...and the winner is...

My recent silence has been due to the pressure of work. I've been fully occupied on a change programme in Scandinavia - explaining a new strategy to a workforce coming to terms with job cuts and a radical shift in thinking about what it means to be a global player in a world of high oil prices and economic slow down. One of the things we're been debating is how an awards programme fits into all this. On the face of it, glamourous presentations and posh frocks are probably not that compatable with a message set that includes 'driving out cost.' But there is a problem of showing people what behaviours are valued in the new world. I think the trick is going to be to come up with something simple - that allows managers to recognise the right performance. We're developing something based around the four core messages in the change but the biggest headache is finding a scheme that requires minimal administration. This will be no mean feat if we pull it off. I know from experience that schemes like the excellent Helios Awards at BP require a lot of energy. It's not just the paperwork in ensuring everything is open and above board. There's a good deal of politics involved as well. How do you avoid senior leaders fretting that the 'wrong' people might win? Once, on a scheme I worked on I had to explain to a director that none of his people had won anything because they hadn't entered. And then there is the challenge of keeping it going year after year. And keeping it fresh. Despite all that, I'm really enjoying it.... Liam