Appreciate on every deserving occassion, liberally.
Greeting, thanking and appreciating geniunly would solve many HR problems in the corporate world and improve dramatically the relationship across the board and consequently the team spirit.
When I was working for a MNC finance company in India, I found myself in a utopian world and employees would not greet me; will respond to my morning greetings very relectantly. Neither they greeted each other. It was strange; I was never able to find a reason. Greeting each other must be an essential part of culture of any corporate; HR must watch out and ensure this. Or was it a problem of nepotism?; I was never sure.
Generally, mails are used for seeking approval or communicating news - both good and bad.
The author had an habbit of responding quickly; also to mails. If any mail carries any news with a semblance of goodness, the mail is read and replied quickly with one liners like :
- very good
- good progress
- excellent work here
- well done
- proactive
- Great job
- keep it up
- I appreciate your committment
- U r the best
- cheers
Many managers feel that more and liberal appreciation would set high expectations among subordinates in terms of pay-rise, bonus and promotion. In fact, I found that employees would love to live with 'appreciation' in lieu of pay rise, etc.
Once, I had a good manager by name Mohanan to look after salvage - recovery from loss accounts. He was new to the company and started sending claims communications and legal notices in a few high value accounts. A mumbai based 'public relations' company was one of them to have received the notice. They had two accounts whose term were over and charged off and three more delinquent accounts with us. CFO of the borrower came down to chennai and negotiated for settlement of all 5 accounts together. The negotiation was cordial and ended positively; we took one full morning to do. After the successful negotiation, our MD ( an american who claimed to have had 25 years experience in debt collection in USA in the same company) had to question us as to why we were negotiating in very coordial atmosphere; he did see us through glass door. We were shocked; we were expecting 'appreciation", but we were a kind of reprimanded. To add further insult, another department head for whatever reason, had to say that the borrower was under pressure for some foreign tie-ups to pay up and not because of any efforts by collection department. Obviously, we had lost Mohanan quickly to our competitor. Appreciate; at least do not insult or take away the credit.
“Appreciation is a wonderful thing. It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.” – Voltaire
Frederick Koenig once mentioned that happiness comes not from getting something we lack, but from the recognition and appreciation of what we do have.
“I would rather be able to appreciate things I can not have than to have things I am not able to appreciate.” – Elbert Hubbard
According to the Dalai Lama, the roots of goodness are in the soil of appreciation for goodness.
“Courtesies of a small and trivial character are the ones which strike deepest in the gratefully and appreciating heart.” – Henry Clay
Goethe said, “treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help them to become what they are capable of being.”
Why not appreciate, little liberally?
