Losing out on a company award can either motivate or discourage an employee. Supervisors can help those who don’t win to channel their emotions to improve productivity, according to researchers in Leadership and Management at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business.
What to Know
This is a summary of the article “The Award Goes to… Someone Else: A Natural Quasi-Experiment Examining the Impact of Performance Awards on Nominees’ Workplace Collaboration,” published in the Academy of Management Journal on November 28, 2022. The full article can be found on journals.aom.org.
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Companies set up awards programs not only to recognize those who have done well but also to reinforce the organization’s culture, goals, and the critical behaviors of all employees. Award-winners are intended to be role models for the rest of the organization.
Right after the awards are announced, nominees who didn’t win experience higher negative emotions, such as frustration, anger, and disappointment, and they lose motivation to respond to and collaborate with their fellow employee who won.
Almost-winners have already shown their capabilities and their high level of skill and performance relative to those who did not get nominated, and with the right encouragement, they can continue to contribute and collaborate to become winners next time.
It is important for managers to be mindful to promote collaboration between non-winner nominees and the winners, because that’s where the tension is the strongest, especially immediately following the award program.
Managers can help non-winner nominees curb such negative emotions by showing appreciation for their contribution and providing support, such as encouragement, feedback, and resources to help them pursue higher performance and better chances of winning in the future.
This is a summary of the article “The Award Goes to…Someone Else: A Natural Quasi-Experiment Examining the Impact of Performance Awards on Nominees’ Workplace Collaboration,” published in the Academy of Management Journal on November 28, 2022. The full article can be found on journals.aom.org.
For more news, follow Medscape on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
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