pi3: Secret to Improving Employee Performance

Sunday, 28 August 2016

Secret to Improving Employee Performance

work productivity low

All companies want their employees to perform at optimal levels and with efficiency and quality. But how does an organization accomplish this?

Positive reinforcement is key. Positive reinforcement is providing some type of stimulus in response to an employee’s behavior and then seeing that behavior increase in frequency in the future. The behavior is specifically targeted as something management would like to see more of from the employee.

Reinforcement systems in the workplace can be complicated, because the manager isn’t always present to reinforce desired behaviors in the employee, all employees (as are all people) are all different and what works for one employee as reinforcement might not work for another employee, and it also takes time and effort and might not always seem natural or “normal” to the manager compared to what many people have experienced in the workplace in the past.

Here are a few tips on how to use positive reinforcement in the workplace:

Possible reinforcers
- Praise
- Recognition of appreciation
- Incentives
- Recognition of effort
- Monetary rewards
Reinforce intermittently (not on a typical schedule)
Be specific as to what the reinforcer is being provided for (what behavior are you trying to target?)
Personalize the reinforcement
Don’t give too much of the same reinforcer (or satiation will occur – the “good job” will lose its value), although this greatly varies based upon the type of reinforcer, amount of the reinforcer, and the individual. For example, for someone making minimum wage, giving $100 for certain behaviors may be very unlikely to lose its’ effectiveness; Whereas, if you give a millionaire $100 for doing the same behavior, it is much more likely that the $100 will lose effectiveness at least after awhile.
Be genuine – Employees want to feel like their managers care about them and truly appreciate them.