The modern worker needs to be recognised for not only the extraordinary achievements that they get under their belt but also for the routine regular job role too.

It is amazing how there is no limit to the amount of good one can do if one does not care who gets the credit. But then hey, everyone craves for recognition of some kind or the other. This was true earlier & is truer now in this era of Social Media engineered human personalities.

Let me quote an excerpt from “Jaya” aka “The Mahabharata”

“Once Indra went to Krishna asking for help. Devaloka had been usurped by a Demon & he had shunted out all the devas. He begged Krishna to fight for the vanquished devas. The kind hearted blue skinned king of Dwarka set forth to fight the demon. Within a month he won back the Devaloka for Indra, who stated his indebtedness while praising Krishna for his kindness. As Krishna returned to Dwarka, one of his wives Satyabhama asked him about the gifts he received from Devaloka. Krishna replied that he didn't bring anything, for that matter neither did Indra gift him anything nor did he want something. She pestered him to get the Parijaat Tree from Devaloka for her. On her insistence Krishna put forth the request to Indra who flatly refused stating that he is indebted to him but wouldn't give anything from Devaloka. Krishna gave him a wry look as he realised that Indra was capable of lip service & nothing else!”

Sometimes organizations indulge in similar tactics when they are in an acute fix. Rewards & Recognition need to be incorporated in order to keep the employees motivated. Else they shall end up losing faith in the leadership. There is nothing more dangerous than a demotivated & vengeful employee who feels he has lost that which was rightfully his.

We live in a world wherein all of us are used to instant gratification, right from the 2 minutes Noodles to Instantaneous love. In such a scenario why must our work-lives be separate, recognition too thus is a need now & no longer a mere want.

To further substantiate Maslow’s theory, recognition becoming a want means that an average human being looks up to avenue which provide him or her with the due recognition of work. This is one of the major sources of fluidity with which a majority of the so called “Society’s” function around us.

But then this is not necessarily a bad thing, as with the instant need of gratification of today’s generation, the need of the current worker too mirrors a similar framework. The modern worker needs to be recognised for not only the extraordinary achievements that they get under their belt but also for the routine regular job role too.

Now this is the hard part, how does an organization recognise its workers beyond the normal realm of acceptance?

The normal is a part of a majority of the organization’s HR repertoire, but as the title of this article suggests what are the modern methods which the modern employee expects? But then again, this covid19 situation makes it even more difficult since a majority of these methods also need to be cost effective.

So here I have listed down 2 methods which can be used to recognise the modern employee albeit with a modern perspective

1. Nominate Employees (Management & Peer Votes)

This is usually done in a majority of companies, but imagine doing this via a Google Form & displaying the Employee of the Month tag on the employee web page of the company. Employees shall not only appreciate the recognition that they receive and realise that their daily performances are being noticed but also while working remotely such a gesture can go a long way in building a rapport amongst team members too since the voting is done by their peers.

2. Kickstart an Employee Appreciation Program

An Organization can start an EAP for the employees, now this will stand apart since during normal times the appreciation may be physically shared in terms of gifts or vouchers etc. but during the Covid19 period how to showcase the positive qualities?

Well an innovative thing that a few MSME’s have started is that they have divided their organization into teams & points could be awarded to the employee for simple tasks like assisting their colleagues to their punctuality or any other qualities. These points then add up for the team & at the end of the month any specific memento can be shared or this activity can be linked with the 1st method.

We at DSS Group of Companies (www.dssgroup.co.in), are an essential service provider & during the Covid19 pandemic our manpower was on the frontline fighting daily & during this time whenever I saw a team member ask for help, I was always the first person to volunteer. Your commitment to helping out makes employees feel recognised & solving problems simply more enjoyable.

As an organization, it is imperative to take a moment to recognize every single person on this team for not only meeting expectations lately but exceeding them. I’ve seen people bring new ideas to the table, put in extra hours, and really push themselves to their limits during this pandemic. And a line of recognition & appreciation can go a long way in motivating the employees.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article above are those of the authors' and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of this publishing house