I have recently been working with a client who wants to create a new incentive program for a group of his employees. Simultaneously, he also wants to create a progressive discipline policy for violations of the company's safety policies. In considering the development of these two items simultaneously, I have also been reflecting on the delicate balance between incentives and discipline-based policies.
Creating an environment that fosters the greatest productivity at the same time as fostering a disciplined environment where employees understand and respect the policies that keep everyone safe and provide fairness and consistency in employee matters is quite a balancing act. I have seen organizations swing too far to both sides of the fence. Those who concentrate too heavily on incentives run the risk of creating an expectation that employees will be paid above and beyond their base wages for any extra effort they may put forth. While incentives are certainly a good idea and can often promote exceptional productivity among work teams, they can also be over-used and create complacency about performance incentives.
On the other hand, too much focus on discipline-based policies can create an atmosphere of oppression and mistrust. When the employees only hear about what they must not and cannot do (lest they violate the policy), the message often creates an undesirable "us versus them" mentality. Companies with union workforces often fall into this unfortunate pattern due to the policy-heavy nature of collective bargaining agreements.
Those companies who strike a wholesome balance between providing incentives for exceptional performance and reasonable, fair, and consistent policies to maintain discipline and order in the workplace usually have the greatest productivity, team orientation, and highest morale among their workforce. Just as the greatest level of personal health is achieved by balancing proper diet and exercise, a proper and reasonable balance between incentives and discipline-based policies is the key to a healthy and productive team.
Mike Purcell - Speaker, Trainer, Author
President, Compass Performance Group, LLC
http://www.high-impacttraining.com/
http://www.getsaddlesense.com/
About Me
- Mike P
- Mike Purcell has over 20 years of experience in managing work teams and providing leadership in the manufacturing and service sectors. Mike brings his expertise to help your supervisors, managers, or team leaders to individually and collectively develop their own leadership skills to far exceed the average level of effectiveness. His simple approach to leading others is based on utilizing a specific set of simple, easy-to-apply “people skills” that have proven successful in some of the toughest leadership challenges – skills that will work for anyone. Mike’s enthusiasm and his contagious sense of humor help to make him one of the most entertaining, dynamic and effective speakers available today. He is the president of Compass Performance Group, LLC, a leader in human resource training and development strategies, and he is also a published author on the subject of leadership. His book, Saddle Sense - Uncomplicated Reflections On Managing People & Relationships, has received high praise from HR managers, business executives and business owners alike. Saddle Sense is available in both paperback and on audio CD, and can be purchased online at www.getsaddlesense.com.
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