How Can You Motivate the Mass of Employees Fast and at Low Cost?

“For a new strategy to become a movement, people must not only recognize what needs to be done, but they must also act on that insight in a sustained and meaningful way." The question international best-selling authors W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne ask is how can you motivate the mass of employees fast and at low cost?



Answer: Blue Ocean Strategy Tipping Point Leadership for overcoming the motivational hurdle.



In the efforts to break away from the status quo Blue Ocean Strategy doesn’t suggest a massive top-down mobilization initiative like most business leaders often do. As Kim and Mauborgne point out change can often be cumbersome, expensive, and a time-consuming process, given the motivational needs in most large companies.



Blue Ocean Strategy recognizes in order to reach an organization’s tipping point and execute blue ocean strategy, employees must be informed of the need for a strategic shift and identify how it can be achieved.



Blue Ocean Strategy’s Tipping Point Leadership follows a reverse course seeking massive concentration. The first of three factors for motivating employees is known as zooming in on kingpins. Kingpins are the natural well-respected leaders of an organization that allocate resources. “To trigger an epidemic movement of positive energy, however, you should not spread your efforts thin. Rather, you should concentrate your efforts on kingpins, the key influences in an organization." The purpose is to hit the influences of the organization head on ensuring that everyone is touched.



The second factor for motivating employees to tackle the motivational challenge is referred to as fishbowl management. “At the heart of motivating the kingpins in a sustained and meaningful way is to shine a spotlight on their actions in a repeated and highly visible way." This process operates on transparency holding the kingpins accountable for their successes and failures. If particular members of the organization are responsible for inaction fishbowl management does not let them hide. This can result in an organizational culture of intense performance that not only produces strategic shift results but allows high achievers to be recognized for their work.



Blue Ocean Strategy’s third factor of Tipping Point Leadership for overcoming the motivational challenge is to atomization which relates to the framing of the strategic challenge. Kim and Mauborgne conclude, “Unless people believe that the strategic challenge is attainable, the change is not likely to succeed." The idea is to atomize the shift to make it actionable at all levels. Demanding high performance and crossing your fingers until the following quarter’s numbers come out is simply not enough.



Jumping the motivational hurdle is one of four (Cognitive, Limited Resources, Motivation, and Politics) key organizational hurdles addressed in Blue Ocean Strategy. Blue Ocean Strategy identifies Tipping Point Leadership as a solution to overcome these challenges fast and at low cost. Inspiring keynote presentations for Tipping Organizational Hurdles visit The Leadership Challenge.



Brendan Murphy is the Marketing Manager for Strategize Blue http://www.strategizeblue.com, a Blue Ocean Strategy Training and Consulting Company based in San Diego. He works under Dr. Zunaira Munir, the internationally acclaimed expert and keynote speaker on Blue Ocean Strategy.