As I have written before, equity is not about being equal. And as I have covered many, many times before, I am a true proponent of performance-based pay. Call it variable, call it personalized, call it incentive pay. Whatever you call it, I have made the argument that some people should get paid far more than others.
All in compensation
I like envisioning pay transparency using the idea of windows. There is a great reason we created windows many ages ago. They let light in. They allow us to look out. They can be designed to let in the fresh air, and they can provide coverage for those things not meant for the eyes of others.
Data that is hard to gather is often made a low priority. For example, we seldom see the details behind incentive plan terms, conditions and features. When data is messy, it may be avoided because the final report is simply too hard.
Provide the right tools.
Any person who has built an IKEA product has extra parts in their house. This is intentional. More importantly, the Allen wrench for each product is custom fit to ensure it rotates smoothly with a minimum of scraped knuckles.
One takeaway is that people love pizza. Duh! Another is that people like to hear that they are valued. Again, DUH! Lastly, we now know that some people aren’t inspired by $30.
1. Make sure you design your incentive plan to reduce the possibility and rewards for cheating. Think through all possible results and work to ensure the worst doesn’t happen.