How do education, training, and participative management strengthen employee motivation?

"Education and Training Companies that provide educational and training opportunities for their employees reap the benefits of a more motivated, as well as a more skilled, workforce. Employees who are properly trained in new technologies are more productive and less resistant to job change. Education and training provide additional benefits by increasing employees’ feelings of competence and self-worth. When companies spend money to upgrade employee knowledge and skills, they convey the message “we value you and are committed to your growth and development as an employee.” C A T C H I N G T H E E N T R E P R E N E U R I A L S P I R I T Everyone’s a CFO Andrew Levine, president of DCI, a New York public relations firm, wanted to implement a more open management style at his company, so he added a financial segment to monthly staff meetings, during which he would share results and trends with his employees. Much to his surprise, employees seemed bored. During one staff meeting he asked his employees how to calculate a profit, and only the receptionist, Sergio Barrios, knew how. Levine was astounded, both at his employees’ general deficit in math concepts and at Barrios’ knack for figures. Levine then decided to require employees to present the financial reports themselves. For the next staff meeting, Levine appointed Barrios the chief financial officer (CFO) of the day. Barrios explained the terminology in ways laymen could understand. Since then, Levine has watched his employees become financial whizzes. Each CFO of the day meets with DCI’s real CFO for only one day before the meeting. They review income, expenses, and all manner of financial ratios and statements. They discuss revenue projections and general financial trends. The CFO of the day then presents this information at the monthly staff meeting. Maria Mantz, a junior employee, thinks the training is extremely beneficial. “I’m a new, young employee, and I’m being trained not only as a PR executive, but also as a business executive.” When Mantz’s turn came around, she stood before 30 of her colleagues and began detailing accounts and asking her audience to refer to the revenue table in their handouts. She asked if anyone know what the five clients who showed an increase in activity had in common, and awarded the coworker who knew the answer (they were all performance-based accounts) with a gift card to a local sandwich shop. Then she opened the floor for debate by asking, “Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” “CFO of the day” has definitely been a good thing for DCI, which has been profitable ever since Levine instituted the program. Employees stay an average of five years, up from two-and-a-half years before the program. And customers are also sticking around longer—the length of the client relationship has doubled to over four years. Levine has embraced the lessons of open management, or participative management, pioneered by Jack Stack and Springfield Remanufacturing Corporation. Whether the term is CFO for a day, participative or open-book management, or great game of business, the goal is to teach employees about business, thereby engaging them in the business. Companies that embrace these practices believe employees will be more productive if they understand financials and feel like owners. And in the example of DCI, employees are no longer bored during the financial review section of the monthly meeting. Sources: Peter Carbonara, “Small Business Guide: What Owners Need to Know about Open-Book Management,” Forbes , https://www.forbes.com, accessed January 19, 2018; Peter Carbonara, “Gaming the System: How a Traditional Manufacturer Opened Its Books and Turned Employees into Millionaires,” Forbes , https://www.forbes.com, accessed January 19, 2018; Nadine Heintz, “Everyone’s a CFO,” Inc., https://www.inc.com, accessed January 15, 2018; Bill Fotsch and John Case, “The Business Case for Open-Book Management,” Forbes , https://www.forbes.com, accessed January 19, 2018; Louis Mosca, “The Dangers of Opening Your Books to Employees,” Forbes , https://www.forbes.com, accessed January 19, 2018. Critical Thinking Questions 1. Do you think a CFO-of-the-day program is a good idea for all companies? Why or why not? 2. How comfortable would you be leading the financial discussion at a monthly staff meeting? What could you do to improve your skills in this area? Chapter 9 Motivating Employees 356 This OpenStax book is available for free at http://cnx.org/content/col25734/1.7"