You have a good point, but keep in mind that everyone has biases towards different forms of communication. Some value written commendations, money, or non-monetary gifts. A manager/team lead must straddle both communicating effectively with the person while communicating in a way that is uniform and predictable to the team. Give me a "great job" in front of everyone, so everyone knows what is going on, but understand that I don't believe a word you say until I see the bump in pay.