Recognizing Your Team and Top Performers

This week FedEx Office will be recognizing its top center of the year. Over the past couple of days, senior executives from the corporate office came to the center to work for a day, taking over the daily duties of the team members in the wining location. This weekend, the winning team and their guests will be going on an all-expense-paid trip to Orlando, Fla.  While not every company can offer a reward like this, I think it’s a great reminder of how important it is for managers and businesses to take time out to recognize their best teams and top performers. They are, after all, the face of your business and the key to your success.
 

While a trip to Orlando is nice, there are things you can do on regular basis to show your team how much you appreciate them and reward their performance.

1. Swap jobs for a day with one of your top performers. Not only will you both gain better understanding of the needs and stresses of each other’s jobs – it can be a lot of fun and a nice change of pace!
2. Take your team out to a nice dinner or have a team outing to like a trip to the go cart racetrack, an amusement park or sporting event.
3. Let a top performer be King/Queen of the office or store for the day. Any reasonable request by the top performer cannot be refused by the team for the entire day.
4. Give out a trophy filled with candy for your Team Member of the Month.
5. Do little things every week, like buying a morning coffee or afternoon snack for a team member who you saw do something great.
6. Have a bell or gong that team members ring when they have a successful sale or customer interaction. You can also have one for the customers to ring when they get great service.

All of these things can help show your team that you appreciate the benefit they provide to your business and encourage them to keep trying to improve their performance. It is a win-win. The key is to keep it fun and creative and to find what best motivates your team to achieve success.