MYTH: We worked as a team, but only one person got the award.
REALITY: The manager has judged an individual’s contribution as being significantly better than that of others.
Organizations periodically recognize and reward people who have contributed to the company’s achievements. Every company lays down the criteria for winning such awards—it could be about money saved, additional revenue realized, improvement in customer satisfaction, and others. Some companies want to be restrictive and choose a very few employees for an award so that it does not dilute the importance of winning. Some other companies promote teaming and allocate a few awards for team achievements in addition to individual ones. Companies have a choice on whether to announce this award publicly or not.
Sometimes, things can take an ugly turn when one person out of a team is chosen for an award in a public forum. This causes heartburn to other team members, if the reason behind such a judgment is not explained properly. If the explanation is unsatisfactory, then the team members might see foul play in the whole process—they might think that the person must others, while it was actually a team effort, they might believe that the manager has no idea about individual contributions and that the person got the award merely because of his better skills in communication and presentation.
In reality, the manager might have been asked to nominate just one person for the award. And so the manager, who found himself in a difficult situation, since nominating one person would have a demoralizing effect on the rest of the team, chose the one who had performed a notch above the others. In any such situation, the manager should ensure that he has done his homework properly on the contribution of each team member. That said, it always reflects badly on a manager who nominates only one person when it was all about team effort. Managers must be able to justify their decisions and actions. If a manager is not sure whether the team will be in agreement with the decision, it is better to consult them beforehand and make them part of the decision. Alternatively, the manager can decide to split the award money equally among the team members.
WHAT CAN YOU DO AS THE EMPLOYEE? If you have won the award for what was essentially a team effort, it’s your responsibility to acknowledge the contributions of your teammates. This will help assuage hurt feelings.
WHAT CAN YOU DO AS THE MANAGER? Whatever the circumstances, you should have the courage to explain the reason for choosing a particular individual; this will help the employees understand your perspective. If you have committed a mistake, there is no harm in admitting it.
