your head down and do the work. A common phrase we hear from so many leaders before us. While this statement is true for many successful leaders, it means nothing if the team member is never coached on their performance and recognized for their achievements.

Many fail to understand the true meaning behind being a manager. Managing a team is less about the work, and more about the people. While we all have deadlines to meet, metrics to be achieved, revenue to be recognized, there are individual contributors making an effort each and every day to bring their best to work, so they can deliver on the expectations. Is that sustainable? It can be.

Imagine coming into the office, day after day, week after week, month after month (you get the point), and putting in 110% effort. You never complain, you’re a top performer, and you achieve every goal set in front of you, and over deliver on your commitments. However, you’re never recognized for the work you’ve put in. No one ever provides you with feedback on your performance. Would you keep pushing on? Maybe for a year or two. Let’s be real, people like to be recognized for their hard work, especially when they go above and beyond.

The problem with recognition, many managers feel it needs to be something grand or expensive or really impactful. When in reality, simple is better, sustainable and…provides an overly awarding sensation of accomplishment. So how do you start recognizing your team? First, ask your team members how they like to be recognized for their work. During your next 121 meeting, find an opportunity to ask them how they prefer to receive recognition for their efforts. You would be surprised at how simple the response may be.

There are many different forms of team recognition, and many of them cost nothing at all. You can start by telling the person in your next 121 meeting, ‘you did an excellent job on the paramount project. Your attention to detail and team collaboration contributed to the overall success of the project. We could not have done this without you. Thank YOU for all your support.” Another option, is calling out this similar feedback during your next team meeting. Doing it in front of other team members would give them their own moment of recognition in front of others, and allow their team members to congratulate them on their success. Just note, some do not like this approach, which is why you should ask how they prefer to receive recognition.

You could look into handing out a quarterly MVP award. You can do something low cost to begin with, and gradually get a little fancier with the award. Low cost would be a printed piece of paper, with an award template you can download from Word or Google Docs. Something a little more fancy could be to laminate the paper, or turn it into a plaque. You would be surprised to see how many people would hang these up in their cubicles. It’s absolute bragging rights! Then you encourage friendly competition within the team, and boost overall morale of the group.

Team recognition goes a long way. It instills reassurance in the team member, it also confirms that their hard work has not gone unnoticed. A simple thank you, KUDO email, paper MVP award, goes a long way for those who put in the constant effort, day in and out. As a leader, the sheer fact that YOU recognize their efforts, means so much to them and will encourage them to keep going.

How will you incorporate team recognition into your leadership style?

THE MANAGER TOOLKIT