Ken Taylor States:
John Constantine is right when he talks of cravings for "rewards" or
"status change" as drivers of people's attitudes towards their
organisations. What we need to ask ourselves is why this should be.
Surely it is because these are the very drivers that we (and our
predecessors as managers) have encouraged over the years. How many
organisations can claim that their reward structure is based on
contribution to the business goals and ignores traditional definitions of
seniority like the number of staff "managed"? How many organisations can
claim that the prestige facilities available like private offices,
secretaries etc are allocated on a basis of best need for the business
rather than as a reward for seniority?
*End of Quote*
My 17 years of experience in designing new rewards systems confirms what
Ken is saying. Our formal reward systems have transformed otherwise
normal human beings into Frankenstein monsters who crave perks and titles
and other visible symbols of success. None of these will satisfy the
natural human longing to simply do a good day's work.
I believe that we have to dismantle the systems that perpetuate these
behaviors; get rid of title hierarchies, incentive systems, employee of
the month awards, etc. and pay people for their capabilities
(competencies) applied on the job. We must also get rid of the many other
obstacles that prevent employees from being able to do "a good day's
work". Build a culture where intrinsic motivation can provide true joy
from working.
--Roxanne Abbas 75263.3305@compuserve.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>