HBR Guide to Motivating People (HBR Guide Series)

CHAPTER 8

One Engagement Strategy Does Not Fit All

by Natalie Baumgartner

You’ve probably heard these stories before: A coaching program that worked for one employee failed with another who’s up against the same hurdles. A reward system that increased performance on one team actually led to disgruntled workers in another group. Talent management programs that were a raging success in one instance were replicated in another and failed.

By using the same reward systems, the same engagement tactics, the same coaching programs, you’re managing your employees as if they are all the same person. They’re not. So stop treating them like clones.

Managing people as if they are all identical doesn’t work because your people are actually strikingly different ...