Employee engagement activities support business strategy

To ensure success, Delta incorporated all of the RPI best practice standards into its recognition efforts. The focus on these best practices earned Delta an RPI Award for Events and Celebrations Best Practice Standards in 2008 and for Best Overall Award for all standards in 2009, honoring the company’s advancements in recognition over those years.

I. Strategy – Recognition at Delta is more than just one program. It is a suite of programs from across the enterprise that encompasses all of the following:

• Milestone events
• Corporate enterprise recognition
• Localized recognition

Delta’s recognition strategy takes each of these programs into account and uses a three-dimensional approach for the organization that is made up of day-to-day, informal and formal recognition.

II. Management Involvement – Recognition as part of corporate culture at Delta not only has buy-in from senior management, but it has their involvement at a high level in defining and documenting the recognition strategy and policies for the organization.

III. Measurement – Measurement is a critical element to Delta’s recognition success. Program results are reviewed against specific program objectives and the larger overall organization recognition strategy, and then the results are measured for effectiveness.

IV. Communications – The primary goal of Delta’s recognition programs communication plan was the successful branding of the recognition experience at Delta overall and of specific recognition programs. This goal was met by:

• Establishing MyDeltaRewards as the brand of recognition at Delta, and
• Centralizing and unifying all recognition programs

V. Training – Delta’s recognition training provides managers and employees with a suite of user-friendly, on-demand tools to educate, inform and support recognition in the workplace.

VI. Events and Celebrations – Recognition events and celebrations are a key element to recognition at Delta. These events are all aligned with the recognition strategy by prescribing specific guidelines and processes for informal celebrations, local events and formal events.

VII. Change and Flexibility – Delta uses a standard framework to develop, deploy and assess program performance. Based on informal feedback and a formal annual review, Delta’s recognition programs are adjusted to meet the diverse needs of individuals and teams.

Employing each of these standards has allowed Delta to develop and maintain a culture of recognition.

However, Delta’s experience and recognition needs are not unique to corporate America. The company operates in an extremely challenging and competitive environment, and it looks to serve and recognize more than 80,000 employees across multiple countries who speak multiple languages. Delta continues to grow and adapt in its recognition efforts, but it has maintained a foundation in the RPI best practice standard