First, I want to thank Barry Mallis for reminding me of my tendency to
weaken by case by using broad generalizations. Certainly I can not know
the results of _all_ applications of extrinsic rewards. Perhaps I should
have said that after 17 years of listening to employees and managers tell
their stories about motivation and rewards and researching the theories
and experiences of specialists in this field, I have concluded that the
use of extrinsic rewards is often damaging to the individual and the
organization.
I am a Compensation Consultant with 12 years of Corporate experience. I
teach a class at St. Thomas University entitled "Redesigning the
Compensation System to Support Your Total Quality Transformation". My
mental model has been most influenced by Deming, Alfie Kohn, Peter
Scholtes and Gary McLean of the University of Minnesota. Yet I differ
with them on specific design alternatives. In my most recent
conversations with them, Peter and Gary were advocating market pricing and
profitsharing and in opposition to gainsharing and competency based pay,
which I believe to better reinforce process thinking and life-long
learning. Market pricing is still a job-based practice that perpetuates
past patterns which were often discriminatory. (Yesterday, December 19,
1995, a client told me that their current pay system puts women in a lower
pay range than men because most of them have husbands to take care of
them).
Bernie DeKoven is seeking a system that recognizes and supports intrinsic
motivation and play. I believe that the key to his quest is in ridding
the current system and environment of those elements that detract and
destroy the natural desire to do a good job that most people are born
with. And I believe that traditional performance management and pay for
performance programs, even at the Best in Class companies, get in the way
of productivity and fun.
Wishing you the rewards of inner peace and joy in all you do,
-- Roxanne Abbas Compuserve: 75263,3305 Internet: "Roxanne S. Abbas"<75263.3305@compuserve.com>