Leading a Culture of Service Excellence through Rewards

Leading a Culture of Service Excellence through Rewards and Recognitions Kelly Coash-Johnson Executive Director AASPA WASPA– April 25, 2019 American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Kelly Coash-Johnson, p. HCLE • Executive Director, American Association of School Personnel Administrators • Email: Kelly@aaspa. org • Twitter: @Coash. Johnson Follow us on Linked. In Like AASPA on Facebook Follow us on Twitter American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Today’s Presentation Outline: • What is a culture of service excellence and why is it important to PK-12 • What does rewards and recognitions have to do with it? • How to make recognitions an effective part of your service improvement process Presentation Alignment to Human Capital Leaders in Education (HCLE) Standards: • P. CO. 1 Use communications to ensure effective implementation of the HCMS • C. RR. 1 Develop a total rewards strategy For more information on the HCLE standards, visit: http: //www. HCEd. Leaders. org American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What is a culture of service excellence? • The degree of assistance and courtesy granted those who patronize a business. Excellent customer service is more than what you say or do for your customers. It also means giving customers a chance to make their feelings known. • What do we want “Customers” to say about their experiences with us? • Who is your customer? • What do we want “Employees” to say about their experiences with us? It’s not a definition it’s a feeling For the purpose of today’s presentation, I want you to look at customer service as a way to recruit, retain and ultimately affect student achievement. v Your CUSTOMER is your EMPLOYEE! v K 12 Talent Leaders – Educators and School Staff – Students and Student Achievement American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What is a culture of service excellence It was a magical experience 70% of Disney’s first-time visitors return to theme park. Do you think that this is just because of the fun rollercoasters and Mickey Mouse costumes? Or because of the remarkable experiences and high-quality service that they provide their customers with? They paid attention to every detail They made us feel special American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What is a culture of service excellence 4 Things that make up service excellence 1. A truly customer focused organization sees things through the lens of the customer (i. e. employee) “If you understand the customer’s emotions, you will understand the customer’s needs. ” 2. Paying attention to the physical environment because “everything speaks” This is a big Disney concept that talks about “On Stage” and “Back Stage” and your organizational brand. Everything the employee sees, hears, touches, smells and tastes creates an impression! 3. Creating Service Wows This is the start of Rewards and Recognitions – Your employees are doing things everyday to create service wow’s for their peers and students – We need to creating Wow moments for them. * Disney’s central phone number 4500 4. Having a process that allows your employees to be service heroes The ultimate success for service excellence! – An organization that is constantly improving is one that is always looking for ways to create service heroes. American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What is a culture of service excellence? For Disney, Culture must be described in terms of behaviors. • • • How do we act How do we look How do we answer questions How do we treat our customers How do we treat our colleagues Recognition for cultural values is just as important as recognition for outcomes. Early Disney research revealed that the cast member’s ability to answer guests’ questions was a big factor in guest satisfaction. Knowledge became a priority and a lot of training time was dedicated to teaching cast members everything there was to know about there area of the park. They could answer How fast does it go? What fertilizer do you use? American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What is a culture of service excellence The Southwest Connection “The business of business is people – Even though the company honors and values all people involved in its business – the company puts its employees first. ” – Co-founder and Chairman Emeritus Herb Kelleher • 4% Voluntary turnover • 44 consecutive years of profitability • #1 lowest number of customer complaints • 85% employees say they’re proud to work for Southwest • No layoffs, no furloughs ever American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What is a culture of service excellence 1. Evolve your culture. Southwest developed a team whose mission is to retain focus on the employees 2. Equip “leaders” regardless of what position they have. They are encouraged to know about their employees and given authority to spend money (sending flowers after a death or baby items to employee’s newborns) 3. Empower and appreciate employees. Ask for input and encourage employee acknowledgement through peer to peer recognition. 4. Model the way. Some new hires simply self-select out of the system when they recognize that their behaviors don’t fit the culture. 5. Design the physical space to enforce culture. Have you ever flow Southwest during Halloween? American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What does Rewards and Recognitions have to do with it? Ø By 2025 according to some estimates, Millennials will represent 75% of the workforce Gen X (38 -52 years old) Millennial (24 -37 years old) Ø As human capital leaders, you need to understand the values and expectations of these groups. (i. e. understanding your customer’s needs) Ø Many people could tell you information on how much they make in pay, but they do not typically know the value of everything else they receive. American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What does Rewards and Recognitions have While different generations do to do with it? have different preferences, we need to think about all that we offer employees – Not just pay https: //www. americanexpress. com/uk/content/pdf/Amex. Businessthe. Millennial. Way. pdf American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What does Rewards and Recognitions have to do with it? ü Attract new staff ü Retain current staff ü Helps maintain the service culture you want to have ü Motivational – get employees to behave a specific way. Gets employees to repeat good behavior ü Increase awareness and appreciation ü Sets your employees up to be role models American Association of School Personnel Administrators

What is recognition The word recognition comes from the Latin word meaning “to know again. ” Effective recognition should help an employee know again the feeling he or she experienced when providing excellent service. Three Types of Recognition 1. Manager-to-employee 2. Peer-to-peer 3. Company (i. e. District)-to-employee American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Manager to Employee Recognition The closer the recognition comes to the actual behavior, the greater the likelihood that the employee will be motivated to repeat the behavior. Examples of Manager to Employee Recognitions: v This should come directly from your principals or directly from you. v Could be as simple as an intuitive leader who chooses to recognize every day. This is something that should be happening at your department level or your building level. American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Peer-to-Peer Recognition When an employee is observed providing excellent customer service, it is a mostly likely a peer who observes it. Peer-to-peer recognition builds a sense of teamwork and family. Examples of peer-to-peer recognitions that should be happening • Teamwork • Covering a classroom to help out • Helping a coworker through a tough time • Solving a building problem *Usually the glory goes to the teachers – don’t forget your support staff American Association of School Personnel Administrators

District to Employee Recognition Teacher of the Year – Employee of the Month • After a while, the same people receive the award • People who don’t deserve the award get it because everyone else has gotten it: the “it’s my turn” syndrome. Design your recognition program to set your staff up to be role models. American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Keys to effective recognition • Ensure that the correct behaviors are recognized • Keep the timing of the recognition close to the actual behavior • Make sure the recognition contains an emotional component American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Pitfalls to avoid Plan to spend some money - Don’t think you can get by with verbal recognition only. It should never be too much but a Star Bucks Gift Card goes a long way. Tall Poppy Syndrome – Don’t make the program create resentment for your high flyers. Don’t forgot to ask – If you set up a recognition program and fail to ask for input – your program may fall short before it’s even given a chance. American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Southwest “Kicktails” A stand alone dual purpose recognition and incentive program, designed to encourage Employees to demonstrate appreciation to one another. • Given out by employees to employees (unlimited) • Given out by customers (limited) • Each Kick Tail turns into a chance in a monthly lottery that gives 150 employees a prize of 20, 000 “Points” to redeem for gifts and prizes. • Lots of chances to win, modest prizes. American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Southwest “Kicktails” 1. 2. 3. 4. Southwest’s program is “in addition to” not “instead of” It promotes appreciation – More about saying thanks It’s individualized – no one is a “free rider” Passenger-centricity – allows those outside to recognize great service 5. The game of it all – “Gamification” prizes are not life changing. Instead it is more about being appreciated. Almost everyone can win because of the lottery system. American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Disney Recognition Programs Effective recognition can promote cultural values and desired behaviors. “If I do something well, and I am recognized for it, then I will likely feel good about the behavior and tend to repeat it…and I can be reasonable sure that it was the correct behavior because it was reinforced. ” #Cast. Compliment https: //www. disneyinstitute. com/blog/creativeemployee-recognition-making-a-big-impact-in/ American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Disney Recognition Programs • You need formal and informal reward and recognition programs. • You need programs that are 360–meaning that there is a vehicle for anyone (employees, supervisors, customers, etc. ) to recognize others. • Reward & recognition should be tied to performance–to what matters most in the organization. • Align the reward and recognition to your brand culture. • Seek to be recognized by others. • Most focus on symbols of excellence rather than on monetary rewards. • Make it fun! American Association of School Personnel Administrators

HC Leaders in Education Standards www. HCEd. Leaders. org American Association of School Personnel Administrators

Kelly Coash-Johnson, p. HCLE • Executive Director, American Association of School Personnel Administrators • Email: Kelly@aaspa. org • Twitter: @Coash. Johnson Follow us on Linked. In Like AASPA on Facebook Follow us on Twitter American Association of School Personnel Administrators