If You’re An Arts Org Executive, You’ll Want To Read This

Make no mistake, it’s wonderful to see a staffer or manager nominate his/her executive; in fact, the panel ended up selecting two very deserving executives as recipients.

Having said that, it was difficult not to feel somewhat dismayed when there wasn’t a single executive who felt compelled to nominate an employee’s creative and successful project.

Ideally, the 2017 program will see a healthy mix of submissions but until then, I want to challenge every executive who reads this blog to take a moment and think about the ways you recognize your employees.

Expressing appreciation for what they do and recognizing achievements inside the office are good things to do, but they tend to be low hanging fruit and ultimately, words only go so far. Clearly, there’s no doubt that employees appreciate having their accomplishments recognized by way of salary and wage improvements.

But one of the most overlooked opportunities involves something like the Most Creative People In Arts Administration program where simply submitting a nomination can mean as much if not more to the employee than any associated award.

Simply put, it’s one thing to express appreciation inside the office but something entirely different to direct those sentiments outward.

Just in case there’s any confusion, this post isn’t meant to beat-up on executives. On the contrary, being a nonprofit performing arts executive is anything but a cakewalk. There are no shortages of pressures and problems but the very best executives tend to go out of their way to boost their employees up into the limelight.

In the end, it is all too easy for executives to get overwhelmed by day to day pressures and miss occasions to acknowledge employee accomplishments. The best way to avoid that bear trap is taking advantage of every opportunity that comes along and become a master of maximizing external recognition.