It’s important to recognize your VA teams and VA team members by developing a rewards and recognition program for their performance or to often, they will just move through the motions of doing their VA work. As value analysis leaders it is your job to unceasingly motivate your VA teams and VA members for this important work. In keeping with this topic, here are three ways to give your VA teams and VA members recognition and awards they deserve:
- Performance Awards: These types of awards are based on predefined and clearly observable criteria, such as, 100% attendance for one year or met their savings goal on a project.
- Discretionary Awards: These awards are given out by your VA team leaders, on the spot, for an exemplary achievement, like completing a VA study on time, on budget and on target.
- Recognition Awards: These awards are given to VA teams or VA members when they are recognized for their efforts, such as, being a VA team member for three years.
To paraphrase The Society for Human Resource Management, organizations adopt employee recognition programs to raise employee morale; attract and retain key VA team members; elevate their VA team’s productivity; increase VA team’s competitiveness, and improve quality, safety and outcomes.
Further, studies have documented that nine in 10 organizations have award programs based primarily on above-and-beyond performance (see #1), so I would call this a best practice that should be replicated with your own VA program.
Lastly, we found, while installing VA awards programs for our clients, that a point-based awards system (like frequent flyer miles) works best, since everyone has a different thing that motivates them to be top performers. Therefore, give them what they want, not what you want.
In closing, I don’t think I can overemphasis how important it is to have a VA recognition and awards program. We call it “new rewards for new work” that can revolutionize, reenergize and ensure your VA program’s sustainability for many years. In fact, I can promise you that you will have people fighting to become members of your VA teams if you decide to give your VA teams and VA members the recognition and awards, they deserve.