By Stu Sjouwerman
As a leader, you’ll figure out pretty quickly that most people are more willing to do what you ask them to do if you give them the right carrots—that is, incentives and rewards. Both psychology and economics back up this approach with nudge theory, which involves presenting positive alternative choices and aiming leaders away from using negative reinforcement, which simply doesn’t work. Still, sometimes, after all the carrots fail, you have to pull out the proverbial stick and dish out some appropriate discipline. But get the right carrot/stick ratio, and you’ll keep your team motivated and exhibiting the behaviors you want within your organization.The Ideal Ratio of Carrot to Stick
In my experience, I’ve found that the ideal ratio of carrot to stick is 9:1. As a simple example, take email phishing. Say you want to make sure your team knows what phishing is and how to avoid it, so you send out simulated phishing tests. If they fail one or two tests, then they get some corrective training. If they fail three times, then you chat with them. Four failed attempts mean they go chat with human resources. Five is a write-up. Six or seven translates to warnings. Eight or nine leads to two final warnings. At 10 fails, they’re out and you let them go. And, along the way, you document everything to ensure consistency.Related: 7 Ways to Ignite Employee Engagement and Boost Your Bottom Line
