By Ashley Cooksley
My first job out of college was working at Barry Diller’s CitySearch (which became Ticketmaster-CitySearch before it was folded into AOL). We had weekly awards called Quantum Leaps. I remember the rush and thrill I’d get for receiving these simple notes. One was for having a great attitude and demonstrating teamwork during a big offsite event, another was for lending a hand to our marketing team by securing a customer testimonial. Neither of these were earth-shattering achievements, but they had made an impact on someone, and these Quantum Leaps kept me motivated to continue to work hard while instilling a team-first ethic.
As business leaders, it’s easy to forget about the small things our teams do every day to keep the company moving forward. We face major challenges on a daily basis—and it’s fair to say that not every business ended last year on a high note financially. Budgets have been squeezed, and companies have been given a nearly impossible task of consolidating third-party partners while also finding efficiencies.
As leaders, we feel this pressure while doing as much as we can to shield our teams. This means we’re often tasked with finding moments worth celebrating, even when faced with some of the business’s largest challenges.
Looking for these Quantum Leap moments has to be done in a genuine manner. In other words, you shouldn’t be handing out a gold star to someone who is simply doing what’s in their job description. It means taking time out to truly think about what matters to the business—from your team member’s perspective.
Being a senior leader with senior managers reporting to you can create a disassociation with the work done by the vast majority of your company (which is why Undercover Boss was so fascinating—the transformation of a senior leader getting down and dirty to understand their team members’ roles). The key is to find these seemingly “small” wins, and then understand the impact they have on the business, while recognizing the hard work that went into making it happen.
Define “small”
Some wins might seem small, and yet they hold considerable significance. That’s a key distinction, and something worth digging into at an organizational level.
Consider two aspects:
Here’s an example: Someone starts a weekly Friday morning coffee chat at a remote-based company, gathering their entire team to share stories on a weekly basis, encouraging consistent connection with the people they work with daily. This person’s initiative in getting this group together is something worth acknowledging because of the impact on employees and their well-being.
Or perhaps it’s a quick call out by a senior leader on an all-hands or via a company-wide Slack that helps that person feel seen and valued—and ideally, inspires them to keep things going.
It could be ensuring a renewed contract, even if the revenue has not increased year-on-year. At first glance, it’s easy to see this as a failure since the revenue didn’t increase. However, given the challenges of our current economic environment where vendors are seeing budgets cut across the board, this is a huge win.
There’s very real value when a client sees enough value in your services or products to actively choose to continue their partnership with you for another year. There’s praise to be offered to the team that led to that retention—and for that reason, absolutely worth celebrating.
Celebrating wins on a tighter budget
Watching costs is crucial, and finding ways to recognize achievements without inflating expenses becomes more complex during times like these.
First, you must understand your employees enough to discover what truly drives and inspires them, and then acknowledge and celebrate their accomplishments accordingly. Tools like the DiSC personality test can help you grasp what motivates each individual as well as what brings them joy.
Some people seek titles, recognition, and visibility for their exceptional work within the company. Promotions even with a minimal pay increase can send the signal that you acknowledge their contributions, and importantly, that others will also notice their achievements. Meaningful shout-outs in front of the department or to the company will go a long way toward demonstrating that they’ve been seen and valued.
Others prefer to avoid the spotlight entirely, and a quiet one-on-one note or email is exactly what they’d love. A thoughtful gift for them and their loved ones could be a great motivator. Even a simple gesture like ordering dinner through any number of food delivery services for an employee who had to work late can significantly boost their sense of appreciation and, in turn, their morale. It’s about tailoring and ideally matching the recognition to the person.
One-off spot bonuses and paid time off will also go a long way for any employee, and also be beneficial because it isn’t an ongoing cost like a pay raise would be.
Individual wins versus team wins
When you’re looking for smaller wins to celebrate, they tend to be driven by one or two individuals rather than the larger team. This raises the question of how to acknowledge and celebrate the impact made by a few without making others feel excluded. To strike a balance, you need to make sure that both company achievements and individual achievements are recognized and championed.
The context of the celebration matters too. Should small wins be celebrated in a company-wide meeting, or is a one-on-one approach more effective?
Remember, deep down, everyone wants to be seen and acknowledged, and how they prefer to receive that recognition can vary dramatically.
Understanding these distinct preferences is crucial, but even then, do so in a way which is appropriate to your company—and also maintainable.
Don’t forget seniority
Seniority also plays an important role here, both in terms of celebrating what others have accomplished and in receiving recognition.
When the recognition standard is high, the acknowledgment standard should be high too. Typically, those in senior leadership positions are driven by things like titles and financial incentives, such that a shout-out is probably not going to cut it for someone who has already been seen and recognized as capable of doing an exceptional job in that capacity.
At the same time, someone in a senior leadership role might somewhat lose sight of what (can) drive people at various stages of their careers since they’ve been out of such shoes for a while. Or worse, they view recognition as something to check off their list.
Sincerity and scope matter
If the recognition is mismatched with the endeavor or misaligned with the employee’s needs and motivational factors, you could fall flat. This could start to damage your relationship with that employee, who might perceive it as performative or insincere. Because, in the end, this means that the employee doesn’t actually feel valued—which is, of course, the whole intent.
Dedicate someone to oversee both people and culture
It’s impossible for a CEO to personally know and understand what motivates a team of hundreds, let alone thousands. That’s why your company would benefit from having a person or team dedicated to company culture who can lead and understand those dynamics while keeping the organization on track.
Small victories should feel spontaneous, sincere, and real. And yet you need a structured program to ensure consistent celebration across the organization throughout the year. It might seem contradictory initially, as it goes against the “of the moment” nature, but without a process or system, it’s incredibly challenging to execute it consistently and effectively.
For instance, sending out quarterly notes from the CEO to give props to those who deserve it is a fantastic way to celebrate their wins. But you need a way to track these and the backing of your management team to execute. It might be tough for some C-suites, but a handwritten note shows genuine effort. I mean, isn’t there a thrill when we check the mailbox and find a personal letter waiting for us? It’s a simple yet meaningful gesture, and it only costs time—not dollars.
Consider scheduling regular time on your calendar each month to write five notes. Then work with your leadership team to determine to whom you should be sending those five notes.
Ongoing but never routine
Even if it’s planned, it’s crucial to make the moment special for the person involved. Intentionality and a personalized touch are musts, but consistency matters here too. So avoid committing to something like granting PTO on a monthly basis to the top earner unless it fits your budget and strategy for the entire year.
Define “small”
Fast Company – work-life
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