Chapter 6 : Applied Performance Practices

Chapter Six: Applied Performance Practices

Meaning of Money at Work

• Form of Exchange: Money is fundamentally a medium of exchange related to personal needs and self-concept.

• Emotional Aspects: Generates various emotions and perceptions, including viewing it as a tool or a drug.

• Money Ethic: A view of money as a symbol of achievement that carries value.

• Differences in Interpretation: Variances based on gender and cultural perspectives on money.

• Motivation: New insights suggest money motivates behavior more than previously understood.
  

Types of Rewards in the Workplace

Membership/Seniority-Based Rewards

• Characteristics: Fixed wages; rewards based on tenure.

• Advantages:

  • Attracts job applicants.

  • Reduces financial insecurity.

  • Decreases turnover with increased seniority.

• Disadvantages:

  • Lacks motivation for performance.

  • May retain poor performers.

  • Can create "golden handcuffs."
    

Job Status-Based Rewards

• Definition: Rewards based on job evaluation and status perks.

• Advantages:

  • Enhances pay fairness and reduces discrimination.

  • Motivates competition for promotions.

• Disadvantages:

  • Encourages bureaucracy.

  • Reinforces status over egalitarian culture.

  • Incentives for exaggerating duties and hoarding resources.

Competency-Based Rewards

• Types: Includes competency-based and skill-based pay.

• Advantages:

  • Promotes learning of new skills.

  • Produces multiskilled, adaptable employees.

  • Enhances product/service quality.

• Disadvantages:

  • Complexity in design.

  • Subjectivity in assessment.

  • Higher training costs.

Performance-Based Rewards

• Categories:

  • Individual: Bonuses, piece rates, commissions.

  • Team: Bonuses, gain-sharing plans.

  • Organizational: ESOPs, stock options, profit-sharing.

• Evaluation of Rewards:

  • ESOPs and stock options foster an ownership culture.

  • Profit-sharing aligns pay with firm’s success.

  • Challenge: Weak link between performance and outcomes (P-to-O link).

Improving Reward Effectiveness

• Strategies Include:

  • Link rewards directly to performance outcomes.

  • Ensure rewards are relevant to employees.

  • Implement team rewards for interdependent tasks.

  • Make sure rewards are highly valued by recipients.

  • Be cautious of unintended negative consequences.

Job Specialization and Scientific Management

• Efficiency Gains:

  • Reduced time transitioning between tasks.

  • Enhanced speed in job mastery.

  • Improved person-job matching.

• Scientific Management:

  • Promoted by Frederick Winslow Taylor, advocating specialization and standardization in tasks.

  • Included training, goal setting, and reward systems.

• Concerns of Job Specialization:

  • Can lead to low intrinsic motivation.

  • Increased absenteeism and turnover.

  • Higher wages may be required to counteract monotony.

Job Design and Work Motivation

• Effective Design: Must balance efficiency with employee motivation.

  • Tasks:

    • Few tasks yield high efficiency but low motivation.

    • Many tasks lead to low efficiency but high motivation.

  • Work Structure:

    • Division of labor separates distinct job roles.

    • Focus on reducing cycle time for tasks.

Job Characteristics Model

• Core Psychological States for Motivation:

  • Skill Variety: Diversity in tasks.

  • Task Identity: Closure in one's work.

  • Task Significance: The impact of work on others.

  • Autonomy: Freedom in task completion.

  • Feedback: Performance information from results.

Social and Information Processing

• Social Characteristics of Jobs:

  • Task interdependence necessitates team interaction.

  • Requires feedback from colleagues, clients, etc.

• Information Processing Needs:

  • Jobs with high variability require adaptability.

  • High analyzability involves applying established procedures.

Frequent Job Rotation

• Definition: Transitioning through multiple jobs frequently throughout the day.

• Benefits Include:

  • Increased motivation potential and better understanding of quality issues.

  • Reduced health risks and improved workforce flexibility.

Job Enlargement and Enrichment

Job Enlargement

• Definition: Adding additional tasks to a current job.

• Example: A video journalist taking on more roles.

Job Enrichment

• Definition: Increasing an employee’s responsibility in scheduling, coordination, and planning.

• Components:

  1. Natural Grouping: Combining interdependent tasks into one role.

  2. Client Relationships: Direct responsibility for specific clients.

Dimensions of Psychological Empowerment

• Key Elements:

  • Self-Determination: Freedom and discretion in work.

  • Meaning: Personal significance of work.

  • Competence: Confidence in performing tasks and capability for growth.

  • Impact: Recognition of influence on organizational success.

Supporting Empowerment

• Individual Factors: Competencies needed to meet job demands.

• Job Design: Autonomy and task significance enhance empowerment.

• Organizational Factors: Adequate resources and a culture of trust.

Practicing Self-Leadership

• Strategies: Include cognitive and behavioral approaches to achieve personal goals through self-direction.

• Goal Setting: Requires self-awareness and using positive self-talk.

Additional Self-Leadership Strategies

• Design Natural Rewards: Make jobs inherently motivating.

• Self-Monitoring: Tracking progress towards goals with feedback systems.

• Self-Reinforcement: Reward oneself after achieving goals.

Predictors of Self-Leadership

• Individual Characteristics: High conscientiousness and extroversion; positive self-evaluation.

• Organizational Context: Autonomy, participative leadership, measurement-focus in culture.