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Awesomeness is ‘on board’
by Samantha Glave, Ministry of the Attorney General
Inspiration comes in many forms. For Josie Eusepio, it was the TED talk The Three As of Awesome by Neil Pasricha, author ofThe
Book of Awesome.
“I realized that we take the small things in life for granted. I wanted to create a space where we acknowledge one another for
doing everyday great things,” said Eusepio, supervisor of the small claims, finance and enforcement department at the Brampton
Courthouse. And so began the Board of Awesome.
The Board of Awesome is a place for peer-to-peer recognition, encouraging employees to acknowledge the achievements of their
colleagues. Superficially, it’s a dry erase board affixed to the wall with three markers. To Eusepio’s team, it is much more than that.
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Josie Eusepio (top) had the idea to create
a Board of Awesome in the Brampton
courthouse office, where Wahid Motahedy
(centre) was called a true team player, and
Julia Bryan (bottom) was recognized as a
helpful resource to clients.
Here’s what they’ve said about the board:
“It helps promote positivity in the workplace and for our team.”
“It’s a fun way to give acknowledgment to a colleague and make othersaware of awesome contributions they may otherwise be unaware of.”
“It gives you a boost to the ordinary or bad day that you’re having.”
“It allows people to feel validated.”
In a report about recognizing and rewarding employees in Canadian
organizations, the Conference Board of Canada found that recognition is highly
correlated with engagement, and can be helpful in retaining employees and
encouraging high performance.
Although it’s the least common form of acknowledgment among organizations,
peer-to-peer recognition has many benefits. Here are a few reasons why your
team should think about implementing its own Board of Awesome (BOA).
1. Personal, individualized recognition
Recognition is personal. People are motivated by different things. The BOA
allows employees to be recognized for their specific contributions, what they did
that made a difference. This type of recognition is more meaningful than the
typical generic email to an entire team congratulating them on a job well done.
2. Avoid the adverse effects of cash rewards and gifts
Although a survey by Maritz Loyalty & Motivation found that most employees
preferred a cash bonus as a form of recognition, many rewards and recognition
service providers do not recommend cash or gift certificates – once they are
spent, they tend to be quickly forgotten. What's more, authorDaniel
Pink suggests that monetary rewards can extinguish intrinsic motivation and
encourage cheating and unethical behaviour.
3. Acknowledge all who are deserving
It can be difficult for a manager to recognize staff if they supervise a large group
or if the nature of their employees’ jobs does not allow for much manager-
employee interaction (e.g., in court or on-the-road). These employees spend more
time with their coworkers, who are in the best position to witness and praise
their performance and accomplishments. Plus the board allows introverted or
shy employees to both give and receive the recognition they deserve.
No matter what form it takes, we all want acknowledgment — to know that the
actions we take and the work that we do makes a difference.
What employee recognition programs/tactics does your office have in place? Tell us in
the comments below.
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