Companies Can Not “Double Park” Their Culture and Expect It to Be There Later
New York, NY. February 23, 2011 — As the economy rebounds, companies must recalibrate efforts to nurture a healthy corporate culture by recognizing employees’ contributions, according to the most recent Performance Perspective executive briefing, released by Madison Performance Group.
Madison Performance Group is the worldwide leader in developing employee engagement and incentive marketing programs for Fortune 1000 corporations, including CA, Citigroup, Kawasaki and Siemens. The firm implements customized strategies to motivate workers, applying proprietary sales and marketing techniques to maximize their success.
As highlighted in the new Performance Perspective, a targeted recognition program is the most cost effective way to cultivate a cooperative business environment, engage and mobilize employees and better prepare the enterprise to exploit its competitive advantage.
In the 1990s, the academic community discovered solid data proving that companies who proactively managed their culture outperformed rivals in just about every financial category.
“Apple, Google and Starbucks were on the road to iconic status, partly because they built ‘cultural frameworks’ based on their unique corporate values,” says Mike Ryan, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Client Strategy, Madison Performance Group.
Today two-thirds of employees believe that corporate culture has a significant impact on their morale and productivity, according to a 2010 survey by Randstad, an international recruitment company. Yet, nearly 60% of those who felt that culture impacted their spirits also indicated that recent economic pressures had a negative impact on their company’s “personality”.
“Trying times test the spirits of employees and the spirit of an entire company,” Ryan states. “Employee recognition is an underutilized technique. Not only does it acknowledge the best efforts of employees it reaffirms the attributes of the firm’s culture,” Ryan says, referring to articles in The Harvard Business Review and McKinsey Quarterly.
“Companies back-burnered corporate culture and employee rewards during the worst economic stretch since the Great Depression,” Ryan notes. “Businesses tended to focus strictly on metrics and in doing so ignored steps to reaffirm the spirit and personality of the firm.” “During these uncertain times, companies must again work to cultivate a positive corporate atmosphere—one that will help them grow and seize market share as the economy rebounds,” concludes Ryan.
Media Contact: Gina Jessica Smith Marketing Director 212.419.1388 gsmith@madisonpg.com
About Madison
As a global leader in Social Recognition, Madison provides enterprise-class organizations with employee recognition, incentives and service anniversary programs designed for the needs of today’s ever-changing workforce. Madison’s recognition strategy focuses on making managers mentors, reinforcing a sense of belonging, celebrating personal and professional milestones and emphasizing inclusion and diversity.
For more information: Madison Email: info@madisonpg.com Phone: 866.535.2543 Fax: 212.308.0646 www.madisonpg.com