The Manager’s Guide to Rewards: What You Need to Know to Get the Best for—and from—Your Employees

Chapter 4. Performance Measures That Motivate

PERFORMANCE GOALS AND MEASURES have a significant impact on the way people work. If the manager sets the right goals, those goals provide direction for employees about what’s important for the organization; in essence, people know what’s expected of them and they’re motivated to achieve those desired outcomes. On the other hand, if the manager fails to set goals, there will be confusion, a lack of motivation, and dysfunctional behavior.

The performance puzzle has two primary pieces. The first is the right measures and the second is the appropriate targets (or standards of performance). Essentially, the manager says to the employees: “Here’s what we believe is important to accomplish and the target you ...