How can we expect our employees to support and abide by our program, work in line our expectations and aim to achieve our organization goals if we are not diligent in communicating our strategies appropriately to them?

Effective and accurate communication holds the key to success to any rewards and recognition program. Before setting out you must ensure that your communication model is top-down and bottom-up. Top down communication ensures the buy-in of the senior management as they are given clarity on which behavior is getting recognized & appreciated in the organization while bottom-up approach helps in aligning the rewards program to personal development, well being and career progression of  the individual working for the organization.

There is a famous acronym that clearly helps us in defining the you and me – it’s called WIIFM  and it stands for “What’s In It For Me?” If we expect our employees to portray the new values of our organization through their own behaviors, then they must understand the ‘WHY’ & the ‘HOW’. The HOW part of WIIFM is addressed by our rewards and recognition model whereas the WHY part must be clearly addressed in the communication one would be making. I am talking about why a new system is getting introduced, and how it will be beneficial to the individuals in the first place.

Before communicating we must try and understand as to what our employees want. Right from the CEO to an executive or manager to the front line staff must understand the objectives of the program. If in case any part of the program is not absorbed well or there is lack of realization on its importance, the entire exercise & purpose is defeated.

The key to communicating about our rewards program is to use multiple platforms or media to communicate the same message. I would advise you to communicate the same message three to six times. However, emphasis must also be laid on what we should communicate apart from how to communicate. When communicating on such a new system, the most effective communicator in the organization is the CEO or the business head. When it comes to WIIFM, employees want to hear from their top manager. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

“What interests my people, fascinates me!” When developing a communication plan, aligning your message with the receivers and what the receiver want to know is the most successful approach of creating the level of understanding required to begin the process.

The core content of the message must include the following:-

• The objective of the rewards & recognition program – Why is my company introducing a new Reward and Recognition system?

• How will I benefit from the new rewards and recognition program?  – During the communication phase of our program, we would want to engage the maximum number of employees for our program to be successful. Hence we would like to identify and document the clear benefits of the program and encourage participation at every stage of the process to get the things systematically and smoothly done. Our message would be our first opportunity to appreciate & recognize our people’s efforts and all the hard work put in by them all through these years. Make the most out of this opportunity.

• Am I able to make sense? – Unlike the practice of passing just the information, good communication is a 2 way process. As we make our employees aware of the organization’s strategy and need to introduce a new recognition system, we must also facilitate feedback to better understand how our message was received.

• Display the organization’s commitment to recognize its people’s hard work – Your message must be crafted in such a manner that when an individual reads it, a feeling of joy and pride runs through his blood and that he appreciates the organization’s commitment in recognizing the hard work of its people. Use of encouraging words & motivational content will definitely help in making the program successful and taking it to the next level.

• Spice it up – Use audio & visuals to make your message interesting and appealing. One must be glued to the entire content from start to finish. The message must add a delightful flavor to their ongoing or routine activity. The message must be introduced as a refreshing change for them and the organization. Use pictures, slogans, catchy words to enhance the user experience and get the first level buy-in for your program. Content as well as style of communication are very important.  As it would be directly coming from the horse’s mouth, people will tune into the message.

I think I am able to touch on the key elements on how to make the rewards and recognition communication campaign successful and beneficial. Communication works for those who work at it and the more focus you give on addressing the WHY part of it the better it becomes in enabling the HOW of it.

Do you perceive communication as an effective tool in your organization or you give more importance to the deliverables at the end? How has communication helped you in achieving certain goals in your organization? Do you really think that clear communication lays down the foundation of a great future ahead?

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