Please Give the Credit - It’s in Your best INTEREST

Posted on November 16, 2014 by Spencer Gaines, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.

Please Give the Credit – It’s in Your best INTEREST

For those of you who have spent a career earning a place of respect, trust and creditability in your given profession, you know that in addition to your comp clam the only other reward is being recognized for your accomplishments. Sadly, there is a phenomenon that occurs on your way of the corporate ladder, that being the false perception that leaders no longer need to have their accomplishments acknowledged. Even worse, is when a person gives his or her all, only to have the limelight stolen by either another colleague or a supervisor. True employee satisfaction (this includes leaders) only happens when you know your efforts and commitment to the mission and vision of the enterprise are being realized by those around you and above you. Imagine working for days on a report, attaching your name to it however; after submission to the your superior, your name is removed and replaced with his…this is not a scenario but a true to life event that happened to a good friend of mine.

This situation is even more impactful when a leader (supervisor, manager, ect.) steals the thunder from a lower member on the team. In many instances, the leader has forgotten that the person he or she stole the recognition from was once he or she. It is a fact, that when a person is recognized for an accomplishment, there is about a 97% probability that the employee will replicate that behavior again. Does it not then make sense to give the credit, where the credit is due?

Here is the reality: Complacency in one’s job comes as a direct result of either not being recognized for rising above the team and/or taking credit for your people work. In contrast, commitment is driven by recognition and giving voice to your people. By the way, on a side note it also means taking the hit for an employee or the team when his, hers, or their performance has fallen short of expectation. In other words, commitment by the employee is driven by the actions (or lack thereof) of the leader. To those leaders out there, if you want to muddy yourself in the eyes of your leader, try placing the blame on the team.

A Story: I have a friend who has faced great adversity in getting to the ivory tower. The person is of color, female, and works in an industry that is predominantly white male. She has worked hard and out-shined here colleagues and through a number of skillful career moves now holds a prominent spot in her current organization. Although nothing has ever been said to her face, she has heard the whispers and second hand comments as she left a group yet, she brishes it off and because she is not consumed on what people may think or feel about her, and has focused on being the very best she can be, her knowledge, charisma, and experience has found her in a great position. This person knows that she has fallen victim to having her great work claimed by someone else, but in her mind there are bigger fish to fry. This person works very closely with a very dynamic, good-looking, and intelligent man. To see the two work side-by-side you would conclude there is great trust between the two. Recently, she has spent a great deal of time working on a project with this colleague. When the project was complete, there was great accolades for the finished product. About a week later, she was part of a conference call however; her colleague and partner had no idea she was on the call because she was in route to another office and was excused from the meeting. When the senior leader inquired about the project, for the next fifteen minutes every aspect of the project began with either “I” or “me.” Of course being the person who she was, she never revealed that she was on the call nor did she call her colleague and project on the carpet. In reflection, it is quite sad, and it always is when a person shows his or her true colors.

To finish on an up note consider this. In almost all instances of recognition awards do not have a dollar amount, often the kind words are free. It is critical that if you lead a team or are simply a parent that even the small victories are recognized. One of the greatest losses a person can lose is trust and even worse respect. Maybe the most interesting aspect about giving recognition that most leaders and colleague fail to realize, is that when recognition is given, those above you will recognize you for developing successful associates. In fact, those who do not fully understands leadership also fail to realize that leaders are measured by their team’s accomplishments. It may have been the leader mastery of the processes that got him or her promoted however; it is the transformation leadership model that finds the leader sharing his or her knowledge with the people on the team and then coaching them to mastery. I challenge each of you to recognized just one employee or colleague this week, then sit back and see the impact your kind words have had on that person…until next time.