Praise, Performance Reviews and Risk-Taking

The Inverse Power of Praise

Praise works…to a point. How Not to Talk to Your Kids: The Inverse Power of Praise summarizes a body of praise and performance research in New York public schools. Guess what? Give too much praise — especially vacuous praise — and people respond by limiting their risk-taking and effort.

I know it sounds counter-intuitive. That’s because it is. I know it’s hard to reconcile that too much praise can backfire. We live in a self-esteem movement era. I’ll leave you to read the New Yorker article. You can draw your own conclusions about over-praising children and the negative effects that might have. But the article made me think about performance and performance reviews. (Yep, I’ve been thinking a lot about performance reviews lately.)

Do Performance Reviews Stifle Risk-Taking?

Does the mere fact of giving a performance review kill creativity? Let’s answer a question with a question: How would you rate two different direct reports — one who took no risks but accomplished all her goals and another who took some big, calculated risks but didn’t complete 30% of her goals because she was occupied with big effort?

Yes, there are a lot of extenuating circumstances. And I can hear you saying, “Well, we just can’t have everyone running around freelancing.” Sure, let’s stipulate to that. But what’s the best way to get a great performance rating? Is it to take big risks? Or is it to comply? As Dilbert author Scott Adams wrote:

It’s important to agree with people if you want them to think you are a genius. For most people, the definition of smart is‚ “Thinks exactly like me but even more so.”

We’re still working feverishly on Get Rid of Performance Reviews Once and For All. This Inverse Power of Praise research is just more fuel for the fire.

What’s Your Take on Praise and Performance?

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The No Asshole Rule and HR

The No Asshole RuleI just finished reading Prof. Robert Sutton’s The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t. Quite a read…and quite a title. I’d add this book to the required reading list for HR. Sure, there are funny parts, and elements that require some real introspection, but I think allowing assholes to thrive in the workplace is beyond wrong, it’s indefensible. And there’s a real cost to allowing assholes to linger in your shop.

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Creativity Stimulator: Tanaka’s Auto Door

Sliding doors slide from one side to the other, right? Not necessarily. Tanaka’s Auto Door slides open in an approximation of of what’s passing through it. That’s some creativity. This would be a cool video to show at a kickoff of a brainstorming session.

(Found at Hrafn’s very creative blog, Inkblot Earth.)

Daylight Savings 2007 Checklist for HR

Daylight savings is coming a month early this year. And HR has to be on notice — it’s not just the fact that Daylight Savings is going to start on March 11 in the United States, it’s that there’s some real Y2K-like buzz about it. Are you ready?

HR Readiness Checklist for Daylight Savings 2007

  1. Prepare all-employee communication for delivery on Friday, March 9.
  2. Meet with IT about online calendars. (Microsoft calendars are not programmed to spring ahead early.)
  3. Check those Blackberries. We wouldn’t want to miss an hour’s worth of e-mail.
  4. Make sure payroll isn’t running near midnight. People like their paychecks ontime.
  5. Be prepared to tell your international colleagues about the change.

Another Busted on Backdating BS

The stock option backdating issue continues to flare up. The AP reports that former Monster executive vice president , Myron Olesnyckyj, pleaded guilty to securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud in an extensive stock options backdating scandal. The report says:

Monster went public in 1996. After that, Olesnyckyj said, he and others agreed to backdate annual companywide stock option grants, choosing the dates of the grants after looking at the historical records of the company’s stock price movements. Backdating involves issuing stock options retroactively to coincide with low points in the share price, thus boosting payouts. It can be illegal if it is not properly accounted for and disclosed to investors.

This issue isn’t over by a long shot. And it sure-as-heck isn’t going to be fixed with more vision, mission, and values statements. This whole thing is about doing the right thing. Or, in this case, not.

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