Why and How to Give Your Employees the Credit They Deserve

I rose to the ranks of senior director at the age of 27 in a male-dominated field (sports media) using my social science background to crack the interpersonal code. Here’s how. 

There is nothing more demoralizing than having someone else take credit for your work. Reflecting on the few times I’ve felt wronged in my career, each revolved around a manager failing to mention my contributions. That project wouldn’t exist without me, the least you can do is give me *some* acknowledgement. Let’s dive into how to avoid this pitfall as a team leader, and why doing so will only ever make you look good. 

I come from a sports media background and as a result have always looked to my favorite coaches for guidance on how to manage teams. 

Growing up in New England at a time when the Patriots were winning so often I hardly realized there were 31 other teams competing, I have distinct memories of Bill Belichick’s interviews and press conferences. One of my favorite things I noticed about him was that when the Patriots won, all credit went to the players or other members of the staff. But when they lost, that was almost always his fault — and he was happy to take ownership over that. 

“Players win games,” Belichick famously said. It’s the truth at work too. Your role as a manager/coach is to make sure everyone on your team is able to do their job. Sometimes that means clearing roadblocks or fending off another department trying to encroach on their time. But it always means remembering the team is nothing without its players, and they deserve all the credit. (They also deserve you having their back whenever things don’t go according to plan — more on that another time.)

Your instincts might tell you to make sure you’re at the front of the parade on any victory lap. It’s your team after all that accomplished or shipped whatever big thing it may be. But do you think Belichick ever felt the need to say, “Hey look at me! They couldn’t have won this thing without me!” when his team was hoisting another Lombardi? Nope. The wins speak for themselves. 

You might excel at communicating 1:1 or in small groups the impact a member of your team has, but think about how that manifests in more public settings. How often are you shouting out team members in public channels or in senior leadership meetings they aren’t in? Are you having a junior employee be the one to send out a shipped email for the big project they’ve been spearheading? When you present your team’s cool new product at the all-hands, are you mentioning key contributors by name as you do so? I promise those contributors are noticing regardless of which way you answered. 

Remembering to hand out game balls is vital to team morale, but there are so many other benefits that come with nurturing this habit.

For starters, building the case for someone’s promotion becomes way easier when the person at the top not only knows about the employee, but has only ever heard great things. You might need to jog their memory, but that’s not too difficult when you’ve already publicly tied a major project to whoever it is you’re championing. 

And best of all, giving out credit makes you look good. Winning teams are winning teams, and leadership at your company knows you’re the coach. 

I touched on how confidence is a super power as a manager, and it’s the truth. People know you’re in charge. As soon as you feel like you have nothing to prove, you’ll realize that having a star player on your team only reflects well on you. And as you mentor them and help them grow to bigger and better roles, that’s still true — you want to build an impressive coaching tree.

My challenge to you: This month, give someone else credit for each of your team’s accomplishments. Do it on team calls, do it in meetings they aren’t in, do it in decks and large channels. If you’re doing your job properly, this should be easy. But most importantly, it’s very fun! (And if this is a true challenge for you, that’s alright! Just let me know, and I can dive into some guidance on what to do if you’re struggling to delegate effectively.)