Dr. Jason Fox, an expert in motivation strategy and design, offers a fresh perspective on what it takes to sustain high levels of effort toward innovation, improvement, and excellence at our work place. This video will show you what scholarly research and game design tell us about employee motivation:
The video contains a lot of useful information – here are some key points:
A Different Tool Set
According to Dr. Fox, current employee management tools like SMART goal setting are fine for predictable behaviors and formulaic tasks. However, the future of work requires collaboration tools that can foster a “collaborative, creative, forward-focused” environment.
Learn how top companies are reimagining HR juggernauts like the performance review process.
Folklore of Motivation – “If you believe, then you can succeed…”
Motivational speaking is a multi-billion dollar industry and while pep talks have a place in every work environment, they don’t actually address the work that needs to be done. What if instead of just talking about motivation we incorporated it into the fabric of our work? Instead of motivating people from the inside out, Dr. Fox suggests designing work that is inherently motivating.
We have to remember that motivation is more about doing, than it is about talking.
Designing Motivation
Game designers are well ahead of the competition when it comes to understanding motivation. If you can get more than 5 million people to spend 7 billion hours (a week) exploring digital caves and slaying monsters together, then you must know a thing or two about creating inherently motivating products.
How do game designers do it? They concentrate on goals, rules, and feedback. As the video points out, a good game is a goal driven, challenge intense, feedback rich experience geared towards making progress. In short, games foster an environment that is every manager’s dream.
We’ve Known About This For a While
Dr. Fox cites a Harvard Business Review study which involved 600 managers from different industries and levels. The study found that managers regard recognition as the top tool motivating employees.
But what did the employees think? After microscopically examining the events of thousands of workdays, in real time, the researches concluded the following:
Of all the things that can boost inner work life, employees find making progress in meaningful work to be most important.
Sure, receiving a regular pay check is one of the most comforting things in the world, but it’s not our main motivator.
As sociologists have been noting since the 50s, the desire to work and be productive does not disappear after financial needs are satisfied. This is why the correlation between pay and job satisfaction is almost zero, and why underpaid professionals like teachers or artists are often more satisfied with their jobs than overpaid bankers or lawyers.
By supporting progress in meaningful work, managers improve employees’ inner work lives and the organization’s performance
Employees Are Motivated By A Clear Sense Of Progress
Without a visible sense of progress, work loses its meaning. Let’s say you are playing a game in which there’s no sense of advancement. You would be curious at first, but sooner or later you will ask yourself – “What am I doing here?” Similarly, employees who simply ride out their workdays without a clear set of goals lose engagement and eventually quit.
This is why successful companies are improving their employees’ experience by introducing new ways to chart tasks and accomplishments, set clear goals, and encourage frequent feedback.