Staff Recognition - Formula 1 Style
How do you recognise your staff? An award at the Christmas party, a voucher placed on their desk, a bonus added to their pay check?
How about holding them shoulder high in front of all their colleagues, never mind the competition watching along with millions of members of the public who have tuned in to watch your organisation be the very best in the business?
Sam Bradley and Holly Chapman, a mechanic and a powertrain engineer respectively, joined Jonathan Legard and me on our latest At The Controls podcast to describe their experiences of being picked to represent the AMG Mercedes F1 team on the podium at the Austrian and Belgian Grands Prix.
While drivers Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas picked up their trophies Sam and Holly were given the most public recognition possible - creating a day they will never forget, making them even prouder to be part of an organisation they love working for. It also showed their colleagues that this is a team whose leadership know how to walk the walk as well as talk the talk when it comes to recognising that everyone in the organisation has a key role to play in creating their record breaking success story.
Sam, who works as a mechanic for 6 times World Champion Lewis Hamilton, initially thought it was a joke when CEO Toto Wolff tapped him on the shoulder and told him he would be representing Mercedes on the podium. Holly explained how her family were stunned to see her take to the podium alongside Valtteri Bottas. The 29 year old Loughborough University graduate is responsible for managing the complex hybrid powertrain systems on Bottas's car.
In a world of celebrity leaders and entrepreneurs, how many leaders really want the people who make it happen to be given their moment in the sun, their reward for a life dedicated to being experts in their field?
Business Design & Operating Model Specialist; Fractional CIO & CTO; Investor & Advisor; Respected Networker & Tech Leadership Influencer
4 年Michael Evans
Great piece Mark. Recognising the unsung heros has a massive impact on team morale. As a team is nothing without dedicated people. The hard work and sacrifices all pay off when you are recognised in this way and it costs nothing but has a massive impact.
Engineering Project Manager | Project Management | New Product Development | Mechanical Engineer | Results Driven
4 年Fantastic! What a great way to show appreciation, in front of the whole world to see! Too often recognition is limited to a standard corporate gestures. Getting creative with unique ways to show recognition speaks volumes about great leadership.
Client Partner - eCommerce at Meta | Ex - PUMA, LOOP and EY
4 年Love it! Such a nice read, thanks Mark.
Business Design & Operating Model Specialist; Fractional CIO & CTO; Investor & Advisor; Respected Networker & Tech Leadership Influencer
4 年It’s impossible to you even have a “Front of house” without a “behind the scenes” so many people and businesses fail to recognise this - Mercedes also spot on with the experience, memory making and future loyalty. really great illustration of how great teams get it right - thanks for sharing Mark Gallagher