Why Rewards Can Change Behavior
Why do we work harder when we are promised a reward?
Imagine a company wants employees to answer customer calls faster.
So it gives a bonus to whoever handles the most calls.
What happens?
Call volume goes up.
But maybe employees also start rushing customers off the phone.
That is the power—and danger—of incentivization.
Incentivization means using rewards or penalties to encourage certain behavior.
The incentive can be:
Money.
Bonuses.
Grades.
Discounts.
Recognition.
Privileges.
Even avoiding punishment.
The basic idea is simple:
People respond to what is rewarded.
But there’s a catch.
People may optimize for the incentive itself, not for the real goal behind it.
If teachers are rewarded only for test scores, they may teach to the test.
If salespeople are rewarded only for revenue, they may push products customers don’t really need.
If employees are rewarded only for speed, quality may suffer.
The lesson
Whenever you design an incentive, ask:
“What behavior will this actually encourage?”
Because incentives are powerful.
But if you reward the wrong thing, people may become extremely good at producing the wrong result.
