Myth 6: Salary increases improve motivation and productivity

[The fifth part of six on the "Five Myths about Managing People" from Lisa Haneberg's book, High Impact Middle Management.] 

Lisa says...

"Psychologist Fredrick Hertzberg studies the factors that bring about job satisfaction and dissatisfaction. He identified two groups of factors that affect employee satisfaction: hygiene factors and motivation factors. Hygiene factors include working conditions, pay, status, and security. When hygiene factors are poor, work is dissatisfying. However, adding more hygiene factors beyond what is satisfactory does not increase employee motivation"

Lisa makes a good point, and this is only one of the many studies and examples she sites. I would add though that satisfaction is in the eye of the beholder. Sometimes employees become dissatisfied because they fear they are not getting what they are worth or someone led them to believe that the grass is greener somewhere else.

Only truth, trust, and transparency—in their team, their manager, and their organization—can alleviate that fear.