New research finds a wide gap between how employers value recognition and how well they deliver it
Recognition programmes are generally seen as an important strategy to boost business performance, but a new report has found that these measures have been falling short of expectations.
The report, produced by Harvard Business Review Analytic Services and sponsored by Achievers, surveyed 566 members of the Harvard Business Review audience between March and April 2026.
It found that 66% of respondents said their organisation's reward and recognition programme is very important for influencing business performance.
However, only one-third (33%) described their programme as very effective, a gap the report attributes to weak strategy, cultural barriers, and a lack of dedicated technology.
Managers as bottlenecks
The report identifies two structural gaps holding organisations back. The first is an over-reliance on managers who are already stretched thin.
A supportive manager was the most frequently cited internal factor influencing employee performance, selected by 39% of respondents. At the same time, 58% identified managers being too busy and focused on other priorities as the leading barrier to employees receiving frequent recognition.
The second gap is a lack of technology. Only 28% of respondents said their organisation uses a dedicated platform for reward and recognition, according to the report.
Among those that do, the leading benefits include supporting peer-to-peer recognition (57%), encouraging more frequent feedback and appreciation (47%), enabling employees to select appealing rewards (41%), and creating organisation-wide visibility (40%).
Leaders versus laggards
The report groups organisations into three tiers based on how respondents rated their recognition programmes: leaders (33%), followers (37%), and laggards (31%).
The differences between them are stark, according to the report. Some 88% of leaders design their programmes to drive specific employee behaviours, compared with 72% of followers and just 28% of laggards.
On frequency, 89% of leaders say employees can expect regular, meaningful feedback for a job well done, versus 72% of followers and 35% of laggards.
Culture also divides the groups. Only 21% of leaders cite culture as a barrier to frequent recognition, compared with 38% of followers and 66% of laggards.
Those gaps translate directly into business outcomes, according to the report. Leaders (36%) are more likely than followers (18%) and laggards (8%) to report that recognition drives increased revenue or profit margins, as well as stronger collaboration, productivity, and customer experience.
"Nothing is more important than appreciation in shaping organisational culture and delivering on strategy," said Amy Edmondson, the Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management at Harvard Business School.
"As humans, we need to know we matter. Finding ways to build frequent, concrete appreciation and recognition for things done well is vital. It reenergises and reconnects people with the importance of what they're doing."
Achievers CEO Scott Landers said the findings point to a fixable problem.
"When recognition is frequent, championed from the top and tied to the priorities that matter most, businesses are better positioned to flourish," he said.
"Yet too few organisations are following the example set by recognition leaders in this research. Closing that gap by praising people for their hard work can build great employee behaviours that help companies advance critical initiatives such as AI adoption, because technology doesn't transform companies – people do."
