We sometimes sit in amazement at the frequency with which we encounter employee recognition programs that aren’t tethered directly to a company’s enterprise strategy. Examples include recognition programs that reward values rather than behaviors that are linked to performance. This makes it nearly impossible to measure business impact. Also quite common are programs that have been deployed on a one-size-fits-all basis. This overlooks fundamental differences between employees in different parts of the organization.

If you’re looking for a rock-solid foundation for creating a performance-driven employee recognition program, look up. Up the corporate ladder that is. What are the top three or four objectives on your CEO’s change management agenda? Now think about the behavior changes that will be required to deliver on these objectives. 

Do CEOs need help in driving their agendas for change? According to Daryl Connor, leading expert in organizational change and author of Leading Change, decades of research show that there is a 70 percent failure rate for change projects. CEOs need all the help they can get!

Can recognition drive behavior change? If you are a parent or pet owner, you already know the answer. The good news with humans in the workplace is that recognition positively influences engagement and–when specifically targeted–workplace behaviors and outcomes.

You’ll find more on this topic in the latest article in our HR Thought Leader Insights series: Aligning Employee Recognition with Enterprise Strategy. Our interview with Emily Gatton, Engage2Excel VP of Solutions, includes tips on what to include in your program and why, along with a few recent examples of program success.

Download the article here.