CDOT Employee Recognition: A ‘Sincere, Specific, & Diverse Program’
by Vivian Engen, Process Improvement Intern
October 18, 2018
Employees at the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) deserve more than a “great job” as recognition for their hard work on a CDOT project. “Recognition is about hearing that you are appreciated and that the hard work you put in on behalf of CDOT does not go unnoticed,” said Anjanette (AJ) Sagona, Manager, CDOT Office of Employee Development. “Successful recognition must be sincere, specific and diverse to be valued by employees,” she continued. “That’s the kind of recognition program we set out to build at CDOT.”
Recognition: Building the Baseline Program
The 2015 statewide employee engagement survey results made it clear we needed to improve our recognition program. “Across the regions, employees said they wanted more recognition and supervisors wanted more venues to recognize employees,” explained AJ.
The feedback highlighted a need for a formal recognition program and made recognition a top priority on the People Peak, under the area of internal customer focus, which is all part of CDOT’s 3 Peaks strategy. CDOT assembled executive sponsorship, a budget, and a project team to improve the recognition program. “The numbers are very clear,” AJ explained, “If people feel appreciated, they work harder. Obviously, that was something we wanted to tap into at CDOT in addition to appreciating our employees.”
Three years later, recognition has been retired from the People Peak due to the successful roll-out of the new program. “Under 3 Peaks, recognition built a baseline for a program that didn’t exist,” explained AJ. “Taking the project off the 3 Peaks list of projects doesn’t mean that we’ll stop recognizing our employees. Rather, removing it marks that we’re now in a place where the program is solid and it will continue to evolve and grow.”
Map of CDOT's 3-Peaks Strategy
Continuing to Evolve Recognition at CDOT
CDOT’s recognition program approaches recognition from all angles. The multi-level process was formed based on feedback collected across the state about what meaningful recognition would look like. “Recognition at CDOT now has a lot of diversity,” said AJ, “We have different program components ranging from peer to peer recognition to being recognized by the Transportation Commission.”
Curious About the Program? Take a Look!
The program has four components:
Region And Division Recognition
This part of the program is unique because the regions and divisions are given the freedom to recognize their employees in the way they see the best fit. The result? Recognition programs are tailored to fit the specific needs of each team. AJ points to this as the “most powerful form of recognition at CDOT.” Teams stepped away from a standardized, cookie-cutter structure and created programs that are unique to the local accomplishments of their region and division employees.
For instance, the Communications team at headquarters has a “Heavy Lifter Award.” Management recognizes employees who put in a lot of hard work to get a job done. This is a suitable recognition for the Communications division, where employees are often asked to complete large-scale projects on a tight time frame. Recognition takes a different approach in Human Resources, where “employees can nominate other employees as an ‘HR Star’,” explained AJ. Management then takes a look at the employee nominations to identify standouts that deserve recognition.
In Region 2, “Outstanding Service Coins” represent yet another approach to recognition. A new coin is made every year, and employees are encouraged to recognize each other by distributing coins for exceptional work. “There is no greater accomplishment than being recognized by your co-workers for doing a great job,” explained Michelle Peulen, a CDOT Marketing and Communications Specialist in Pueblo. These are just three examples of CDOT’s many recognition programs that exist across the state.
“We found that a lot of divisions already had a recognition system in place,” said AJ, “All they needed was a small budget to improve the program they had.” The small budget is used to purchase CDOT branded giveaways to recognize employees, like a hat or mug.
For regions and divisions where a recognition program didn’t exist, a program “playbook” was put together to help shape new recognition programs, based on the structure of existing ones around the state. New programs were encouraged to “keep recognition simple, highlight individuals who have really gone above and beyond, and reiterate the basic precept of recognizing someone.”
2. Leadership Coins
The Leadership Coins program was launched in 2015 to promote a culture of consistent recognition for CDOT leaders. The program is unique in that CDOT employees pass Leadership Traveling Coins and certificates within CDOT to recognize above and beyond leadership qualities observed in fellow employees. As of September 27, 2018, CDOTers have passed around 2,193 to their peers, as a way to recognize them.
“The coins boost morale throughout the organization and put leadership on people’s radar,” explained the program’s creator, Michelle Malloy, Senior Program Manager of Strategy & Change Management Services at CDOT. “Once an employee receives a leadership coin from a colleague, they are on the lookout for another employee who deserves to be recognized for above and beyond leadership to pass the coin on to.” The coins provide a personal and meaningful form of recognition, as the specific leadership qualities that prompted the award are also shared with the recipient.
3. The CDOT Hero Award
The Hero Award is recognition reserved for CDOT employees who perform an act of valor while on the job. The Transportation Commission recognizes individuals with a “CDOT Hero Award” to honor remarkable bravery or service, such as performing a rescue to save a life. The CDOT heroes are also recognized by CDOT Executive Director Mike Lewis on the department-wide, on-air chat and awarded CDOT-branded gear.
Todd Green was awarded a Hero Award in August of 2018 for being the first to respond when a school bus with over 40 passengers rolled over near Greeley, Colorado. Todd, a volunteer firefighter, made rescues inside the bus and provided medical attention until emergency responders arrived on the scene. At the on-air chat in September, Lewis recognized Todd, who said he was “thankful that he was around to help” when the bus rolled over.
4. Lean Everyday Ideas Recognition
There is also a formalized recognition process for CDOT innovators who contribute ideas through the department’s Lean Everyday Ideas (LEI) program. The goal of the program is to foster a culture of continuous improvement and provide a place for CDOT employees to submit implemented ideas and suggestions about how to make their work faster, better and safer. Meaningful recognition for the ideas being submitted shows innovators that their ideas are being taken seriously, that they are being heard, and hopefully motivates repeated idea submission on the LEI site.
The LEI recognition process recently changed. Before, innovators would receive an orange lanyard, a certificate and a copy of the idea card created for their idea in the mail. The process was difficult to track from an administrative standpoint and did not incentivize innovators. In the new recognition process, the LEI team will host a quarterly raffle where ten “Making Ideas Happen” hats will be awarded to CDOT innovators who implemented an idea or who borrowed an idea from the LEI site. The decision to distribute hats as prizes are based on feedback from CDOT employees at events across the state.
Example of a “Making Ideas Happen” hat
Moving Forward
CDOT’s recognition program now provides a strong, multi-faceted foundation for recognition throughout the organization. Due to its widespread support and success, the program is no longer a primary focus point for improvement at CDOT. As a result, it is being retired from CDOT’s People Peak. That being said, AJ said the program will continue to expand and change under the Communications team. “We built a baseline program that will continue to grow and evolve.”