A presentation arguing that engagement is a more productive way to work with knowledge workers.

1. BEYOND MOTIVATION TO ENGAGEMENT: The Challenge of Knowledge Work ALMA Conference, Houston, 2001 James W. Marcum, Ph.D. marcumjw9@aol.com

2. Lab Management Purpose Discovery Problem solving Testing Innovation Implementation And a good return on investment

3. Lab Management: Challenges Researcher or Administrator? Administrative support to handle Finance Personnel Technology Publicity, safety, legalities, maintenance…? … or, how many hats do you wear? V. P. White, Handbook of Research Laboratory Management (ISI Press, 1988)

4. Resources Accomplishments NOT due primarily to Building and equipment Financial support Quality processes But rather to the dedication, effort, commitment and engagement of the people on the “front lines”

5. Personnel: Challenge and Opportunity Traditional management Control Accountability Leadership . . . (dysfunctional?) The new management Networking Empowerment Coaching Learning

6. OUTLINE Knowledge workers are different Quit treating people as dummies Motivation = manipulation Rewards kill interest Engagement is worth a try 1 2 3 4

7. Knowledge Workers: Characteristics Specialized: effective in specialty Acquire and apply theoretical and analytical knowledge Learning-based (formal education) and habit of lifelong learning Require a social context. P. Drucker, Managing in a Time of Great Change. (Dutton, 1995), pp. 226-243. 1

8. Knowledge Workers = Intellectual Capital … create, share, search out, and useknowledge in their daily routines T. Davenport & L. Prusak, Working Knowledge, (Harvard Business, 1998), p. 108 they “own” the means of production of the digital economy D. Tapscott, Digital Economy (McGraw-Hill, 1996), p. 67.

9. Knowledge Workers: HumanCapital in the Digital Economy Expect value for value given Require full disclosure(cynical: have experienced corporate disloyalty/layoffs) Seek meaning in work; and opportunity for advancement Require extensive learning Opportunity to network, work in teams Smith and Kelly, “Human Capital in the Digital Economy,” in Hesselbein, ed., The Organization of the Future, (Jossey-Bass, 1997), pp. 201-205.

10. Knowledge Creation Not best measured by number of patents and scientific formulae But rather by social trust, care, Ba, technology-enhanced communication, communities of practice, and interorganizational collaboration I. Nonaka and T. Nishigushi, Knowledge Emergence (Oxford, 2001)

11. Net Generation: Knowledge Workers of the Future working = learning = playing = working ... require flexible, custom environments which they can influence and shape (consensus, not arbitrary command) simultaneously an authority (some domains) and a student (in others) cannot be “supervised” (in traditional sense) require: fully networked connectivity D. Tapscott, Growing Up Digital (McGraw-Hill, 1997).

12. The Motivation ‘Complex’ A paradigm: Ubiquitous assumptions underlie social attitudes about learning, child-raising, and employment Enormous industry of “motivators” Books Speakers Recognition and Awards Bonuses, trips 2

13. The Problem with Motivation Idea of “motivating people” should be banished from the language of management Amounts to manipulation and control Demeaning and dysfunctional

14. The Problem with Motivation Idea of “motivating” people should be banished from the language Amounts to manipulation and control Demeaning and dysfunctional X

15. People … dummies? Motivation image: Carrot and Stick ... what lies in between? . . . motivation, as practiced, treats people like .... H. Levinson, “Asinine Ideas toward Motivation,” Harvard Business Review, (January 1973).

16. Motivation: Evolving Models Behaviorism (person as machine) Cognition (person as decision-maker) Purpose (person as creator of meaning) Maehr and Meyer, “Understanding Motivation and Schooling,” Educational Psychology Review (1997).

17. Motivation I: Behaviorism Assumptions of biological core dominated early 20th Century ideas Stressed appetites, instincts, frustrations Biological / mechanical assumptions Watson; Hull’s “drives;” Skinner’s S-R theory Freudianism (drives vs. civilization) as well Cofer and Appley, Motivation: Theory and Research (Wiley, 1964).

18. Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic Motivation Shadow of B. F. Skinner(positive reinforcement) Rewards seen as universally beneficial Yet we’ve known for 25 years that (external) rewards are detrimental to ... Intrinsic motivation: underlies cyclical patterns of behavior where people seek out and conquer challenges that are optimal for their capacities The Hidden Costs of Reward, ed. Lepper & Greene (L. Erlbaum, 1978)

19. Motivation II: Cognition Theory Cognition Theory “OVERTHREW” Behaviorism by mid-20th Century New focus on Mind, Perception And the Self (self-management, self determination, self efficacy, etc...) Handbook of Motivation and Cognition, 3 vols. Ed. Sorrentino & Higgins (Guilford, 1986-96); B. Weiner, Human Motivation (Sage, 1992); R. Sperry, in Science of the Mind (1995), 35-49.

20. Motivation II to III: Approaches Motivation Research Models Individual differences Situational variations Interaction (individual X situation) Maehr and Meyer, “Understanding Motivation…” From “Scientific Management” to Human Relations Needs hierarchy (Maslow) Hygiene factors (Herzberg) Theory Y (McGregor)

21. Motivation III: Creating Purpose and Meaning ... draws on the best from the past Motivation theory encompasses cognition, consciousness, self, emotions, affiliation, and achievement Weiner, in Handbook of Motiv. & Cognition, I, 281-292. For example: Quality(Deming),Empowerment(Kanter), Learning Organization(Senge), and Knowledge Managementstill use “motivation”

22. Motivation III Toolbox Since hierarchy and management power have eroded, the new tools are: Mission(importance of the work) Agenda Control(influence over own lives) Share in Value Creation(entrepreneurship) Learning(both individual and group) Reputation(essential for professionals) R. M. Kanter “New Managerial Work,” Harvard Business Review, 1989.

23. Continued Reliance on“Motivation” by Business Recognition and rewards are vital to a quality evaluation program T. Peters, Thriving on Chaos (Knopf, 1988), pp. 494-502. Outstanding companies practice: security, high wages, cross-training, “ownership” J. Pfeffer, Competitive Advantage ... People (HBS, 1994). Must manage motivation effectively via equity, availability, visibility, and rewards S. Kerr, Ultimate Rewards (Harvard Business, 1997).

24. Motivation: Weaknesses of the Theory Goal: Cause action(where there was none) Vroom, Work and Motivation, p. 8. Incidental(not continuous) “Paternalistic:” energize & direct behavior Cofer & Appleby, pp. 12-13. Linear, deterministic(i.e., behavioral) Over-reliant on rewards

25. Motivation III: Current Practice Retains heavy reliance on REWARDS, incentives and participation R. M. Steers, et al., Motivation and Leadership at Work. 6th Ed. (McGraw-Hill, 1996); T. Quick, The Manager’s Motivation Desk Book (Wiley, 1985); Crandall & Wallace, Work and Rewards in the Virtual Workplace (AMACOM, 1998), pp. 148-151.

26. The Problem with Rewards Tangible and expected rewardsundermine free-choice intrinsic motivation(findings of 128 studies) Only exceptions: Disagreeable tasks Verbal feedback (recognition of competence) if unexpected and “non-controlling”… Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, “A Meta-analytic Review,” 3

27. Rewards Kill Interest

28. Rewards Rewards signal that the task itself is not worth doing

29. Problem with Rewards: 2 Rewards require surveillance, competition, and evaluation, all of which diminish intrinsic motivation (kill interest) Rewards also rupture relationships, disrupt teams, punish everyone else, and discourage risk-taking A. Kohn, Punished by Rewards (H-Mifflin, 1993). R. M. Steers, et al., Leadership and Motivation. (McGraw-Hill, 1986), pp. 496-526.

30. ENGAGEMENT:Dictionary Definition to attract, hold by influence or power to entangle, entrap, engross to induce to participate, to join in to provide occupation for to commit to appear for an event to interlock, place in gear (mechanical) to enter into conflict (military) temporal (more than 1, less than permanent) Oxford English Dictionary, (1989), V, 247-249. 4

31. Engagement: Definitions from theLiterature of Motivation assumes activity is absorbing, engrossing implies enjoyment … and interest pertains to subject’s field of competence requires direct participation involves acquiring more & better knowledge demands significant self-determination involves challenging tasks is characterized by persistence

32. Engagement: Definitions from Learning Theory Self-determination(Deci & Ryan, Bandura) Creative task engagement(Conti) Competence(Connell and Wellborn) Context, personalization, choice(Cordova) Interest, enjoyment, flow(Hidi, Csikszentmihalyi) Self-reaction(Bandura and Cervone) Self-regulated learning(Corno & Mandinach) NOTE: focus is on learning goals, not achievement goals.

33. The Engagement Model:Contributions MotivationTheory Learning Theory Activity-Engagement Systems Theory Action identification (Wegner/Vallacher) Action engagement (Higgins/Trope) Action theory (Kuhl/Atkinson) Other ideas: communication, information management, and purposeful work

34. Activity Systems Theory Psychological study of behavior is atomistic, focusing on pieces, elements Much human activity, such as language and relationships and work processes, is broader, holistic, more purposeful Clark and Crossland, Action Systems (1985) NOTE: Activity is assumed in engagement; it is a goal of motivation.

35. Engagement Theory:Other Contributions, #1: Relationships and process of communication engaging the interests of another in the absence of coercion Involves dialogue and introspection Requires openness -- not closed and complete situation [Engagement/inverseuthority] M. McMaster, Intelligence Advantage (1996).

36. Engagement Theory:Contributions, #2 By choosing to engage/not we enjoy a tool and measure for informationmanagement; a scale for handling information overload: passive (seeing, hearing) discussion presenting or teaching using in practice T. Davenport, Information Ecology (Oxford, 1997).

37. Engagement Theory:Contributions, #3 Engagement in empowering work gives purpose to human life, structures time, and provides a valuable tool for positive self-esteem and mental health Meaningless work does not … Mee and Sumsion, “The Motivating Power of Occupation,” British Journal Occupational Therapy (March 2001): 121-128.

38. Organizational Engagement:Contributions, #4 Interaction between Social Systems(people) Technical Systems(work processes) Communication Systems(decision making and organization change) Cherin, “Organizational Engagement…” Administration in Social Work (2000 Also see Nonaka and Nishiguchi, Knowledge Emergence (Oxford, 2001)

39. Not necessarily Self-actualization Feelings of wholeness, integration, suspension of judgement, clear perception, sense of awe, feelings of power and beauty, self-confident, creative … without awareness of space and time- (Maslow) Flow Intense concentration, lack of self-consciousness, effortlessness, oblivious of distraction Autotelic: process is the reward - (Csikszentmihalyi) Kytle, “Constructing an Engaged Life,” (2000) PEAK EXPERIENCE

40. But ratherMIDDLE RANGE DYNAMICS Attention, mindfulness (consider options) Ellen Langer, Mindfulness (1989) Ba(Japanese) shared physical / mental space Nonaka & Ishigushi, Knowledge Emergence (2001) Care: Fostered by: trust, active empathy, real help, lenient judgement, and courage Destroyed by: bureaucracy, competition, and punishment G. von Krogh, “Care in Knowledge Management” California Management Review (Spring ‘98)

41. ENGAGEMENT: The Theory Engagement = Learning(Interest + Competence + Challenge + “Change”) + Involvement(Participation + “Hands on”+ Commitment) In a Social Context Increased Knowledge & Effectiveness ENGAGEMENT! =Learning... Marcum,“Out with Motivation, In with Engagement,” National Productivity Review(1999).

42. Engagement vs. Motivation Goal: learning and greater knowledge Assumes equality among participants Assumes activity, and motivation Is ongoing, temporal Seeks meaning/care Holistic Goal: initiate action Protagonist assumes responsibility Seeks control, influence Incidental Biological core Atomistic, linear, deterministic

43. From Motivation to Engagement However sophisticated, motivation endeavors seek to control and manipulate and are therefore unsuitable for managing knowledge workers. An “engagement” mindset offers a more useful model for mutually beneficial working relationships with knowledge workers.

44. In Brief: Motivation = control and manipulation Engagement = learning and involvement in a social context

45. Rewards Rewards signal that the task itself is not worth doing

46. Implementing Engagement: Suggested Guidelines Think partnerships, not “employees” Scan for interests and competencies, not past records Focus on achievements, not processes Provide for continuous learning Test with challenges and opportunities Negotiate projects, avoid assignments

47. Engagement Guidelines(continued): Provide networked, participative digital environment Dismantle boundaries; review and restructure processes and procedures Foster teamwork and collaboration Measure and improve morale Seek to build an environment (Ba) that is both fun and purposeful

48. Management Models: Engagement Vs. Motivation Leader as coach and facilitator Scrambling to keep up with the pack Running a tight ship Leader in control, giving directions

49. Review Motivation = control and manipulation (Baaad!) Engagement = learning and involvement (GOOD!)

50. Rewards Rewards signal that the task itself is not worth doing

51. Engagement Engagement occurs when an individual or group undertake tasks related to their interests and competence, learn about it continuously, participate freely with (equal) associates, immerse themselves deeply, and continue the task with persistence and commitment because of the value they attribute to the work.

52. ENGAGEMENT AND “DISCOVERY” Discovery (definition): Uncovering, disclosing, or bringing something to light for the first time

53. Discovery (learning) Strategies Allow for initiative and self-direction Allow choice in methods utilized Utilize new technologies Provide for work in teams Provide “room” for perseverance and adaptation as competence is acquired Marcum, “From Information Center to Discovery System,” Journal of Academic Librarianship (2001).

54. Managing Discovery An engaged staff offers the greatest potential for making discoveries and accomplishing important goals cost-effectively.

55. Good Luck …Jim Marcum Marcum@postbox.csi.cuny.edu marcumjw9@aol.com