The workforce is becoming more global, multigenerational, social, and mobile. Employers are borrowing from consumer technologies to design new systems of employee management.
Any recognition solution worth the name should be flexible enough to change with new and emerging technologies. In social recognition, thinking globally and acting locally is absolutely necessary.
People are habitually plugged into what's going on moment to moment. Even employees who value work/life balance are habituated to answering email and checking Twitter feeds and all the rest at any hour. Work activities and private life seep into each other. In a 24/7, borderless work world, recognition can potentially happen at any time and any place.
Like global organizations, mutigenerational workforces succeed when a single set of cultural values unites people in their work while accommodating people's differing needs.
Millennial workers lead other generations in their adoption of new technology and new habits. Growing up online and in the new economy, they are more psychically footloose, less automatically loyal, and more prone to 24/7 connection. They are just as responsive as others are to appreciation and reward---and adopt recognition solutions as quickly as they adopt other new technologies.
Recognition acts as a unifier in a multigenerational workplace because it crosses lines of authority, seniority, and social distance. A recognition moment confers respect and appreciation, which brings people together who might otherwise have a more remote workplace experience.
Another trend radically accelerated by technology is the recent shift toward mobile devices, chiefly smartphones and tablets.
Social recognition among colleagues can be designed for use on mobile devices to increase participation. Employees should be able to share appreciation immediately.
Two of recognition's best practices are be accessible and be universal. Mobile recognition does both, making recognition available to everyone, everywhere.
"The Power of Thanks" by Eric Mosley and Derek Irvine reveals how leading companies empower employees through social recognition, in which the practice of mutual appreciation and trust directs and rewards higher employee performance. The book details how building a fully engaged, energized workforce is a key to business success.