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%).

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