I love Stephen Covey! I've read most of his books, listened to his tapes and am one of the many who purchase the Franklin Planner refill each and every year. I also subscribe to his theory that suggests culture change is critical to the success of today's corporations; especially the auto industry.

Needless to say I was intrigued when I read an interview this week in which Covey said that the worst companies today (which he says is most of them) "use the carrot and stick approach, which is the great jackass theory of human motivation." In other words, dangling some money in front of a salesperson or service advisor as an incentive to perform is, well, a jackass theory.

Having been a salesperson and a manager, I have experienced this from both sides. I've also watched what motivates people from an outsider's perspective so I think I can voice a somewhat educated opinion on this issue:

I agree with Covey!

When I sold cars, I sold what people wanted to buy, not what was incentivized. Sure, I made a ton of money on spiffs, but if the spiffs weren't there, I still would have made a ton of money! So what about the average or low performers? Do incentives really work on them? Sometimes, but only for a short time and then they're gone!

According to Covey, the key areas that need to be improved are the "serious gaps in accountability, strategy and clarity of communication." Covey says the reason most plans fail is because the people in the organization are not committed to them, no matter how good they may be, because the rewards for success are based on competition (Me) rather than cooperation (We).

Got an opinion? Share it here.