Everybody Wins!!! (Why this is wrong).

My grandson, who is 6, recently attended a summer camp at a horse ranch.

If you have ever attended one of these camps, you will find campers, and horses. If you expect that having both of these together for a week will produce something of an expert rider, you are sorely mistaken. I don’t think he should try out for the Olympic riding team any time soon.

He did however receive a participation ribbon that was almost as big as he is.

Apparently all the campers got one.

Apparently they didn’t even have to actually ride a horse to get one. They just had to attend.

While my grandson was pretty happy getting the ribbon, I am convinced that when he got home it joined the mountain of other ‘Participation Award’ ribbons he has received in his short life.

There has been a trend over the last several years to try and build self-esteem in children by putting less emphasis on those who were the first, second and third place winners and giving an award for participating to everyone.

When I was in school, and we were put in the annual track and field meet, my usual reward was to go home with a few scrapes and sore muscles. On the rare occasion I actually won something, it was a glorious moment. If I dig deeply in the scrapbook, those ribbons might still be there.

Before I go further in this post… keep in mind you are reading an ‘OPINION PIECE’. This is a seed for conversation and debate. I’m hoping that you will engage, not merely agree with me, or write me off as a Canadian who forgot to wear a toque when the weather dipped below freezing.

… back to my post.

In my humble opinion, by trying to solve one problem, they have created another.

Now that the first generation of ‘Participants’ are actively engaged in the work force, there seems to be an expectation of reward for just showing up. (If any of my team are reading this, I’m not talking about you… you have already shown yourself to be high achievers.)

Once a year, I have to assess my direct reports and provide a rating of one of the following.

• Improvement Required
• Successful
• Excellent
• Outstanding

I have to say that on more than one occasion, I notice a disappointed look in people’s eyes when they don’t get a rating of Outstanding.

From my perspective, if you have done all the duties of your job well, you are successful. No more, no less.

If you add value to the role on your own initiative by increasing your capacity or achieving something over and above reasonable expectations, you might earn an Excellent rating. Most of my team are in this category now.

I have only given out two outstanding ratings in the last seven years. Those who achieve that esteemed rank practically walked on water to get results that provided a significant benefit to the organization. In both cases, the work was done as an extension of their current role.

This rating has high value. You don’t get it for just showing up.

In a related point… In my career, I have worked for 3 non-profit organizations. It would appear that the same people that decided that everybody should get a ribbon for participating have taken careers in HR for non-profits.

This was especially apparent when I tried to get a bonus for a team member who had done exemplary work that year. In that organization (not my current one) there was no mechanism to reward people who were creative, innovative and went far above the requirements in their job description.

It was demotivating for them. I had to find ways to “reward” them outside the system, usually in the form of training courses.

So… does this mean that you don’t affirm your team for just participating?

Not at all.

There’s a huge difference between affirming people and rewarding them for just showing up.

As a leader, your primary role is to build strength and performance into your team in order to achieve the goals and objectives of your organization.

I think it’s a huge disservice to your organization and your team to have the equivalent of a ‘Participation Award’.

As I said before… this is an opinion piece.

The floor is now open for comments.

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About the Author:

I'm convinced that IT leadership needs to dramatically change how IT is delivered rather than being relegated to a costly overhead department.

In addition to transforming IT in my role as CIO, I look for every opportunity to talk about this... writing, speaking and now blogging on BeBee (https://www.bebee.com/@kevin-pashuk) , LinkedIn, ITWorld Canada, or at TurningTechInvisible.com.

I also shoot things... with my camera. Check out my photostream at www.flickr.com/photos/kwpashuk