Most business leaders have lost sight of what motivates people at work.
In fact, some companies haven’t updated their management practices in years, which means they’re incapable of creating high-performance teams. In Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, former U.S. Department of Labor aide Daniel H. Pink says businesses commit “seven deadly flaws”:
1. Extinguishing motivation
2. Diminishing performance
3. Crushing creativity
4. Crowding out good behavior
5. Encouraging cheating, shortcuts and unethical behavior
6. Becoming addictive, obsessive
7. Fostering short-term thinking
So, how can you boost the number of actively engaged employees from the paltry 33 percent reported by the Gallup Organization?
Harvard Weighs In
In the 1920s, Harvard Business School initiated the first studies of human behavior at work.
Researchers found that workers’ and managers’ social needs had a powerful impact on their behavior. Workers enthusiastically embraced opportunities to contribute their thoughts, ideas and experiences regarding workplace issues.
Unfortunately, these findings failed to change work conditions for employees.