You saved a ton of money, met a tough deadline, or exceeded user expectations, but no one seems to notice. You don’t want to be an attention hog, but you’d like your end users, stakeholders, or even your boss to know about your accomplishments. We’ve put together some tips to help you earn recognition without irritating those around you.
The How – your methods should be tactful and humble
Focus on the accomplishment. Instead of saying you did a great thing, talk about the great thing and mention that you did it. Your headline should be the accomplishment’s positive effects, such as cost savings, efficiency improvements, or increased safety.
Why: People’s primary concern is how your changes will improve their lives. Lead with good news (your accomplishment) and follow with who made it happen (you/your team).
Include others whenever possible. If fellow project management consulting team members or business partners contributed to your success, be sure you not only offer them your congratulations, but also publicly thank them for their efforts.
Why: Most project successes are the result of teamwork, so spread the accolades to all who deserve them. Sharing the limelight will also help to bolster team morale.
The When – be timely without appearing overeager
At the end of a short project, or upon completion of a major milestone in a long project.
Why: Constantly telling others of your accomplishments will get old fast (for you and for them), and folks will soon stop listening. Also, waiting until your goal has truly been reached ensures that a last-minute glitch won’t leave you with egg on your face.
During performance evaluations.
Why: It’s unrealistic to expect your boss to remember all of your accomplishments from the past twelve months, so have a list ready to ensure you get the recognition when it matters most.
PMAlliance uses a team of highly experienced and certified professionals to provide project management consulting, project management training and project office development services.
