Learning and Remuneration LO18330

John Cosgrove (j.cosgrove@clear.net.nz)
Wed, 10 Jun 1998 11:01:38 +1200

Replying to LO18284

Michelle Roy wrote:

It seems to me that the way to do that is for the company to identify
those learning behaviours it wants to encourage and then financially
reward those individuals who exhibit those behaviours.

Thank you for your response Michelle. I tend to agree. My challenge is
the complexity of the issues that surround performance, motivation,
remuneration and co-operacy. Maybe if I share some history it may help.

In the mid 1980s the New Zealand, and it's public service, experienced a
number of major reforms which moved us into a 'business' model of the
world. This wave of reform brought with it a number of 'business'
interventions including performance pay. For us, the Police, we have
enjtered a world of accountability that many are still struggling to
adjust to. This accountability seems to centre around the purchase of
outputs by the Government.

In the realisation that we needed to be transparent, accountable and
better at what we do, the department has made several attempts to massage
performance through the auspices of performance appraisal systems. Each
has lasted about three years and then been replaced. Four years ago
performance related pay was introduced. The majority of staff have a four
point scale which pays out on the two upper points. The distribution
curve has skewed to where 98% of staff fall in these 2 categories with
about 50% in each. It has become a semi annual farce. We still operate
the old 'entitlement' culture.

One of the challenges in my brief is to introduce a competency model,
which would fit with your suggestion.

I don't think I am going to be able to properly use any intervention until
I can map it within the context of achieving sustained high performance,
organisationally and individually. I am struggling with how to manage the
polarities of team AND individual performance, order AND responsiveness,
and all of the factors that influence and are influence by the performance
management environment.

In essence, I want to be able to map the system, as best I can, so that as
we decide on simple options, I have the ability to monitor their effect on
the system and to learn.

I don't know - maybe one of the most effective ways may be to have a
collective lie in place?

Whatever - it is an interesting journey...

regards
John

-- 

"John Cosgrove" <j.cosgrove@clear.net.nz>

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