Take different approaches to defining, rewarding work

Imagine the following scenario: Two employees who are working on very similar projects finish their work in 40 hours and 60 hours, respectively. Both projects meet quality expectations.

As a manager, how do you respond? Do you reward the one who completed it in a shorter time and punish the one who did not? And how would you reward the first employee? What factors should you consider before making those decisions?

A manager might be inclined to pile more work on the employee who finished in 40 hours. The reasoning is that because the employee functions at a higher productivity level, he or she should get more work added to the proverbial plate. Another instinct by the manager could be, "How can I get my 60-hour employee to my 40-hour employee’s productivity level?”

Most organizations place a high emphasis on productivity and optimizing productivity levels. The United States, according to a 2007 United Nations study, has the most productive workers in the world.

But just how do you define a productive worker? There is a belief in our society that pervades the workplace that all people can achieve the same level of productivity.

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