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Low Employee Motivation |
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Pfeffer describes a self-fulfilling prophecy of low employee motivation. It begins when management assumes that their contribution to the organization is brains, while the role of workers is to contribute brawn. When management assumes responsibility for the design and control of various business processes, production workers are relieved of their own responsibility for continuous improvement and quality. They can pass along sub-standard product, because a quality inspector will pick it up latter. They can stop thinking about what they are doing, and just do what they are told.
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The result is exactly what the old-school managers expected: A dire need for supervisory management. Pfeffer shows that the key to improving the capabilities of employees, is for managers to change their assumptions about the capabilities and motivations of employees.
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Pfeffer, Jeffrey. Competitive Advantage Through People: Unleashing the Power of the Workforce. Harvard Business School Press. Boston, MA. 1994.
Pfeffer begins by debunking Porter's famous "five forces" framework, which describes the competitive forces which supposedly determine a company's ability to earn above-average returns. He goes on to illustrate how a company's only source of sustainable competitive advantage is its workforce, and describes the alternative management practices which can bring the full potential of this advantage to the competitive battlefront.
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This book is a rich source of advice and insight for executives in today's highly competitive and constantly changing marketplace, and should be required reading for managers in unionized workplaces.
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