The concept of "catching people doing things right" was introduced to us by John Spence in Episode 88 of the Sidecar Sync podcast.
According to Gallup's 2024 State of the Global Workplace report, only 21% of employees worldwide are engaged at work. For associations already struggling with tight budgets and retention challenges, this statistic should set off alarm bells.
But here's what's surprising: the solution might be simpler—and cheaper—than you think.
Think about it. When was the last time a police officer pulled you over to compliment your excellent turn signal usage? When did your landlord call just to say thanks for always paying rent on time? Or when did your kid's teacher send a note home praising them for consistently turning in homework?
We're culturally wired to notice what's wrong, not what's right. This makes evolutionary sense—our ancestors who noticed threats survived longer than those who didn't. News headlines scream about failures, not everyday successes. Social media algorithms amplify outrage, not appreciation. We've built entire systems—from performance reviews to quality control—around catching mistakes.
But here's the problem: what kept our ancestors safe might be killing engagement in our organizations. This "gotcha" culture has seeped into our workplaces. We're quick to flag missed deadlines but slow to acknowledge met ones. We notice when someone's late to a meeting but not when they consistently arrive prepared.
What if we flipped the script? What if catching people doing things right became as natural as catching mistakes?
The latest Gallup research reveals a workplace crisis. With only 21% of employees engaged globally, we're facing what amounts to an epidemic of disconnection. But buried in that same research is a surprisingly simple insight: employees who receive meaningful recognition are significantly more likely to be engaged, productive, and loyal.
The math is straightforward. Employees need genuine, specific praise about once every two weeks to maintain engagement. Not annual reviews. Not employee of the month programs. Just sincere acknowledgment of work well done, delivered regularly.
Yet managers—the very people positioned to provide this recognition—are struggling the most. Manager engagement dropped three percentage points in 2024, representing the sharpest decline of any employee group. They're overwhelmed, underappreciated, and often unequipped to be the recognition champions their teams need.
For associations, this creates a perfect storm. Already operating with lean teams and limited resources, you can't afford to have 79% of your workforce disengaged. But you also can't afford expensive engagement consultants or fancy recognition software.
The good news? You don't need them.
Before diving into solutions, let's understand what actually drives engagement. Business thought leader John Spence, who has advised associations for decades, identifies seven key factors that high-performing employees value:
Fair pay—not the highest pay, just fair. Employees want to know they're compensated reasonably compared to similar roles. Once you achieve rough parity (within 10% of market rate), compensation stops being a primary motivator.
Meaningful work—and associations have a natural advantage here. Your mission-driven nature means employees can directly see how their work impacts the profession or industry you serve.
Great colleagues—high performers want to work with other high performers. One disengaged team member can drag down an entire department.
Strong culture—but here's the key: culture isn't just about fun perks. It's about how work gets done, how decisions are made, and yes, how appreciation is expressed.
Growth opportunities—both personal and professional development. People want to know they're building skills and advancing their careers, not just maintaining the status quo.
Flexibility and compassion—especially post-pandemic, employees expect understanding when life happens. This doesn't mean unlimited flexibility, but reasonable accommodation for human needs.
Trusted leadership—the single most important factor. Research shows that 50-57% of people who leave jobs cite their manager as a key reason.
Notice what's not on this list? Ping-pong tables. Free snacks. Casual Fridays. The things that matter most cost little or nothing to implement. And recognition touches nearly all of them—it reinforces meaningful work, builds culture, shows trusted leadership, and costs zero dollars.
So how do you build a culture where catching people doing things right becomes the norm? It starts with understanding what meaningful recognition actually looks like.
First, consider whether traditional employee of the month programs are serving their intended purpose. These well-intentioned efforts can sometimes backfire, creating one winner and dozens of people who feel overlooked. Instead, consider democratizing recognition. Everyone should be caught doing something right, because everyone contributes.
Meaningful recognition has four key characteristics:
Timely—delivered close to the event. Waiting for an annual review dilutes the impact.
Specific—not "great job" but "the way you handled that difficult member call showed real professionalism, especially when you..."
Genuine—people have finely tuned authenticity detectors. Forced or formulaic praise feels worse than no praise.
Proportionate—match the recognition to the achievement. A simple thank you for routine tasks, more substantial acknowledgment for exceptional efforts.
Here's what this looks like in practice. Your membership coordinator stays late to help a confused new member navigate the website. Instead of just noting the overtime, you stop by their desk the next morning: "I saw you stayed late helping that new member yesterday. They called this morning raving about your patience. That's exactly the kind of first impression we want to make."
Or your events manager smoothly handles a last-minute speaker cancellation. Rather than breathing a sigh of relief and moving on, you acknowledge it in the next team meeting: "I want everyone to know how brilliantly Sarah handled our speaker emergency last week. She had a backup lined up within an hour and communicated so professionally that attendees thought it was planned."
The challenge with recognition is remembering to do it. When you're juggling budgets, board meetings, and member crises, stopping to appreciate good work feels like a luxury. This is where simple systems help:
The weekly scan—Every Friday, spend five minutes reviewing the week. What went well? Who contributed? Send at least one genuine thank you email or have one appreciation conversation.
The meeting opener—Start team meetings with quick wins and acknowledgments. "Before we dive into the agenda, I want to highlight..."
The peer system—Create channels for team members to recognize each other. This could be as simple as a "kudos" channel in Slack or a bulletin board in the break room.
The leadership round—For executives in the office, schedule monthly "management by walking around" time specifically to observe and acknowledge good work.
But beware of turning recognition into a checkbox exercise. The moment it feels mechanical, it loses power. The goal is to build the habit of noticing, not to hit a quota.
Culture flows from leadership. If senior leaders don't model catching people doing things right, it won't take root regardless of policies or programs.
This requires vulnerability. Leaders must publicly acknowledge when they change course based on staff input. They need to credit team members for ideas and successes. They should share their own learning moments and appreciate those who helped them grow.
Some organizations have found success with approaches like celebrating intelligent risks that didn't pan out alongside successes. By recognizing the learning that comes from thoughtful experiments, they create psychological safety that encourages innovation.
Others have built recognition into their leadership meeting rhythms, taking time to share specific examples of team members who've gone above and beyond. This not only spreads recognition but helps leaders stay connected to frontline work.
The key is consistency. Sporadic grand gestures create cynicism. Regular, authentic appreciation builds trust.
When associations commit to catching people doing things right, positive effects often follow. Recognized employees tend to recognize others. Team members may begin supporting each other more actively, knowing their efforts will be seen. Quality often improves as people take more pride in work that gets noticed. Innovation can increase as employees feel safe to try new approaches.
Most importantly, retention often improves. The cost of replacing an employee ranges from 50% to 200% of their annual salary, according to various studies. If genuine recognition helps retain even one employee per year, it more than pays for the time invested—except recognition costs nothing but attention and authenticity.
Building a recognition-rich culture doesn't require a task force or strategic plan. Start tomorrow with these simple actions:
First, identify one thing someone on your team did well today. Tell them specifically what you appreciated and why it mattered. Notice their reaction—it will motivate you to continue.
Second, ask your managers about their recognition practices. What prevents them from acknowledging good work more often? Usually it's not unwillingness but overwhelm. Help them build simple habits.
Third, examine your own reflexes. Do you scan first for problems or positives? Practice entering each workspace looking for what's working. You'll still catch problems—they're hard to miss—but you'll also spot excellence that often goes unnoticed.
The disengagement crisis is real. But so is the solution. In a world quick to criticize and slow to praise, becoming an organization that catches people doing things right is a competitive advantage.
Your team members spend more waking hours at work than anywhere else. They deserve to feel valued, seen, and appreciated. And you deserve the engaged, motivated workforce that recognition creates.
It starts with a few words: "Great job on..." Who will you recognize today?