When it comes to recognizing an employee’s efforts, it can be a challenge to do so in a remote team. Although communication may be optimal, there are sometimes difficulties such as miscommunications and misunderstandings that could potentially arise; however, with just a little bit of effort put forth by all parties involved – especially at the outset – these issues can be avoided!
To ensure that your employees are properly recognized for their efforts, we’ve compiled a list of essential tips for how to facilitate recognition in your organization.
1. Develop a detailed award policy and establish it as a company-wide policy
Seldom does an award recipient decline a statuette at a gala event, yet one of the biggest concerns employers must address is how to procure recognition for their team members.
Award policies are a crucial part of an organization’s structure; therefore it’s important to keep them up-to-date and concise. Be sure to utilize bullet points and numbering when listing out what criteria will be utilized in the creation of any awards.
Make certain your policy accounts for all of your employees in remote teams; if not, then ensure that it can be adapted as necessary based on its deployment onto the business landscape.
2. Have fun with it
To keep morale high, give your team members opportunities to have fun.
When you want to make a concerted effort to recognize your team members for their contributions, it’s imperative that everyone involved takes part! From providing holiday parties and inviting fellow co-workers over for scrum-break lunches – all these efforts should be undertaken with zeal in order to foster an atmosphere of pleasantness among team members.
But also make it meaningful and appropriate
To foster a cohesive team atmosphere, it’s essential that communication is open and clear between all members of the group. If you want to guarantee employee recognition received by your remote workforce, make sure everyone within the organization understands what you want to accomplish and why.
Ensure consistency when issuing appreciation awards to employees by creating an award system that meets the needs of each member of your team. Each individual should be recognized for his or her accomplishments on an ongoing basis; this could involve completing tasks or simply demonstrating proficiency in their work-related areas – whatever elicits recognition from others! If one particular person receives more accolades than they’re accustomed to receiving, it could result in feelings of discontentment amongst colleagues who haven’t been overlooked either.
3. Set expectations for employees on what to do to be recognized by you
To achieve employee recognition, you must be reasonable with your expectations. You wouldn’t expect a person who lives in Anaheim to make it their priority to eat lunch with the execs in Switzerland if those aren’t the priorities for them. Be cognizant of where your team members may reside and be mindful of what is possible.
For example, if I were granting bonuses to my team members, I would not demand that they eat lunch with me on any given week – but rather just do their part by putting in effort and striving towards goals. If they put forth extra effort and meet expectations – then success!
4. Communicate openly about your team
While we may strive for a healthy work environment with no awkwardness or cloying conversations, utilizing technology can undoubtedly facilitate team camaraderie.
Set up social media channels where all members of the team can converse and interact with one another without fear of disturbing anyone! This is a great way to foster familiarity and cohesion within your team as well as provide an effective tool for communicating about projects, deadlines, and even anniversaries – all with minimal effort on their part!
Their roles
It’s essential to abide by your company’s policies when it comes to deciding what constitutes an employee and what doesn’t. Employers often use these guidelines as a framework for devising their own staff expenses, such as providing free lunch or shortening an employee’s commute time when possible.
Maximize your remote team’s opportunities for rewards and recognition, ensuring everyone can benefit from them. If you choose not to allocate money for those perks, be sure that you’re offering tangible forms of appreciation – ie, don’t just leave behind a gift card in each individual’s inbox!
And their achievements
Recognizing the valuable contributions of your employees is an essential element of any well-run organization. It can be a rewarding experience to celebrate success; however, it can also be very motivating when team members are recognized on an individual basis.
In order to encourage accountability and foster an environment of trust, it’s important to establish clear guidelines for employee recognition in remote teams.
5. Use technology to help (and not hurt) your efforts
Sometimes, it can be difficult to give each employee their due when you are remoting. With the prevalence of technology such as Slack or Gchat, it is possible to provide quick responses that enable our team members to function more effectively from afar – but this could also result in a disjointed communication process between team members if not adequately taken care of.
If at any time during your workday, Slack displays an alert indicating that someone has attempted to contact you and failed – be sure to quickly respond. Do not allow an unpaid ‘busy’ response from you to take place!
To avoid constantly checking social media accounts, productivity systems like Trello can provide helpful reminders as well as providing a record of your progress toward achieving employee recognition goals.
Conclusion
To ensure that your employees are recognized for their contributions, it’s essential that you observe the following steps. Utilize these tips to ensure that all members of your team receive due recognition!
