Natalie Loopbaanadvies

Even if we reward an employee with a big bonus we will not increase the employee’s talent and talent is what separates the best from the rest.

If we hire for talent, the job itself is the biggest and best reward. Sharing in profits is always appreciated even by engaged employees.

When managers use money as a motivator we should not be surprised that their employees will see money as their prime motivator.

Managers have a secret weapon in the war against attrition and it is a word That All Leaders Know — TALK.

“Tom worked with John, the CEO of the company, and was a very talented employee who worked diligently.”

John was fortunate to have such an employee.

“John being happy with the Tom’s work, rewarded him with a cash prize of $1000 (which was a significant amount ), in anticipation that Tom will be motivated to perform better.”

What led John to believe that Tom would be motivated to perform better?

Perhaps Tom believed he was underpaid and bonus proved it?

Did John discuss with Tom how to perform better?

“He also had lots of plans for Tom in the back of his mind.”

That is a huge management mistake.

John’s “plans in the back his mind” had no way to motivate or influence Tom’s decisions. In fact, a lack of plans may well have demotivated Tom.

“Both Tom and John seemed happy and thought that they did a good job.”

John was not acting as an effective manager of Tom. John assumed too much.

“Contrary to John’s belief Tom submitted his resignation within a much shorter span.”

John’s beliefs were irrelevant to Tom, perhaps?

“During his exit interview, Tom did not state any specific reason for his resignation too (although, it was found later that he left for a better compensation package).”

We should not presume that a former employee’s better compensation package was the primary reason for leaving. I am suspect that the reason Tom left was his relationship with John since Tom did not give a specific reason for leaving. Perhaps Tom did not want to burn any bridges?

“His resignation came as a shock to John, who was genuinely interested in retaining good employees and did all what he could do to ensure it.”

A manager who is stunned when a prized direct report leaves may have done all he could do but he did not do the right things. For instance, the plans in the back of John’s mind had to be shared with Tom long before Tom left.

There is no substitute for talking with direct reports.

I also agree with Michelle. I think it different forms of compensation such paid time off, or flex time would be just as rewarding, if not more rewarding, than receiving a bonus check. In today’s society quality of life is definately important and what a great way to recognize individuals by giving them a day off with pay.

Again, great article!

The 5 Sources Theory looks at what motivates individual behaviors at work (ie money, freedom, praise, etc). You touched on the 5 Sources model in the beginning of your article: The employee received a decent sum of money, but it’s apparent that’s not all that motivated him. The Five sources in the model are Intrinsic, Instrumental (money, prizes, etc.), Internal and External Validation (praise and accomplishment), and Goal Identification.

Your article does an awesome job of breaking down the various types of rewards that appeal to instrumentally motivated individuals – bonuses, free time, money, promotions and so on – and touches briefly on external validation through praise and status.

Unfortunately, you ignore people who do things just because they like them (even if they suck at them), people who work hard just to succeed at a challenge (even if no one else finds out about it), and people who do things just to see a company succeed (very common at non-profits).

Most companies put too much stock in instrumental motivational tools as it is, and most people are driven by a combination of sources – including money, but other stuff too.

I think you provide a great list of instrumental motivation tools, but I’d love to see you write another article examining some other motivational drivers. I’ve written about this topic myself over at my blog. (Shameless plug – sorry) You can find them here: http://managerssandbox.com/archives/motivating-your-employees/

I love your article, and look forward to reading more!

Cheers,

Chris

comment. I dont know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this

blog very often.

Betty

http://www.my-foreclosures.info

Another great resource for motivation is http://www.thesykesgrp.com/Articles.htm.