Text posted Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Never forget, an effective pay for performance approach requires all the elements of a well negotiated purchasing contract:

(1) Measurable individual performance benchmarks. Every step of the way, clear deliverables should be clearly defined for every contributor and concrete rewards tied directly to those deliverables.

(2) Clear expectations (among managers and workers alike) about the relationship between specific individual behaviors and specific rewards.

(3) Regular and close monitoring by managers of individual performance and the keeping of good contemporaneous records (once again, this is high maintenance) and ongoing communication about the process between managers and individual contributors.

There is an old saying: “Managers get the performance they reward.” If you want results, you have to reward results and nothing else. The problem is that the old-fashioned incentives—long-term employment, steps up the organization’s hierarchy, six-month reviews, annual raises, and standard benefits—are no longer enough to motivate the best talent. In the just-in-time workplace, you can’t expect people to wait around to be rewarded once they’ve delivered—long-term rewards are out. People want to know what you have to offer them today, tomorrow, and next week in return for their added value. What is more, in order to really drive the best performance in the workplace of the future, it is necessary to pay contributors not just in cold cash, but also in a wide range of currencies they value (financial and nonfinancial alike), remembering that different people value different currencies.

Stay strong!
Bruce