This year, we will be highlighting recipients of the President’s Service Awards for Excellence and the President’s Staff Awards at the Vancouver campus, focusing on what their awards mean to them, as well as how they bring recognition to the workplace.
Our first profile features Linda Ong, Director, Communications & Marketing at UBC Library, who received the 2015 President’s Staff Award for Global Citizenship (see citation here).
What did the award mean to you?
A recognition of the personal and professional work I do at UBC and beyond in my industry/field.
How did it feel to be recognized?
I was especially touched by the letters of recommendation from my supervisor and colleagues. You don’t realize how much your contribution is worth until you hear it from someone else.
How has the award impacted your workplace experiences since?
I’m very appreciative of recognition programs on campus and in my department, so I’ve continued to “pay it forward” by encouraging others to participate and acknowledge the work of those on their own team or at the UBC-wide level. Every year the submission period is announced, I encourage everyone in the department to think of nominating someone.
How do you recognize your colleagues in the workplace?
For my own small team, we are all on Twitter so I like giving recognition via tweets because it shows the value of their contributions to their social media networks and sets the tone that UBC is a place where good work is noticed. For the department I work in, we tried (with great success) the idea of the Kudo Grams at our last staff awards luncheon. It was a throwback to the idea of telegrams. Staff could send words of thanks or recognition to anyone in the organization (anonymously, or not) and all the Kudo Grams were gathered and filed into envelopes for each staff member (about 200!). Stuffing the grams and getting them ready for the luncheon was perhaps the hardest part about implementing the idea, but it was so well-received that we’re considering bringing it back as a regular practice. Maybe we could do campus-wide Kudo Grams!
Anything else you’d like to add?
I encourage managers to willingly practice the art of recognition. It makes such a difference to the people who report to you.
Do you know staff who’ve made an outstanding contribution at UBC? Nominate them for the 2016 President’s Awards.