Start in your immediate sphere of influence.

Do one thing differently.

The best goals are attainable, reasonable goals, so it may be best to suggest to managers that they only focus on doing one thing differently. Far better to have managers focus on one thing that can be consistently done than a dozen things that all go to the wayside once the managers step back into their old routines.

For example: start each staff meeting with good news and praising for individuals who deserve it, perhaps reading "thank you" letters from satisfied customers or employees from other parts of the organization. It is estimated that 90+ percent of our daily behavior is routine, so don't underestimate the power of selective focus.

Involve those individuals you are trying to motivate.

Bring up the topic of recognition and ask the question: "Does anyone think we need to do more recognition around here?" I've never heard of any employee saying, "I just get too much recognition where I work," so this is almost a rhetorical question.

Take the initial interest you receive in having more recognition, and ask whether anyone in the group would be willing to help come up with a program for the group. Some of the best recognition programs are driven by volunteers. After initially helping them establish goals, have them develop the criteria and mechanics for the program. From the outset, it can be their program, not management's; the result is it will be more likely to succeed.

Remember, the best management is what you do with people, not what you do to them. Make employees partners in their own success.

Focus on what you can do, not what you can't do.

In almost every work environment there are constraints that can keep you from implementing recognition activities. For example, many organizations are unionized, which restricts some recognition practices; public organizations must be careful how they use public funds for recognition activities; non profits and smaller companies may not have any financial resources to devote to recognition programs; older companies my be slow to stop using paternalistic incentives; and larger companies may feel hypocritical using recognition activities during or after layoffs.

Instead of dwelling on what you can't do, focus on the hundreds of things you can do. For example, simply providing information can be very rewarding. Everyone wants to know what's going on - especially as it affects them - and just giving them information can be motivating.