Retailers come up short when they institute an Employee of the Month program. They seem to think that every month they must reward someone and that leads to someone who is not very good getting the reward. Some months can be skipped. I think smaller milestones should be rewarded similarly to larger ones in order to motivate associates to work toward the larger milestones.

This is an excellent topic for discussion. There is nothing more important for any employee than appreciation and recognition. Statistically more employees leave jobs for lack of acknowledgments than because of pay. Too many retailers just do not understand that, and they lose good people and fail to motivate others. It doesn’t have to be an expensive gift given to an employee celebrating a work anniversary or acknowledgment for a job well done. I have seen some of the simplest and inexpensive kind gestures like a store manager bringing in some pizzas and everyone signing a card. What did that cost? But the smile on the face of the person their peers are recognizing goes a very long way. Employee recognition and appreciation helps build the right culture, helps boost morale and creates a better work environment. Most importantly, happy employees produce more, sell more and enjoy their jobs more!

I agree that store associates are the most unrecognized and underappreciated assets that brick and mortar retailers have in the struggle for relevance and competitive edge in today’s multichannel retail environment.

I am all for recognizing associates for a job well done. But, as the other writers have noted, the typical rewards are often impersonal and ring hollow to the associates who receive them.

I think we need to rethink what performance we are recognizing — to think about how to realign associate behaviors with business goals.

I believe that we should recognize associates for the service that they provide to their customers. And that the best way to understand how our customers feel about the service is to ask them, which lets associates and their managers see how they really measure up to customer expectations. Those would be metrics worth recognizing and rewarding.

Given today’s tools, that’s easier said than done.

No offense to Bryan — I hope — but it seems odd to claim “pre-formatted emails … ring hollow” and then lay out a pre-formatted program … with phrases like “slather on company culture,” no less.

But back on topic: the biggest shortcoming, sadly, is not providing “recognition” on a daily basis. No amount of anniversary congrats or birthdays cakes — even chocolate! — are going to make up for low pay, inconsistent/absent evaluations, and lack of opportunities.

As for receiving (only) token recognition for milestones, I think people are fine with that, at least insofar as they come from some central office: no one is going to expect the CEO of a 50,000 employee company to drop by for a 5 year mark … smaller firms and immediate managers, of course, should be expected to be more personal.

Make it genuine. Make it consistent. Solicit input from all staff on whom to recognize. The quiet people need this, too. Make the recognition valuable, not necessarily monetary. Lead by example. That’s easy to say, but no so commonplace in practice.

Each of the suggestions in the article are fine. But I have seen a more holistic approach work much better at driving results and engagement. Empowering employees to think and act like owners, driving and participating in the profitable growth of the company, is a proven way to drive results and engagement. Industry leaders like Southwest Airlines, Capital One and BHP Billiton, (clients of mine), and hundreds of private companies treat their employees like trusted business partners, enabling them to make more money for their company and themselves. They consistently see both profits and engagement soar. This is particularly true in retail, where employees have to make customer facing decisions all the time. This Forbes article provides more background.