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The art of celebrating team milestones has become a crucial leadership skill. A recent study by Nectar, an employee recognition software company, found that nearly 84% of employees say recognition influences their motivation to succeed at work, and nearly eight in 10 people admit they would be more productive if it were more frequent would be recognized.
The benefits of a high-recognition culture go beyond mere statistics. Teams that feel valued and recognized tend to have higher levels of innovation and ownership – traits that are essential to a startup’s agility and adaptability.
For new ventures, the first few years are a time of intense growth and inevitable challenges. In this formative phase, the seeds of corporate culture germinate. Establishing a tradition of recognition early on can have a profound impact on shaping team dynamics. Startups like Slack and Airbnb have integrated milestone celebrations into their operating cadence, recognizing sales and funding achievements as well as product launches, positive customer feedback, and personal growth achievements of team members.
Related: The importance of recognizing your employees
The recognition must be genuine
Celebrating milestones isn’t just about acknowledging the past or present; It’s about inspiring for the future. It serves as a motivating carrot, guiding the team through the next set of goals and challenges. By publicly celebrating milestones, startups also shape their narrative within the broader industry context, signaling success to potential investors, partners and future employees.
However, the approach to recognition must be authentic and aligned with the startup’s values. Hollow gestures or a one-size-fits-all approach can backfire, leading to cynicism and a disengaged workforce. Tailoring recognition programs to the unique culture and individual achievements of team members ensures that the act of recognition is both meaningful and reinforces the desired company culture.
Therefore, the entrepreneurial journey requires more than just financial savvy and strategic planning. It requires a strong understanding of human motivation and team dynamics. By recognizing milestones, leaders can show that they value their team’s contributions. This creates a sense of belonging and shared purpose that can drive a startup toward sustainable growth and innovation.
Recognition promotes motivation and commitment
Undoubtedly, recognition serves as a crucial motivator that increases employee engagement and improves performance. For entrepreneurs and startup executives looking to improve their recognition skills, here are some considerations:
1. Set clear milestones
Setting clear milestones is based on the principle of Management by Objectives (MBO), a widely recognized management philosophy by Peter Drucker. MBO emphasizes the importance of aligning individual goals with the organization’s overall strategic goals, ensuring that every team member is working toward a common endpoint. By setting clear and achievable goals, startups create a focused and motivated workforce.
However, setting milestones goes beyond just setting goals. It’s about creating a narrative for the startup’s journey. This narrative helps team members visualize their path to success and understand how their contributions advance the company. Milestones act as chapters in the startup’s story, each with its own goals, challenges, and growth opportunities.
Incorporating behavioral insights into milestone setting can also increase effectiveness. According to Locke and Latham’s goal setting theory, high performance is associated with specific and challenging goals. Startups that communicate these goals effectively create an environment for high success. For example, in its early growth phase, Twitter used specific user growth targets as milestones that significantly contributed to the advancement of the company’s product development and marketing strategies.
Related: 5 goal setting guidelines that lead to success
2. Celebrate successes publicly
Public recognition taps into the innate human need for social status and belonging and taps into intrinsic motivation, which can increase performance and promote a strong workplace culture. When a startup takes the time to highlight their team’s successes, it sends the message that each member’s work is valued and impactful. This is particularly effective in smaller organizations where individual contributions can have a significant impact on the company’s development.
Celebrating successes in a public forum, such as through social media or industry events, expands the reach of this recognition. It turns internal milestones into branding and networking opportunities and positions the company as a thriving and supportive environment. This external recognition can be crucial for startups looking to attract top talent and often leads to increased interest from potential investors looking to back a successful team.
Additionally, public recognition provides an authentic representation of the company’s progress and work culture. In the digital age, where employer review sites like Glassdoor and social media channels can greatly influence a company’s reputation, authentic success and recognition stories are valuable for the employer brand. When done right, these stories can reflect the values and desires of potential employees and customers.
3. Incorporate meaningful rewards
By rewarding employees after reaching a milestone, you encourage repetition of the behavior that led to success. This strategy is consistent with the Law of Effect, a theory developed by Edward Thorndike that states that behaviors that produce pleasant outcomes are likely to be repeated.
The key word here is “meaningful.” In order for rewards to have the desired effect, they must reach the recipient on a personal level. This requires a nuanced understanding of the team’s values and preferences. A reward that feels generic or has nothing to do with the effort expended can be ineffective or even have a demotivating effect. For example, a trophy shop might be able to create a special award that makes one employee proud, while another might find an extra day off or educational opportunities more rewarding.
Adobe’s Kickbox program is a great example of an employee recognition initiative that empowers employees to innovate and pursue their ideas. This is done by providing a physical “kickbox” that contains everything an employee might need to brainstorm, develop and test a new concept, including a guide with six different levels designed to guide the ideation process from idea to presentation. The most notable component of the box is a $1,000 prepaid credit card that employees can spend with no commitment, allowing them to prototype or test their ideas without having to justify the cost or navigate bureaucratic hoops .
Related: Do your employees feel recognized? 10 Powerful Ways to Set Up Employee Recognition Programs
4. Promote a culture of appreciation
When appreciation is ingrained in company culture, it can transform the workplace into a hub of positivity and productivity. In September 2023, Workhuman and Gallup released a report that found that “employees who strongly agree that recognition is an important part of their company’s culture are 3.7 times more likely to be engaged, 3.8 times more likely to be engaged.” more likely to feel connected to their culture and half of them are more likely to be suffering from burnout than those who are not.
A culture of appreciation is particularly important in startups, where the pace is fast and the workload can be heavy. In situations like this, small gestures of recognition can go a long way in making team members feel seen and valued for their contributions. For example, a platform that allows colleagues to give each other micro-rewards for everyday achievements can create a sense of appreciation that comes directly from colleagues and not just from top-down leadership.
Remember that a culture of appreciation must be inclusive and diverse in its recognition practices. It should recognize the different roles, efforts and achievements across the organization and ensure that no contribution goes unnoticed. This includes recognizing the achievements of support employees, interns or remote employees, who also make a significant contribution to the company’s success.