The current (February, 2012) issue of the Journal of Economic Psychology features a terrific article by an assemblage of behavioral psychologists, “Influencing behavior: The mindspace way.”  Among the many interesting, insightful takeaways, the authors define nine key behavioral drivers.  In the article, they use the mnemonic “mindspace” to unveil each specific characteristic.

The nine factors center on the following critical points:

• Who communicates information to us may be more impactful than what is communicated;
• How we respond to incentives is often based on predictable mental shortcuts, one of the strongest desires is to avoid loss (even greater than realizing a potential gain);
• What other people do is a major determinant in what we decide to do;
• We have pre-set default positions that we readily defer to;
• When facing multiple stimuli, we will give our attention to the novel and the most individually relevant;
• We are highly susceptible to sub-conscious cues, which “prime” our decision-making and mindset outside of our conscious awareness;
• Emotions  and how we associate emotionally is perhaps the most powerful determinant of action;
• We have a natural desire to behave in a manner consistent with commitments that we make, with a high value on reciprocation;
• What we do is generally guided by that which will make us feel better about ourselves

Any of the bullet points above can launch a lengthy discussion, evidenced by  books such as Nudge (Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein), Drive (Dan Pink), Predictably Irrational (Dan Ariely), and Sway (Ori and Ram Brafman).

One question that many have is: While this is great information, what do I do with it? Even if I am willing to concede that people are irrational, that the human condition is generally predisposed to certain modes of behavior, how can I leverage this to achieve my own goals?

The answer is that utilizing this type of research can spell the difference between success and failure for your brand, your product, or your company. Many widely held beliefs simply do not hold up under the scrutiny of research, and having some grounding in the area of decision sciences can help give you a tremendous leg up on the competition.

Example: Often it is assumed that people seek to maximize economic benefit above any other alternative. Included in this is the notion that the best way to incent behavior change is to offer people more money, or to provide them things like debit cards or retail gift cards in return for higher performance on the job. As you have read here on numerous prior occasions, it doesn’t work that way. Using money (or any type of award which is denominated in dollars) may, for a host of reasons all of which are grounded in behavioral reseach,  actually work against you.

On the other hand, allowing an individual to commit to his/her own level of performance increase, and creating an environment where elevated productivity becomes the norm, where key performance indicators are readily available to show  gain, and the reward is something that is salient to the individual, will have the greatest positive impact.

One exceptional point the authors make has to do with the degree that people will go to avoid realizing a loss. In fact, research shows that loss aversion is a more significant behavioral driver than the potential for personal gain. It made me wonder if an incentive program might not be structured to improve sales performance by offering a means of avoiding loss, rather than targeting a personal gain.

Example: Let’s use a sales awards program, where individuals are rewarded for growing their revenue above a historical level. Let’s say it is a four-month long promotion, where each sales person is challenged to improve on their sales performance of the same period last year. Traditionally, the sales rep might be given a goal and over the course of the four months, would earn rewards commensurate with how well s/he performs. But what if, instead, the company went ahead and gave every sales person (up-front, at the start of the promotion period) an level of award earnings  equal to what the average high-performing sales rep might be expected to earn during the four month qualifying period. Then, each month that the sales rep failed to perform, s/he would have their awards balance reduced (i.e., they would lose the awards value by underperforming, instead of being rewarded with a gain for over performing). At the end of the promotion period, every rep that failed to achieve his/her sales target would have lost all of their awards. Those who attained their goal would get to keep (and spend) their rewards. The ones who over-achieved during the promotion would receive a bonus payout in rewards. I bet that would have a pretty potent effect on sales. Never seen it done, though. Would love to try it out and see what happens.

One thing is certain: people will do what they want to do, not always what you think they will do. The more you understand about how we make decisions that guide our behavior, the better off you will be to put it to positive use.

Source: Journal of Economic Psychology, Volume 33, Issue 1, pp 264-277; Influencing behaviour: The mindspace way; P.Dolan, M. Hallsworth, D. Halpern, D. King, R. Metcalf, I. Vlaev (www.elsevier.com/locate/joep)

Few concepts have been so thoroughly explored as the notion of employee engagement, and the value of a committed, focused and energetic workforce. More resources have been deployed against this effort than anything I have witnessed in over twenty years, going back to the golden age of TQM and process re-engineering.

Data suggests that as much as 40% to 60% of a company’s employee base are either disengaged or actively pursuing alternative career options. With the US economy in a seemingly endless transition from recession to low-growth, and a dearth of positive employment figures, the ranks of disillusioned workers continues to grow monthly.

Sales are not increasing fast enough. Raw materials costs are rising faster than companies can increase their prices. The only way to fatten the bottom line is through productivity increases, and that means either getting more from your work force via layoff or attrition, or increasing the output per employee through individual focus and commitment.

Most companies have driven costs out to the point where there is little left to cut. Hence, the focus on maximizing employee engagement, with its dual promise of targeted retention coupled with enhanced innovation, productivity and performance. Every organization,  no matter what size or scope, would materially benefit from a more engaged workforce.

So why aren’t we doing a better job at it?

Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer authored a useful book on the topic called The Progress Principle (2011, Harvard Business Review Press). In it, the authors cite considerable data to identify four key “traps” that leadership must avoid if their workforce is going to commit emotionally and behaviorally with the mission of the company.  These potential pitfalls are triggers that negatively impact the inner work-life of employees, and all of them routinely occur through failed leadership and management practices. They are, in effect, the drivers that deliver the opposite of engagement.

The factors include:

1. Sending signals from the top of the organization that say one thing, but accept a lower standard in pursuit of expedience;
2. When leadership lays out one set of strategic imperatives and then shifts direction in a seemingly  reactionary or haphazard manner, creating chaos and continuous misdirection;
3. Inarticulate or confusing policies, processes and protocols that send a message to the rank-and-file employees that leadership is not aligned around what or how results are to be achieved; and,
4. Setting goals so big that nobody believes they can be attained, let alone understanding how the company plans to achieve them.

Messrs. Amabile and Kramer suggest that these pitfalls are hard to spot and more challenging still to avoid. In my experience, I believe them to be spot on. If you have read more than a few posts on ideationz, you know that I stand on the cornerstones of alignment, willingness and ability, and a clear sight line to key performance indicators as fundamental to creating a culture where engagement can prosper and be sustained. The authors, I believe, would agree with one added component: Employees must sense progress (individually and organizationally) in order to feel that there is value in what they do on the job. Progress, via data or anecdote, is essential, and must be articulated, visible and recognized.

There is a lot to consider when you look around your own company. Do your senior leaders consistently demonstrate solidarity around the mission, vision and values of the firm? Is there a real effort to align every employee, so that there is no doubt as to responsibility, role and accountability for each position? Are the core metrics aligned with the stated mission of the organization? Do the employees have access to the resources necessary to prosper innovation and positive change?

These are all questions that should be considered if your company is going to be poised to realize productivity, engagement and performance objectives. Progress along the way warrants, and mandates, communicating everyday advances, and making each employee feel that their contribution makes a difference.

How well do you “brand” your corporate initiatives?

Everybody understands the impact of a powerful consumer brand. Think Tide, Starbucks, BMW,  Apple, FedEx, Geico…the list goes on and on. So why is it so many companies put so little creativity into branding their most important employee initiatives?

Nobody will debate that engaged, energized, enthusiastic employees deliver better bottom line results than a disenfranchised, distracted, or debilitated workforce. Yet many organizations deploy half-baked all-employee communications, training, rewards and recognition programs with minimal leadership support, and clip-art creative. Why the disconnect?

One possible reason is that consumer brands have a direct sight-line to a measurable return. But so do employee efforts designed to improve productivity, sustain engagement, encourage retention or spark innovation. The KPIs of a sound, effective engagement strategy may not be as broadly understood, but the financial ramifications are no less real.

Could it be that there is an embedded bias that employee engagement is an ideal, not an objective? Does the C-suite believe that cultural drivers are “soft” metrics, lacking financial implications in the near-term? Or perhaps it is considered easier to assess and analyze consumer marketing data than it is to come to terms with real-time employee attitudes, choices and behaviors?

Either way, my recommendation is to build a vigorous and creative communications plan to drive awareness, interest, trial and adoption of the core elements in your employee-targeted efforts. Make them visible, interactive, catchy, social, memorable, and easy. Use posters, static cling, dimensionals, electronic, and print media. Create an identity that resonates. This isn’t that hard. It just is too-often overlooked or viewed as an expense item, waiting to be cut.

If you want your associates to refer potential candidates, participate in a  wellness initiative, carpool, engage in learning activities, attend a company meeting, support a common cause, brainstorm new product or service enhancements, or simply show up for work on Mondays, you need to enlist their emotions. One-off communications, emails, bulletin-board memos, soulless communiqués and the like won’t get it done. These approaches send a message to the employees that they just aren’t worth a little creativity, polish and fun.

Your marketing and branding groups work hard to get consumers to love your products, and tell all their friends. Do the same for your employees. Remember: they are what make your consumer relationships possible.

A new year waits, just ahead, in full view. Just curious about one thing: This time a year ago you set some pretty aggressive goals, resolutions, objectives…whatever you termed them…essentially you defined a new set of expectations of yourself. How did that work out? In fact, if you are like most people (including me) the odds are that you did something similar two, three, maybe even five years back. How successful were you in realizing your objectives?

Full disclosure: I was successful on a couple of fronts, generally involving my business and this blog. At best, I batted about .500, which isn’t great, but it could have been worse. In these volatile times setting just about any goal and achieving it is at least worth some celebration.

The reason I ask in the first place is that I wonder if we sometimes layout some lofty targets, without enough forethought to realize whether or not they are attainable, and then just hope for the best. I don’t know about you but I really don’t have an abundance of time to devote to planning every aspect of my big-picture hopes and dreams. Most of my time is spent dealing with the here-and-now (also referred to as the “tyranny of the urgent” by many).

So this year, rather than set myself up for failure, I am going to create a moving set of outcomes to work against; the “steps to a resolution” if you will. For example, rather than declare that I am finally going to complete my forthcoming book, I am instead going to define some key milestones which are yet to be completed (most of them, in all honesty) and position myself for success instead. I may not get the entire work ready for presentation to a publisher but I am pretty sure I can pass several waypoints on that course.

We are conditioned to aim high; to be lofty in our ambitions. And we are also conditioned to accept failure, as long as we made some progress. I’m not so sure that’s a good plan. Being ambitious is good, don’t get me wrong. However, if we decide to undo years of paradigms, reprogram our behavior, and/or channel our focus in an entirely new direction, we may have honorable intentions without being realistic.

Instead, how about if we organize a strategic personal goal for twelve months, and create four quarterly tactical plans to get us there? Of course it makes sense. But how many of us put that level of thought into our “New Years Resolutions”? This approach forgoes the bravado of “I’m going to lose 30 pounds this year!”  In place of that, I declare that, “By March 31^st I am going to have moved from two big meals a day, to four small meals a day with fewer carbs and more leafy greens”? Not as exciting, but doable, and moves me closer to where I can sustain a positive change.

Is this a good idea? I don’t know. But having largely never accomplished a New Years’ Resolution suggests that maybe it’s time to rethink a failed process. That counts for something, doesn’t it?

The headline got your attention, at least enough to read the opening line of the post. Now, you are free to go or stay. You make the call. But you still don’t know what you need to know. So I hope you will stick around.

I could have just stated in the headline what it is that you need to know. Then you would know what it is, and you could have just as easily kept going. But the implication that there is something that you don’t know, that you need to know, somehow piqued your curiosity.  And you haven’t bailed on me yet. But you are about to; if I don’t give you something soon for your efforts.

Here we are. Paragraph number three and you are still with me. Thank you. We have not fulfilled the expectation, the promise if you will, that a key piece of insight will be shared, and you are still reading.  But it is coming. And it will be worth it.

Here’s the point: If you want to get and keep someone’s attention you are best served to not just state what you want them to know, but rather first let them know that you have something for them, something that they must have, and lead them down a path that in their mind (not yours) will reward them for their persistence.

Tell them the point in the headline and they will move on. Not interested. Why? I already know the punch line. Who wants to stick around for the rest of the joke? Want another example? OK. Try this.

Here’s the headline: A guy walks into a bar…

Do you keep reading? Aren’t you just a little curious? What if the headline had been this: A hilarious joke about a man in a bar…

Still want to read it? Or does the presumption that the joke is “hilarious” put you off just a bit? What if it isn’t hilarious…to you? Maybe it is better to keep moving.

So, here is what you need to know: If you want to get the attention of others, make it personal, make it about them, and be slightly provocative. Not challenging. Not threatening. Just provocative enough to draw them in. Let them make up their own mind, and most importantly, never give away the punch line until you are ready for them to leave.

The notion that virtually all products and services have become commodities to some degree is no surprise anymore. The same is true for most B2B solutions. If there isn’t a directly comparable competitive option, there are always alternative avenues for a customer to pursue that are designed to deliver comparable results.

This is one of the biggest arguments against benchmarking. If your goal is to be “as good as” or “better than”, you are essentially making it an objective to become a commodity provider.

I recall hearing a long time ago that the market price of a commodity will eventually be equal to the average cost of goods for a given product or service. Doesn’t seem like a goal I would want to establish for my company.

So what do you do in order to rise above the expanding array of alternatives available in the marketplace that are chasing the same funding you are? One way is to forget about the benchmarking process, and to create an entirely new category for your product or service. Sounds good, but is often near impossible to attain. What else can you do?

Products can be made to appear similar, in form as well as function, and different iterations or approaches to deliver similar results will end up eventually being evaluated on the “lowest common denominator”, such as cost per unit of measure. Your product or service may be viewed as “indispensable”, but when viewed along with three other solutions that do the same thing, it is hard to stand out, unless you are the “cheapest”.

Instead, I would offer up that you need to make your company indispensable. What is it about your company that distinguishes you from your competition, in aspects other than product (features, functionality, design, etc.) or pricing? If you are not planning to be the low-cost provider, then you need to make sure that your customer is buying your company, not just your product or service.

The only thing that will engage a customer as much as a product that can’t be replicated anywhere else, or an outcome that can’t be delivered by anyone else, is a company that can’t be replaced by any other. Factors such as culture, flexibility, responsiveness, innovation, access, commitment, focus, accountability, and integrity are each measurable points of differentiation. Taken in total, these considerations create a compelling and complete story. Ask yourself: When a customer looks at my product (or service), how much of my company do they see?

If you take the time to strategically map out the elements that define the complete customer experience, you can readily find significant opportunities to stand apart from others in your space. Before you or one of your salespeople present a solution and a price, make sure you have already demonstrated the “fit” between your customers’ objectives, requirements and expectations and the relevant aspects of your company that assure a successful, enduring relationship. Doing so won’t replace the need for a competitive, reasonable price. But is should remedy the need to be the lowest price.

Linkages between employee loyalty and consumer preferences  (as well as employee loyalty and channel partner effectiveness) have been drawn. Satisfied, productive and committed employees are increasingly sought after as a source of competitive, financial advantage. One essential book on the subject is titled, “Employees First, Customers Second” (Harvard Business Press, 2010) by Vineet Nayar. The author focuses on transparency, trust, and top-down accountability as key factors in transforming the organization and engaging the employees. By accessing, nurturing and rewarding employees for bringing forward innovative ways to add value to their customers, Nayar believes he has found a new source of competitive advantage, in shifting the center of strategic thinking from the executive suite to those closest to the needs and opportunities of the marketplace.

A brand-new paper published this week by McKinsey is titled, “Finding The Right Place To Start Change”. Similar in some regards to the prescriptive messages of Vineet Nayar and other thought leaders, the McKinsey piece espouses that the first step in driving engagement is to identify those in the organization that are most connected, and to leverage their support to build momentum across the company. If you have read more than one or two posts on Ideationz, you will recognize that a number of the foundational elements in both the book and the McKinsey article center on factors that we have promoted as essential to corporate health and longevity. Specifically:

1. The need to align your employees (or channel partners or consumers) with the mission and the values of the organization as well as their role in propelling the vision forward,
2. The tandem aspects of willingness (to change) as well as ability to see, plan and act differently, and,
3. Identifying and tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) to mark progress in critical areas.

I have seen this play out in many global organizations, particularly those who seek to capitalize on talent and innovation in far-flung geographies worldwide. It’s hard enough to capture and operationalize new thinking within a single corporate entity or on a headquarters campus. It is another story altogether to build not just the technology, but the connectedness among associates in different geopolitical  environments, cultures, and time zones.  Technology helps, but it takes more than that.

Those who are successful have a distinct upper hand on those that cannot implement the “one company, one world” credo. You never know where the next great idea, product/service, technology or scientific breakthrough is going to come from. As such, the strategic need for inclusion and connectedness transcends an HR practice or policy. The value of engagement reaches across disciplines, and demands a complex plan for execution. The rudiments to getting started, however, need to be simple and consistent. Everything begins with a vision for the future. From the vision will emerge a mission, or a purpose for being, which complements the future vision. The core values set the tone for marking off what are acceptable boundaries for the firm. Goals cascade into objectives, and those who are responsible for driving results must build actionable plans that address the four cornerstones of engagement which are summarized above (alignment, willingness, ability, and measurement).  These plans of action need to be designed with implementation in mind, and monitoring stations created to determine the operational success of the effort (i.e., is the plan being implemented across all key audiences, and where – if any – are the gaps), as well as the impact the initiative is having on behavioral outcomes. The impact may be cited in metrics such as enrollment, activity, milestones achieved, etc. The culmination of engagement efforts are the business results which are manifested (i.e., is the organization achieving the goals and objectives defined at the start of the process).

These are complex, big-picture aspects of a process that, if adhered to, will create forward motion while shedding light on those groups which lead/lag the middle of the organization. Those who are on the leading edge represent an emerging point of leverage, effectively opening up a broader base of engaged constituents to nurture and encourage.

More will come of this in future posts. For now, I would advocate that you examine how well aligned the executive team is, and to carefully consider the stated vision, mission, values, goals and objectives for the company as well as the plans that cascade from them. This will become your launching pad for everything which follows. From there, you can begin to assess how well you are meeting the needs of the four defined cornerstones, and then move deeper into determining where gaps or roadblocks may exist. Gaps are, on one level, simply unmet opportunities, often occurring as a result of misaligned expectations or processes. Roadblocks serve to define previously undiscovered synergies.  The value which comes from beginning with a broad coalition of executive support, encompassing HR,  operations, finance, administration, manufacturing, sales/marketing, r&d  and technology represents the fuel that will get your efforts off the ground. And that is, after all, the most basic requirement of a successful launch isn’t it?

“I love your product!” is not necessarily the same as “I love your product!” or “I love your product!” In fact, I may very well love your product and never buy it, use it, desire it, tell others about it, or even consider purchasing it. Why? Because love isn’t always enough.

Let me put it this way… We all have known couples who have been together for forty years and really, can’t stand each other. They don’t split up, and, in fact, they may go lots of places together, tell others how busy their lives are, and boast of their lifestyle. But, at the end of the day, they aren’t attached to each other in the most fundamental way: emotionally. Instead, they see life (their individual lives, specifically) through a purely rational lens. The notion of staying together is more palatable than the challenges of splitting up. Hence, although they really don’t share a substantial emotional bond, they appear at a casual glance to be quite content with their lives.

Consumers are no different than this poor couple above. They might “love” your creative, they may be entertained by your advertising, and they may even tell their circle of friends on Facebook that they “Like” your product. But they won’t ever buy it. It seems “love” just isn’t enough…at least not that kind of love.

Employees may feel the same way about your firm. They may toil away for years, doing just enough to satisfy a diminishing desire to outpace mediocrity. They stay because it is easier,  perhaps more socially acceptable, or maybe just logical from a financial perspective. But they are not invested emotionally, and they see no reason to engage with your corporate mission and vision. It is easier instead to endure.

Emotions are at the center of everything that we silly, irrational humans do. What is logical may come into our field of vision, but can be readily dismissed or overridden by a simple impulse that is motivated by an emotional desire that we can’t or don’t feel the need to explain. We probably couldn’t explain it anyway, as we usually don’t really understand why we do many of the things we do.

Your employees tell you they “love” money. Nope. Sorry. They don’t. They are rationally attracted to attaining a specific level of income that satisfices their requirements for physiological well-being and safety. What they “love” (defined as that which partners with intrinsic drivers to change a behavioral pattern, velocity or intensity) is a vision of themselves in a better (happier, more satisfied or more powerful for example) place which supports an elevated self-perception. Money doesn’t do that.

Why does this matter? If you are a marketer, you must challenge your branding, packaging, positioning, and product design to appeal to your market on an emotional level. I can respect the fact that your product stands for something, but if it doesn’t resonate with my sense-of-self, I may settle for being amused, courted and aware, but not compelled to buy.

If you are an employer, you must understand what engages your employees’ emotions, and construct an environment that nurtures and supports the values that your employees are tethered to. Opportunities for personal growth, development, esteem and a shot at that elusive self-actualization are critical avenues to focus on. How well your management team individually embodies, interacts and reinforces the cultural mores of the organization are core to creating a workplace that one can become emotionally bonded to.

The bottom line is this: you can’t rely on “love” alone to sustain your brand or your company. You have to create a connection that goes beyond what is rational or logical. Like any other relationship, it is a lot easier to fall in love (with a product or an employer, or even a spouse) than to stay in love. Commitment won’t happen on its own, and must be continually reinforced, communicated and demonstrated in order to be sustained.

How will you bring this understanding to life with your product or your organization?

“We have created a society that honors the servant but has forgotten the gift.”
Iain McGilchrist

Following is a fascinating discussion by Iain McGilchrist on the manner with which the human brain operates, and the evolutionary impact that society has had on how we go about the business of perception and thought. As marketers, we are constantly seeking new avenues to drive awareness, consideration and engagement. Understanding the foundational theories and science around decision-making is critical to that mission. I hope you find this as intriguing as I did.