87
Google’s innovative, dynamic culture,
in which staff are encouraged to work
to their strengths and explore projects
that they are passionate about, is one of
the reasons for the company’s success.
See also: Leading well 68–69 ■ Creativity and invention 72–73 ■ Effective leadership 78–79 ■ Organizing teams and talent
80–85 ■ Is money the motivator? 90–91
LIGHTING THE FIRE
In his two-factor theory, US
psychologist and management
thinker Frederick Herzberg identified
a sense of achievement as being
closely linked to motivation to work.
Effectiveness is intrinsically
rewarding; even the most generous
salary cannot, over the long term,
replace the satisfaction of a job well
done. The same generous salary will
not offset the dissatisfaction of
underachievement. Consequently,
equipping employees with the tools
to develop effective habits can lead to
more effective performance, happier,
more productive staff, and, in turn,
improve a company’s results.Working better, not harder
Google, borrowing from a practice
introduced by US conglomerate 3M
in 1948, encourages staff to spend
20 percent of their time on projects
of their own choosing. Rather than
distract from directed projects,
Google found that their staff works
better on all tasks—when people are
passionate about their work, it does
not feel like work. Such discretionary
effort, the willingness of employees
to “go the extra mile,” can be the
difference between good and great.
Great businesses focus on getting
the best out of people, not the most
out of them. Gmail, one of Google’s
most popular products, is a result
of the company’s 20-percent time.
Enabling staff to work better,
not harder, requires an enlightened
leadership approach that looks
down to the factory floor as well asup to the shareholders. Companies
that value effectiveness over
volume, and performance over
presenteeism (when staff works
despite illness, instead of taking
sick leave) often find themselves
at the top of best-employer lists.
Leaders of these companies realize
that shareholder value is driven by
staff performance; allowing staff
to build careers around what they
excel at is good for employees and
the bottom line. ■The man who does not
work for the love of work, but
only for money, is likely to
neither make money nor
find much fun in life.
Charles M. Schwab
US industrialist (1862–1939)Warren Bennis Born on March 8, 1925, Warren
Bennis is an American scholar,
organizational consultant, and
management author. Enlisting
in the US Army in 1943, Bennis
was one of the youngest infantry
officers to serve in World War II,
and was awarded the Purple
Heart and Bronze Star for service
in action. After leaving the
military, Bennis studied at Antioch
College, Ohio, and later became
a professor at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology’s Sloan
School of Management. Widely
regarded as the pioneer of the
contemporary field of leadershipstudies, Bennis was named one
of the ten greatest influencers
on business thinking by
BusinessWeek magazine in- The Financial Times lists
his classic 1985 book Leaders
as one of the top 50 business
books of all time.
Key works1985 Leaders: Strategies for
Taking Charge
1997 Why Leaders Can’t Lead:
The Unconscious Conspiracy
Continues
2009 On Becoming a Leader