Q How does Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs apply to the workplace?

A I think companies are very good about paying fairly and providing good benefits, but a lot of times, they think that’s all they need to do.

A manager will have a department where maybe he has a lot of turnover or disengagement and as a solution, managers will say, ‘Well, if we just pay them more money...’

Our research shows while pay and benefits get employees in the door, people are looking for more than that. They really need to sense that they are important and what they do really adds value. Nothing does that better than a recognition, or as we say the carrot, the positive reinforcement.

Employees that receive some kind of formal presentation once a year are twice as likely to stay as employees that do not receive recognition.

Employers are looking more and more for engaged employees, and the manager that has the highest engagement is one that gives a lot of recognition in a frequent, specific and timely manner.

Q What types of recognition are there?

A There’s informal and formal. And the informal is about is daily reinforcement.

It could be verbal praise, such as, ‘I thought you’re doing a good job on that article on that conference. I like the way you did not one interview but three to make sure you have good perspective.’

The formal would be more like when you’ve reached a milestone in the company. For example, after five or ten years, we present you with some kind of token where we gather people around and make a presentation.

You praise efforts when employees are trying hard. You praise that effort and then you reward the results. The more praise people get, the superior the results tend to be.

Q So what are the steps in a formal recognition?

A We teach an acronym, called “VIP”. You want to make the employee to feel like a VIP.

‘V’ - What are the values? Was it zero defects? Was it superior customer service?

When I make the presentation, I emphasise that behaviour – because rewarded behaviour gets repeated. For example, ‘The way you handled that customer was outstanding.’

‘I’ - The impact. ‘When that customer came into our store, they were very upset. When you explained to them the policy, made sure that the replacement was in one, they left happy.” The impact was a satisfied customer who will come back again.

‘P’ - The ‘P’ is for personal. ‘You know, that’s not uncommon for you. When it comes to customer service, you always excel.’

And then at the end and for that we have an award that recognises the outstanding work.

Q How frequent should informal praise be?

A On the informal recognition, employees need a lot of frequency. The Gallup Organisation found productive employees reported receiving some kind of positive recognition at least once a week. I think that’s probably the minimum. Good managers really let their employees know on a daily basis. When you think about it, how long does it take to say ‘thank you’ in the workplace? Then again, general praise has no impact. So, some may say, ‘Great job’, but it doesn’t mean anything.

But if I am very specific, ‘I love not only the way you handle the magazine, you’re always in touch with the audience.’ People respect managers because they know managers understand what the challenges are.

But for formal presentation, employees need to earn it. so that is going to be less frequent, depending on when employees achieve the goals that has been set for them.

Q So why don’t managers do this more often?

A We find that a company that gives a lot of praise will have better economics. We call recognition the business accelerator.

Knowing that, why don’t they do it more often? In many cases, managers just don’t know how and what is appropriate.

In our training, we always make sure that top leaders are also trained. Because as a manager, if I see that the vice-president and the president is recognising employees, I know it’s safe. I know I can model that behaviour.

In HR it is so important that you provide leaders with the right tools to do the job. And when that happens, as they practise, it becomes better, and better and better, and the business results reflect that engagement.

Chester Elton is the author of several strategic recognition books, which includes Managing with Carrots, Carrot Seeds and Carrot Harvest. He is also the vice president of performance recognition with the O.C. Tanner Recognition Company based in New Jersey.