Big Idea: Motivation-hygiene theory. Herzberg’s research found that what he called “hygiene factors”—such as salary, security, and status—were crucial for avoiding job dissatisfaction, but had little impact on job satisfaction. Satisfaction depended on “growth or motivator factors”—things like interesting work, greater responsibility, and the opportunity to grow. Organizations that tried to boost performance by using hygiene factors—say, by offering bonuses or holding out the prospect of a promotion—were playing a game they couldn’t win. The better approach, he argued, was to focus on job
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