How do you blend feedback and rewards?

Feedback and reward should go hand in hand in a workplace. Setting workable and achievable and measurable metrics is not just to get going, it is to be evaluated and of course, feedback is necessary. To update the team how far their effort has gone, hitting it rightly or more have to be done to get better. This is to show and teach that success can be planned, achieved and be benefitting.

Clarity is also achieved through consistent interaction. Feedback should be given as close to the targeted instance as possible. That way, the recipient still remembers the event and can make more informed adjustments in behavior.

It’s all one conversation – acknowledgment, inquiry, suggestions, praise. They are not separate categories of conversation. In our lives outside of work we don’t say, Wow, I need to tell my partner they need to stop doing something that bothers me. I’m going to schedule a special conversation just for that purpose. We talk to them every day and we let them know what we love about them and when we feel uncomfortable with something they did or said. They do the same with us. One of the biggest problems at work is that we segment and categorize way too much. We take what should be warm, organic human relationships and slice and dice them into transactions. That’s one reason there is so much discord between employees and their managers!

No! That’s grotesque. We work with adults. We don’t have to create little prizes for them to win an exchange for pleasing us. That is condescending. It trivializes their effort and their contributions. Imagine that someone came to your house to paint all the rooms. Would you say, great job today! Here, take a Starbucks gift card. The painter would be insulted, as well they should be. They know their craft. They might appreciate it if you say wow, you’re an incredible painter. That’s enough.

The essay above sounds like it relates to dog training, not managing humans. We make management way too hard and way less effective with this kind of nonsense. Treat people like adults. Honor and respect them for what they do.

When you have an incredible performer on your team, it’s easy to take them for granted. This is one of the biggest reasons people change jobs. Advice like this: “Balance feedback and rewards,” is part of the problem. This is the mentality that says that only 20% of your employees can be outstanding performers at performance review time, and only 20% can be above average, leaving 60% to fall into the category average, fair and poor. This is the mentality that gets people to quit their jobs because they aren’t being acknowledged or compensated fairly. HR systems are typically not set up to keep outstanding employees on board, much less happy. It’s a shame, because it would be so easy to keep these folks feeling valued.