Why Your Employee Recognition Program Isn’t Working (And What to Do Instead)
If your organization has an employee recognition program but engagement scores remain flat, you’re not alone. Chris Dyer, a leadership speaker and 5x Inc. 5000 CEO, has spent two decades studying why most recognition efforts fail and what separates forgettable acknowledgments from moments that actually change how people see themselves and their work.
Most companies have some version of recognition infrastructure. Employee of the Month plaques. Anniversary awards. Quarterly shoutouts. These programs consume budget and administrative time, yet the majority of employees don’t feel adequately recognized. The programs exist. The recognition doesn’t land.
Table of Contents
- The Real Reason Recognition Programs Fail
- What Employees Actually Need (And Aren’t Getting)
- The Three Catalysts That Make Recognition Land
- Why Peer Recognition Beats Top-Down Praise
- A Weekly Practice That Changes Everything
- FAQ
The Real Reason Recognition Programs Fail
Early in my career as a CEO, I lost an employee named Grant. He was one of our best client service representatives. Skilled at navigating difficult conversations, patient with confused customers, talented at smoothing friction between departments. One day, he gave notice. No warning signs. No complaints. Just gone.
In the exit interview, Grant told me something I’ll never forget: “I just didn’t feel like anyone noticed what I was doing.”
We had recognition programs. We had systems. None of it had reached Grant. The problem wasn’t that we didn’t have recognition. The problem was that our recognition was generic, predictable, and disconnected from what Grant actually needed.
The “Great Job” Trap
Generic praise communicates that someone noticed something happened but couldn’t be bothered to identify what. It’s barely better than no recognition at all. Yet generic praise is exactly what most recognition programs produce. They create systems for acknowledgment without creating conditions for specificity.
What Employees Actually Need (And Aren’t Getting)
A woman named Tamara worked for my company for four years. She was good at her job, got solid reviews, and was exactly the kind of quiet, consistent contributor who keeps companies running but rarely makes waves.
Every year, I wrote handwritten holiday cards to everyone in the company. By my final year before selling, the count was over 3,500 cards. Each card needed to be real, specific, connected to something I actually knew about the person’s contribution.
When Tamara received her card, she sent me an email: “I didn’t know you knew I existed.”
Four years. Solid performance reviews. All the right HR processes in place. And she had concluded that the CEO didn’t know her name. One handwritten card did what four years of systems could not.
The Three Catalysts That Make Recognition Land
After watching thousands of recognition exchanges over two decades, I’ve identified three factors that separate forgettable acknowledgments from moments that change how people see themselves.
1. Specificity
Generic praise fails because it requires nothing from the giver. Specific recognition requires observation, which requires presence. You cannot give specific recognition if you haven’t been paying attention.
Use this structure: “I noticed when you [specific action] and it [specific impact] because [connection to larger purpose].”
2. Witnesses
Private recognition matters. Public recognition multiplies. When someone is acknowledged in front of peers, the moment becomes shared memory. Other people see what gets valued. The recognition becomes a teaching moment for the entire organization.
3. Surprise
Expected recognition loses power through predictability. When everyone knows the “Employee of the Month” announcement is coming on the first Monday, the moment carries less weight than recognition that emerges organically from genuine appreciation.
Why Peer Recognition Beats Top-Down Praise
Here’s a counterintuitive truth: the most powerful recognition often doesn’t come from above. It comes from alongside.
When I realized our recognition was too dependent on management, we restructured the entire system. We created a peer recognition program where anyone could recognize anyone else. No manager approval required.
After six months, employee engagement scores were up 25 percent. Customer service scores had risen 35 percent. Peers have nothing to gain from recognizing you. Their recognition is a pure signal, uncorrupted by hierarchical dynamics.
A Weekly Practice That Changes Everything
Every Friday, spend fifteen minutes with your calendar and your team roster. Ask yourself: Who has been quietly contributing without recent acknowledgment? Who is carrying a disproportionate load? Who faced a challenge this week that I should recognize? What specific observations can I make that will fuel recognition later?
I call this Future Casting for Recognition. It creates the mental preparation that allows you to show up with specificity when moments arrive. This practice takes fifteen minutes per week. The return on that investment is immeasurable.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do employee recognition programs fail?
Most recognition programs fail because they prioritize systems over specificity. They create predictable, generic acknowledgments that employees experience as hollow. Effective recognition requires observation, presence, and the ability to name exactly what someone did and why it mattered.
What makes recognition actually meaningful to employees?
Three factors determine whether recognition lands: specificity (naming the exact action and its impact), witnesses (public acknowledgment that becomes shared memory), and surprise (recognition that emerges organically rather than on a predictable schedule).
Is peer recognition more effective than manager recognition?
Often, yes. Peer recognition carries unique credibility because colleagues have nothing to gain from acknowledging you. Organizations that enable peer-to-peer recognition often see engagement improvements that top-down programs cannot achieve.
How can I make recognition more specific?
Use this formula: “I noticed when you [specific action] and it [specific impact] because [connection to larger purpose].” This structure forces you to identify the actual behavior, explain its effect, and connect it to something meaningful.
Build a Recognition Culture That Works
Recognition programs fail when they become bureaucratic and generic. They succeed when leaders commit to observation, specificity, and genuine acknowledgment of what people actually contribute. Chris Dyer’s keynote “Making the Most of the Moments That Matter” teaches leaders to identify which moments carry disproportionate weight and show up for them with intention. Visit chrisdyer.com to learn more.
