Comments on: LeanBlog Podcast #57 – Alfie Kohn, “Punished by Rewards” http://www.leanblog.org/2009/01/leanblog-podcast-57-alfie-kohn-punished/ Mark Graban's leanblog.org - Lean Healthcare, Lean Thinking, Lean Manufacturing, Toyota Production System Fri, 10 Feb 2012 10:01:31 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Mark Graban http://www.leanblog.org/2009/01/leanblog-podcast-57-alfie-kohn-punished/#comment-4773 Mark Graban Wed, 08 Apr 2009 10:01:00 +0000 http://leanblog.bigbigdesign.net/2009/01/leanblog-podcast-57-alfie-kohn-punished-by-rewards/#comment-4773 Q&A from a reader:<br/><br/>Reader question:<br/><br/> Can you point me towards a good source for guidance on properly rewarding employees? I loved the podcast with Alfie Kohn, but he told us what not to do and didn't tell us what to do(a good reason to have him on again?). Should we reward for good results or for employees following the process? What is a sustainable way to truly motivate and inspire employees? What variables effect the process of rewarding? How much(if any) will the process change if we employ mostly Spanish speaking low-income workers? <br/><br/>Response that I got from Alfie via email:<br/><br/>Thanks for your note. Rather than doing another interview, I think I'll just refer this listener to chapter 10 of Punished by Rewards ("Thank God It's Monday"), which talks about alternatives to rewards, not alternative ways of rewarding people. The answer to the question "How should we reward employees, then?" is "We shouldn't. They're not pets. We should pay them fairly and then do everything we can to take their minds off of money. Q&A from a reader:

Reader question:

Can you point me towards a good source for guidance on properly rewarding employees? I loved the podcast with Alfie Kohn, but he told us what not to do and didn't tell us what to do(a good reason to have him on again?). Should we reward for good results or for employees following the process? What is a sustainable way to truly motivate and inspire employees? What variables effect the process of rewarding? How much(if any) will the process change if we employ mostly Spanish speaking low-income workers?

Response that I got from Alfie via email:

Thanks for your note. Rather than doing another interview, I think I'll just refer this listener to chapter 10 of Punished by Rewards ("Thank God It's Monday"), which talks about alternatives to rewards, not alternative ways of rewarding people. The answer to the question "How should we reward employees, then?" is "We shouldn't. They're not pets. We should pay them fairly and then do everything we can to take their minds off of money.

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]]> By: David Carlton http://www.leanblog.org/2009/01/leanblog-podcast-57-alfie-kohn-punished/#comment-4367 David Carlton Tue, 13 Jan 2009 06:17:00 +0000 http://leanblog.bigbigdesign.net/2009/01/leanblog-podcast-57-alfie-kohn-punished-by-rewards/#comment-4367 I'm really looking forward to listening to this one: I've been an Alfie Kohn fan for more than a decade, and a lot of the thoughts in his early books (Punished by Rewards, especially, but also No Contest) would fit very well into a lean context. I really need to go reread his books, maybe listening to this will give me a nudge! I’m really looking forward to listening to this one: I’ve been an Alfie Kohn fan for more than a decade, and a lot of the thoughts in his early books (Punished by Rewards, especially, but also No Contest) would fit very well into a lean context. I really need to go reread his books, maybe listening to this will give me a nudge!

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]]> By: glanger http://www.leanblog.org/2009/01/leanblog-podcast-57-alfie-kohn-punished/#comment-4361 glanger Mon, 12 Jan 2009 14:36:00 +0000 http://leanblog.bigbigdesign.net/2009/01/leanblog-podcast-57-alfie-kohn-punished-by-rewards/#comment-4361 I thoroughly enjoyed the podcast with Alfie and I really like the relationship that you bring up between behavior, leadership and Lean. I still remember a comment I heard from someone who went on a plant visit to Toyota. The comment described the person’s surprise at the level of motivation of the worker at the plant as they were complying with takt times. ”… they are working as hard as they can, sweating to hit the takt times, for the same pay as the guys at the GM plant down the road.” <br/><br/>BTW Toyota and other Lean companies are not the only ones who have mastered this ability to foster performance thru inspiration and motivation. I have seen it in many industries, academia and even military organizations. I believe that it is the fundamental element to organization performance. <br/>(<a HREF="http://manufacturingintelligence.blogspot.com/2008/10/product-management-leadership.html" REL="nofollow">I have a relevant blog post on this</a>) I thoroughly enjoyed the podcast with Alfie and I really like the relationship that you bring up between behavior, leadership and Lean. I still remember a comment I heard from someone who went on a plant visit to Toyota. The comment described the person’s surprise at the level of motivation of the worker at the plant as they were complying with takt times. ”… they are working as hard as they can, sweating to hit the takt times, for the same pay as the guys at the GM plant down the road.”

BTW Toyota and other Lean companies are not the only ones who have mastered this ability to foster performance thru inspiration and motivation. I have seen it in many industries, academia and even military organizations. I believe that it is the fundamental element to organization performance.
(I have a relevant blog post on this)

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