Steven Kerr's The Folly Of Rewarding For B

Article Analysis: Steven Kerr’s “The Folly of Rewarding A, while hoping for B”

What is a reward and why do we want it? In its simplest definition, a reward is a thing given to recognize an effort, an act of service or a specific achievement. As a participant, we do “A” and expect “B”. The line of sight to our destination is generally very clear. In most instances what we expect is what we are given. But, as the article explores, what if what we are being given is bestowed upon us for the wrong reason.

When a Manager Rewards A and Hopes for B

Consider the employer who rewards face time over production. She may be hoping to have a productive staff but her internal compass leads her to value seeing people milling about in the office

World War Two. In WWII, the reward of going home would be given after the war was won. If there was no win, there would be no trip home. In the Vietnam War, a soldier would go home after his tour of duty. With this scenario, there was no impetus to win the war – the only goal was to stay alive. A soldier could feign sickness, be placed in the infirmary and still meet his goal. The goal of the United States was to win, but a Vietnam fighter was actually rewarded for staying alive.

The article points out that the rewards and punishments given should make the recipient care about our objective. As a manager, my first duty is to be clear about what I need and carefully design a reward system around that goal. If I need each employee to produce 100 widgets per week, then the payment or reward decided upon must be given after the completion of 100 widgets. I get what I need and the employee is rewarded. We both

In many public education systems, particularly those secondary schools in which I’ve worked, teachers “teach to the test”. The reason behind this is because Federal funds are distributed to school sites based on quantitative measures, specifically, student attendance and performance as indicated by standardized test scores. Low test scores equal less funding and this equates to a reduction in the teaching staff. This quickly turns into overpopulated classrooms and the spiral continues. It is in the best interest of the teacher to have their students pass the test. And so, with limited time, the teacher will offer instruction only on the material that is being tested. At its core, this system means that a teacher is rewarded for showing up and teaching what will be on the test. Technically, based on the reward, nothing else is needed. However, in schools that are not rewarded by government funds, there tends to be more exploration of topics and classroom delivery style. The reward for a private school teacher tends to be more altruistic. And this reward comes in the form of payment from parents who want their child to receive an enriching, well- rounded educational experience. I will note that parents of all children want the same great education, but the difference is that in a private school the parents can directly influence and reward the employee