The search for the right carrot and/or the most fearsome stick has been the subject of much debate among organizational leaders throughout modern times. Even in the present information age our habits caste a dark shadow on such data. I find sufficient cause to support the following conclusions.
Dan Pink in “The Puzzle of Motivation” makes a case against the effectiveness of what social scientists refer to as “extrinsic contingent motivators” They are external things that get our juices flowing to facilitate problem solving. Dan Pink points out the obvious, that tasks requiring mechanical aptitudes which the subject is unfamiliar are adversely affected by applying the stress of an incentive. He found that indeed in such circumstances the carrot and stick approach is often counterproductive. In the study Dan sites Karl Dunker's Candle Problem. A psychological test devised by Karl Duncker, whereby the results were published in journals in 1945.
The test challenged participants to complete the following task:
“Fix and light a candle on a wall in such a way so the candle wax won’t drip onto the table below”
Tools/supplies provided were:
A box of matches
A box of thumbtacks
A candle
The solution to the problem required that participants empty the box of thumbtacks. The box is tacked to the wall and the candle is fastened inside where the wax drippings are contained.
Situational leadership 101 dictates that before someone can complete a task they must be able to do so. Therefore in practice, motivation is proven to be better correlated to a person’s willingness to perform a task than it is to their ability to perform the task.
Dan Pinks study is significant because it shed light on a phenomenon he discovered and coined: “Functional fixedness.” That is the tendency of single-mindedness to see a thing by it's design rather than for it's potential. Many of the participants saw the box as merely a device to hold the thumbtacks rather than the separate component it could be. The box is a thing which can function as a solution to the task.
Dan further stated: “There is a mismatch between what social science knows and what business does, and this gap often causes harm.” This is how come us science buffs make such great businessman.
We are living in the era of the Knowledge Worker. Jack Welch, the undisputed growth guru of our age had it right when he said “growth is the great elixir to life.”
To receive the very best from ourselves and others requires a guiding structure ofreciprocation. So if we hope to provide motive to sustain high performance, we need to set some standards which will serve as that framework. The first is that everyone receives great training and the best possible tools to do their jobs. (Remember Garbage in/ Garbage Out).
Secondly, the work that people perform has to hold real meaning for them, and this is something that encouraging people to take ownership provides. And so wemust focus not so much on how we perform a task, but on the outcome. That outcome must be sufficiently celebrated and credited to the author if we hope to sustain his performance. Remember if we take away motive we are left with only inertia.
Finally, we must build an environment that fosters flexibility. Every knowledge worker ideally would approach their tasks with a high degree of autonomy and self-determination.
But to adopt such a model requires a personal shift in worldview. One must distance himself from the old authoritarian doctrines and entertain a revision of something akin to our forefather’s sentiments. It is an extension of freedom and independence for all men and women by way of sharing the entrepreneurial spirit, which is truly our shared heritage as Americans.
To implement such a company culture everyone in the organization would be encouraged with positive reinforcements to take ownership for their own productivity. The tools required in such an environment are a peculiar set of key performance indicators that people are tasked with knowing, recording and calculating to measure and improve their own efficiency at their jobs. Often atangible reward is tied to reaching certain levels of performance and the reward isshared among an entire team, prompting everyone to share their insights and personal strengths to work together toward a common goal.
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