The reason for focusing your brand-building efforts on employees is quite simple --- employees have choices. Just like customers, they are attracted to companies with strong brands --- companies that stand for something meaningful.

The best companies realize employees have four choices with respect to achieving desired business results for your company:

1. Join: "I choose to join your company, do great work, and help achieve goals and objectives."
2. Stay: "I choose to stay with your company, becoming a valuable employee over time."
3. Grow: "I choose to develop my skills and capabilities, becoming more valuable to your company over time."
4. Contribute: "I choose to consistently deliver and make a positive impact on bottom-line success."
   

Don't believe me, a few years back Southwest Airlines had 225,000 applications for 1200 job positions. Keep in mind this was while the other airlines were declaring bankruptcy and couldn't get people to show up to work. Same industry, same company function - getting people from one location to another - yet, one is driving profits and the rest are almost out of business.

Another great example is the turnover of Wegmans' Food Markets part-time workers versus the supermarket industry average. Industry average is 76%, Wegmans' 26%. This 50% difference is worth millions upon millions of dollars to Wegmans' bottom-line every year.

You may be tempted in this down economy to lose focus on building and sustaining your culture because no one is hiring and employees don't have anywhere to go. But, be forewarned, your best employees WILL leave if they aren't engaged or even worse, they will retire on the job draining productivity and profits. No matter what the economy is doing, there is always opportunity out there for your best employees to find a job where they are valued and can make an impact every day.

Most people desire to go to work each day, do a good job and help the company grow. But sometimes employees need a little bit more from each other, the company and its leadership. A little bit more in the form of recognition for doing a good job, organized in a way that helps the employee to understand what doing a good job looks like and shows appreciation.

I get approached by company leaders asking me why they can’t seem to get their employees to go the extra mile for the company, to show a commitment to seeing that the company does well. What I think they are looking for is employees who care so much that they’ll put in whatever extra effort is needed day in and day out, to ensure their jobs get done and done right. The reality is that if leaders want to see that kind of commitment, then they must show more appreciation in the form of positive recognition.

Most of organizations I talk with have tried and failed time and again to implement employee recognition programs that actually drive alignment and behavior change. Most company programs end up like your neighborhood ice cream man simply serving up a consistent Flavor of the Month that employees laugh at.

If you have an existing employee recognition program or are thinking about implementing one, how are you going to measure success and return on investment? Ask yourself these questions:

How is your program:

• reducing people time and investment necessary to effectively build and sustain culture?
• enhancing existing employee performance systems and employee touchpoints?
• reducing operational costs of changing culture, engaging employees and servicing customers?
• streamlining and improving internal communication and breaking down organizational silos?
• increasing customer satisfaction?
• improving effectiveness of training initiatives?
• growing revenue?
• replicating high-performing employees?
• increasing employee satisfaction and loyalty?

Recognition should be a strategic, leadership-driven process for acknowledging others in the workplace for good work that is aligned with the overall business objectives and strategies of the company.  Don't bank your recognition strategy on plaques, glass prisms, overpriced toaster ovens, toolsets, spa treatments and motivational posters!

I had the chance to participate in a nice debate about employee engagement last week on Businessweek.com - check it out http://www.businessweek.com/debateroom/archives/2009/05/employee_engage.html - thanks to Paul Hebert for the lively debate.

I think you'll find Paul and I actually agree more than we disagree about employee engagement. What's interesting about the comments on the debate is the assumption made that employee engagement is about special programs, employee benefits, game rooms, recognition programs, team building exercises, etc. Let me set the record straight - when I am talking about employee engagement, I am not actually thinking about any programs, perks, or benefits - these are not what employee engagement is about.

Employee engagement is a state I believe companies are constantly striving to get to. Simply put, it is the result of employees understanding the company's strategy , how to bring it to life behaviorally in their day-to-day job, being held accountable for helping achieve the company goals/objectives and therefore willing to give that extra bit of discretionary effort everyday.

Why care? Because engaged employees will consistently deliver world-class employee and customer experiences that will dramatically increase the value of your business and your ability to differentiate yourself in the marketplace. Just ask Ritz-Carlton, Southwest Airlines, Wegmans Food Markets, and Disney whether employee engagement matters!