Organizations fail to measure the success of employee recognition programs because they are unsure of how to go about it. So, here are a few effective ways:



1. Seek Direct Feedback from Employees

This is perhaps one of the simplest yet most effective ways to measure the performance of employee recognition. In fact, feedback of employees can help organizations gain better insights about their perception of the employee rewards and recognition program.

It also helps the organization to understand what they are doing right and what they need to improve. The organization can get this feedback through employee surveys.


2. Measure Employee Satisfaction

Another way of measuring the performance of recognition programs is to measure the before and after employee satisfaction levels. This can happen through employee surveys.

An increase in the employee satisfaction levels may indicate that the employee recognition program is doing well. However, a dip or no change in satisfaction levels might reflect mean that the program might need changes. Even specific questions related to employee recognition in an employee satisfaction survey can help pinpoint the areas of improvement.

If the program is underperforming, the organization should get direct feedback from employees through short surveys or through one-on-one interaction. In fact, these inputs can be valuable in making modifications in the program design and implementation to make it more effective.


3. Analyze Change in Retention Rates

A major benefit of a successful employee recognition program is that it helps organizations improve their talent retention rates. Thus, analyzing the changes in retention rates can also help organizations measure the success of their recognition program.

Obviously, organizations understand that there are many other factors at play when it comes to employee retention. Even a flat retention rate can be indicative of the program being effective to some extent. However, the organization needs to corroborate this data with inputs from exit interviews and other data sources.


4. Assess Behavioral Changes

Although an intangible way of measuring performance of an employee recognition program, it is no less effective. In fact, careful assessment behavioral changes can help organizations better understand the effectiveness of their recognition programs than most surveys.

If employees are more satisfied and happier at the workplace, it can be indicative of the success of recognition programs. However, organizations need to monitor such behavioral changes over time to ensure their relevance to the recognition programs.

Any negative behavioral changes can indicate the failure of a recognition program. Hence, this should prompt the management to take timely action to modify the program to get better results.

Often employee recognition programs have objectives of driving certain behavioral changes in employees, mostly in alignment with the corporate values. If those desired changes are not happening, then it might be apt to look at making changes in the program.