We’ve been talking a lot lately about the human factor in HR. Specifically, how we need to practice mindfulness when it comes to motivating and recognizing our employees. So what’s the deal about artificial intelligence taking over the management of our employees’ experiences? You can’t be serious! Robots training our employees to act like robots? Can this really be happening?

What are Human Factors?

We’ve heard a lot lately about human factors and the workplace.  Traditionally, human factors were mainly associated with workplace health and safety. However, we have recently seen an expansion of this description as it is applied to the entire workplace environment. According to the Human Factors Conference 2019, “Human Factors is the scientific analysis of all of the elements that affect performance. It encompasses all aspects of the physical and cultural environment, as well as, individual factors such as stress, decision making, workload management and communication.” In other words, human factors play a key role in every aspect of our human capital management processes.

What is Mindfulness?

Recently, a teacher friend told me about a practice that is growing in educational circles - teaching mindfulness to children. Mindfulness can be described as the practice of paying attention in the present moment and doing it intentionally and with non-judgment.  Mindfulness meditation practices refer to the deliberate acts of regulating attention through the observation of thoughts, emotions and body states. It seems this practice helps students to focus more on their studies, improve mental and emotional behaviors, and in general, perform better physically and academically. This got me thinking; could mindfulness training be of benefit to the workplace?

A Fresh Start

Well, it’s here again; the time we like to start with a clean slate and resolve to do better than last year. That includes recharging your employee recognition program and injecting a new level of excitement and enthusiasm into your workforce. This doesn’t have to be an overwhelming task. Some simple ideas can animate your employees and add some fun and enjoyment to your workplace.

A Class Act

No doubt you, like all the rest of us, were caught up this past week in the passing of our 41^st President, George Herbert Walker Bush. His humble truth of a life well lived for God and country certainly touched each one of us. We need to be reminded from time to time of the giants who have walked before us and shown us the way to live and serve. What struck me the most was the fundamental kindness of the man in all his dealings with his peers and subordinates. Nowhere was that more evident than in the thousands of handwritten thank-you notes he was said to write over his years of service. It made me stop to think of how important this simple act can be in our everyday work environment.

Counting the Ways to Say Thank You

One of my favorite books is the British spy thriller, “The 39 Steps” by John Buchan.  When I came across an article entitled “39 Employee Recognition & Appreciation Ideas”, it caught my attention. It was written by SnackNation, a company that supplies healthy snacks to businesses as a benefit for their employees. As we’re drawing close to our season of thanks, I thought these employee appreciation examples might be worth exploring.

How Agile is Your Recognition & Reward Technology Platform?

It’s no longer enough to have a stand-alone recognition and reward technology platform that does not integrate with all of your talent and human capital management processes. To be truly effective, your recognition technology platform needs to address every aspect of your HR operation. Is your technology platform that agile?

Managing and monitoring a Workforce Recognition program is now easy, because a well-designed system essentially runs itself. Program stakeholders can instantly monitor program activity and results by clicking into an administrative portal that features a dashboard with real-time reporting and graphs that address all recognition activities.

Guess What? They’re Here.

There’s has been volumes written about what was going to happen when millennials hit the workplace. Well…they’ve arrived. And they’re taking on more and more senior roles in leadership, management and sales. In fact, the Pew Research Center estimates that by 2020 millennials will be the largest percentage of the workforce.  So what does this mean for incentivizing your sales force?  Will it have an impact on how you motivate and reward your sales teams?

Our clients often ask us:  How much should we spend on employee recognition awards? What percentage of payroll should we budget for our program? How much should we budget for a multi-level recognition program?

Start with Existing Program Dollars

Most companies spend more money on recognition than they realize. Departments and individuals locally source awards, track down tickets to sporting events, and purchase pockets full of gift cards.

The problem is, with no overall recognition strategy in place, these initiatives typically amount to a hodgepodge of unrelated efforts with scattered accountability, little or no budget tracking, and no alignment with corporate goals or culture.