Capturing Hearts and Minds

In conversation this week with a client the discussion shifted to employee motivation and the role that compensation has in it. The context was "pay for performance" which is premised on the assumption that professionals are motivated by money. Well, that's not entirely true.


The science is in... professionals are not primarily motivated by financial reward. Of course if compensation is inadequate money matters but beyond that the three key motivators are autonomy, mastery, and purpose. These are the matters of performance that lay the foundation for service, scalability, and sustainability in practice.


Professionals desire independence in the services they provide, they want the opportunity to acquire and to be recognized for superior skills, and to be working for a purpose that is larger than themselves and the organization they work with.


That should come as no surprise but it is an understanding too often overlooked. ... not just by employers but also employees.


With autonomy comes accountability. One must live with the consequences of their choices and actions. Those consequences have clinical, social, and financial implications. Productivity and contribution have consequences pertaining to compensation and job security - those things are inherently linked to autonomy.


With mastery comes commitment, practice, objectivity and the willingness to teach others. One must be willing to sacrifice and invest time and money to earn skill mastery. It's not good enough to claim mastery, it needs to be recognized by others who have the knowledge and experience to recognize mastery.


With purpose comes expectation and obligation. One must find the passion and persistence to make a difference, to take risks, advocate, lead, and contribute by example. One is expected to achieve that which they set out to do. Purpose is not left at the side of the road. Purpose does not go on vacation. Purpose gets one up early on a Monday morning and keeps one up late at night. Purpose means advocating for a cause... standing up to be counted... speaking the truth... delivering value.


Is autonomy, mastery, and purpose critical parts of your business / professional culture? If not, why not? If yes, what can you do to inspire and mentor others to realize their professional promise and potential? Are you capturing hearts and minds?


Coming back to where we started... "Pay for Performance" has high likelihood for failure in many practice environments. The discussion needs to begin around autonomy, mastery, and purpose. Only then can the conversation move toward compensation. The conversation needs to be anchored in the big rocks of trust, value, purpose, principles, and a service with performance culture.


When the time for compensation discussions finally arrives do yourself a favor and focus not on "pay for performance" but rather "variable compensation" based ones contribution to the business and those it serves through autonomy, mastery, and purpose.


Only then can heads and hearts be connected! Performance Matters!


All The Best!


Bob


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Performance Builders