How to Honor the People Who Make Your College Great
By Dr. Jennifer Askey, Executive Coach and Facilitator
Excellence, leadership, quality, collaboration, and output are common touchpoints in college and university mission statements. Every higher education institution strives for excellence, espouses rigor, and aims to achieve top results in research, teaching, collaboration, or another key focus area. The achievement bar in higher education is high, on purpose.
The culture of expected excellence, however, has a shadow side: reward and recognition culture at most institutions is virtually non-existent. While your HR office may well have programs and online applications to encourage employee recognition, these are often under-utilized, especially by faculty. This leads to scenarios where “employee recognition” at colleges and universities becomes identified with recognizing university staff for their years of service.
If your university wants to make waves in teaching and research AND wants to be a great place to work, creating a culture of appreciation with regular, honest, authentic rewards and recognition is necessary. And the great thing about improving your culture of rewards and recognition: it doesn’t have to cost a dime.
We all want to be seen. In the competitive realm of higher education, knowing that you are seen is social proof that your work matters.
So how do you, as a leader, begin to create a culture of appreciation, where people know that their excellent work matters and they feel seen?
The easiest and best types of employee recognition—regardless of the employee class or the type of work—is immediate, specific and personal, authentic, and tied to the values of the institution or unit.
One dean I know has a stack of vintage postcards in their desk drawer. Every Friday they block time on their calendar to write thank you notes to people in the unit. These handwritten notes tell individuals
- I saw, experienced, or heard what you did
- What you did was important—to me, to the institution, to students or other stakeholders
- I appreciate this on a personal and professional level
Simple messages like this indicate to people that their work is aligned with institutional priorities and does not, in fact, go unnoticed.
Your institution likely has some form of annual performance review cycle for both faculty and staff. For many university employees, these annual meetings with their chair or boss are the only time they receive any kind of feedback, positive or negative. A culture of recognition and appreciation means that leaders do not wait for the yearly performance conversation, or even the monthly one-on-one, to tell people their work is appreciated.
At the end of the meeting as you walk down the hall, tap someone on the shoulder and thank them for what they said or did, being specific about what the commendable action was and why you value it. If the meeting is virtual, send a short email indicating your appreciation. At regular department meetings, take a few minutes to recognize and appreciate people who have done important work.
Because so much work in the academy moves slowly, it is important that recognition focuses on the person and the process, not just the result. This personalization of feedback is often what leaders find intimidating. But if you default to recognizing completed work, you miss the opportunity to recognize the people who are keeping the ship afloat and the hard work it sometimes takes to maintain momentum.
Here are two helpful tips for growing your own capacity to practice positive recognition and reward:
Tip 1: Know the formula. The best appreciation is
- Personal—it recognizes the person, not just the work.
- Sincere—you demonstrate that you see the work that happened, even (or especially) if it was behind the scenes.
- Process-aware—the recognition acknowledges ongoing work and processes, not just completed outputs.
Tip 2: Think of both rockstars and superstars
Kim Scott, in her book Radical Candor, offers a new twist on high-performing and high-potential employees that is also useful for the academic context. Superstars, she explains, are your highest-profile employees. In colleges and universities, superstars are the names who bring in the huge grants and win the significant awards. They are often targets for recruitment by other institutions and might be seen as a flight risk. Rockstars, on the other hand, are “rock solid” employees in Scott’s book. These are the employees who show up, do the work, and are consistently reliable.
Scott suggests that superstars are already magnets for accolades and recognition, internally and externally. She goes so far as to argue that herculean efforts to retain superstar talent are not a great return on your investment of time and money.
Rockstars, however, might not be natural magnets for recognition and reward. But without these employees the experience of your institution for both employees and students would suffer. Advising students, delivering events, writing newsletters, answering emails—this is the human work of the organization. Making sure the rockstars know that they, too, are seen and valued, boosts morale and engagement and contributes to a culture of positive recognition.
Recognition, appreciation, and reward should not be reserved for the yearly performance review or the above-and-beyond performance. Rather, creating your own habits around recognizing people and practicing them consistently creates a ripple effect through your office, unit, or entire organization.
About Jennifer Askey
Dr. Jennifer Askey is an executive leadership and mindfulness coach who works with higher education leaders all over North America. She leverages assessments, mindfulness practices, and powerful coaching conversations to help her clients build the career impact they want to see. Jennifer is also a sought-after workshop leader and team alignment facilitator. She works with units to establish a solid connection between their success parameters and their strategic and operational tactics. Learn more about her work and contact her at jenniferaskey.com.