The Value of Good Work

The latest buzzword in the HR profession is 'good work'; the idea that people should be treated fairly and rewarded fairly and given fair opportunities in their employment. Industry bodies and associations such as the CIPD, CBI and RSA are racing to define exactly what good work is and what a good job actually looks like.

The fundamental point about good work is that the value of the individual is recognised. The alternative would be that the job is recognised and the individual doesn't matter. Another day, another idiot.

The downside of this idea is that the value of the individual is not constant, and the value of one person is not the same as the value of another, simply because each person in a workspace has their own set of values.

Now, don't get excited, because I actually don't subscribe to the idea of values as a set of personal characteristics. Everyone values freedom, security, creativity, consistency, whatever. Values in that sense are almost entirely dependent on context.

We all need to feel safe if we are to give our best to whatever we're doing. Whether you're relaxing at home, driving your car, sitting at your desk or boarding a flight, if you feel safe, you won't even think about your need for safety. If you feel unsafe, all of your behaviours will be different, your focus will be different, your internal conversation will be different. So in general, you will value safety when you feel unsafe, because when you feel safe you won't realise that you're safe. Similarly, when you have enough money, you won't worry about saving the pennies. The problem with money is that you have no idea what money is or what it means. Money is a symbol, it's not a real commodity. You have no idea how much is enough. You only know what things should cost because someone else tells you. Therefore, your entire sense of value and worth is based on the prices that other people set. Have you ever spent a bit more to get something 'better'? Or a bit less to get better 'value'? How do you know what your salary should be? How do you know what you should be charging your clients? It's all made up.

Each person in a workplace has their own values because each has different things in their life which they value. Some have children, some don't. Some have boats, some don't. Each person has different needs because each has a different life. Different values means no single reward system works. Humanity has of course worked out a solution to this problem, and it is the concept of money.

Instead of trying to figure out what people's values are, instead let's look at what people are valued for.

The primary way that you know what's fair is what you see other people getting. Take a look at Frans de Waal's outstanding TED talk, 'Moral behavior in animals' to see how this is hard wired into our evolution. As a result, we are a social species, but we have characteristics of predators too. We are territorial. We each want to be treated as well as anyone else, and a bit better. We want to fit in and be special. We want to belong and stand out. This is our nature.

If you do watch that TED talk you'll see the result of rewarding monkeys unequally for a task. I put it to you that it doesn't really matter what your reward and recognition system gives people in return for their work because no-one know what that's supposed to be anyway. What really does matter is that your reward system is open and transparent. If you reward people for 'work' then paying managers more makes no sense because they do less 'work'. Instead, you could be honest and say that your reward system is based on status, or risk, or responsibility. There's often a perception that sales people are paid 'a lot', which isn't really true. They are paid relative to the risk they're prepared to take. A salesperson could be out of a job if they don't hit their target. They are accepting money in return for insecurity.

In your organisation, what are you implicitly rewarding people for? Your reward and recognition system tells people what they need to do to get paid, but is it honest and transparent? As soon as people feel unfairly treated, they will devalue whatever you give them. No matter how much you pay them, they will feel it's not enough. The inequity has pushed them into a place of insecurity and now they will go into hoarding mode.

As well as your formal reward and recognition system, you have an informal one, and it is potentially far more influential. The informal, tacit reward system is powered by the things that your managers give praise for. The little everyday things that line managers say "thank you" or "well done" for. This praise, because of the implied hierarchy of management, confers status, and status confers security and greater access to resources. People will automatically and unconsciously align themselves with a power structure. They will change what they wear, how they speak, and most importantly, what they do all day. Extreme examples become political empires where each member of a team is solely engaged in making their manager look good. The overall reward package therefore comprises two elements; the explicit reward system that is written into the employment contract and the implicit reward system that is created by each line manager in each team.

So the overall message is this: Good work is work for which you are fairly and equally valued, which depends on an honest and transparent reward system. You can't get rid of power structures, so instead make sure they are aligned with the objectives of the organisation so that everyone benefits. Strong leadership creates safety, and leadership is based on trust. How does a leader create trust? By being trustworthy, by following through on their promises. By sharing information openly.

Yes, it's true. Good work starts with good leaders.

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Peter Freeth is a talent, leadership and culture expert, an author, an executive coach and many other things, not all of which he gets paid for, but that's OK.

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