Connecting to Admired Leadership
Make Recognition More Specific
Episode Summary
A conversation with CRA | Admired Leadership Partner Ben Stringfellow and host Wes Bender, exploring one of the most common missed opportunities in leadership: generic praise. Ben unpacks why "great job" falls flat even when it's sincere, what the essential components of specific recognition actually are, and how leaders can use specificity to drive continued excellence — not just acknowledge past performance. The session also covers how to recognize people when you're not close to the details of their work, how to handle leaders who are stingy with praise, and how to create the conditions for peer-to-peer recognition that lands even more meaningfully than recognition from the top.
Episode Notes
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Key Highlights
- Generic praise isn't bad — it's just a missed opportunity: "Great job" feels validating in the moment, but it doesn't signal understanding. Specific recognition tells people you actually saw what they did and why it mattered — and that changes everything about how it lands.
- The formula is simple: the what and the why: Describe specifically what the person did, and then explain why it was particularly effective in that situation. The what without the why leaves people without meaning. Both together make the behavior repeatable.
- You don't have to be an expert in the work to recognize it specifically: If you're not close to the technical details, look at how people got to the outcome — the collaboration, the communication, the process, the care they took. There's always something observable and specific to recognize.
- Peer recognition often lands harder than recognition from the top: A colleague who lives in the same reality you do, and still takes the time to call out what you did well, carries a different kind of weight. Create the space for it — you don't always have to be the one giving it.
- If you're not naturally a recognizer, say so — then commit: There's nothing wrong with a leader acknowledging that specific recognition isn't their first instinct and declaring their intent to get better at it. That transparency actually earns credibility. Then be consistent — one or two instances feels like a technique. A pattern feels like leadership.
Notable Quotes
- "Anybody can say great job. But somebody to specifically be able to say, the way that you opened that conversation really created a warm connection with the audience — that signals to the other person that you saw it, and you understand it."
- "Specificity signals understanding. And especially if we're getting recognized by somebody more senior, there's almost an honor in being seen."
- "Hold yourself to the same standard of vividness and richness in recognition that you would in feedback."
- "As leaders, one of our biggest jobs is to help people assign meaning to situations — rather than leave that to chance and interpretation."
- "How we do one thing is how we do everything. Specificity is a good rule of thumb whether you're giving feedback or giving recognition."
Featured Speakers
- Ben Stringfellow is a Partner at CRA | Admired Leadership, approaching his 10th year with the firm. Before joining CRA, Ben held operational and functional leadership roles at McDonald's, including serving as Chief Communications Officer for McDonald's USA. He brings a practitioner's perspective to coaching and advising senior leaders across industries.
- Wes Bender is the host of the Connecting to Admired Leadership webinar series.
Resources Mentioned