Let me start by making clear what my understanding of discretionary effort is and where it sits in an organisation. It is the epitome of going that extra mile, it is the person who goes out of their way to help you or the organisation, not because it will be recognised, or assist in promotion, but because they want to go the extra mile.
It’s the person who waits patiently on the phone while you faff about looking for that reference number, it’s the person who comes out to your car to help you with your child seat, it’s the midwife who stays on beyond her shift while you are in the throes of labour, and who now can’t leave your side. We have all met them, we have all witnessed this experience, maybe some of us have even been the giver of this effort, and I challenge any reader to say it was anything less than amazing. I bet you tell your friends about it and quite possibly get very emotional.
So, how do we tap into this? How do we encourage this generous and heartfelt energy, because, without doubt if we could, we would surely create one of the best organisations to work for, if not the best. A noble endeavour I am sure you agree, but there is a paradox! As soon as you recognise it, as soon as you try to measure it, no matter how well intended this may seem, it ceases to be discretionary. It’s like happiness, it alludes those who most seek it. Some may be horrified by my claim and declare this nonsense, and say how can we commit to something we can’t even measure? How will we know if what we are doing is actually working? Bah humbug I will find a way of measuring discretionary effort, and when I have done so I will bottle it and make a fortune. Good luck! This ridiculous mentality reeks of old fashioned management speak, it is the worst manifestation of Taylorism (foremost contributor to time and motion studies), and it is dated reductionist philosophy at its worst. If we can’t put a number to it then it can’t work.
Well, bear with me, suspend your judgment for a moment, let go of those sacred cows and allow me to invite you into a different scenario – a world where emotions matter and understanding how people feel is considered to be of equal value to knowing what they think. Working hard, putting in long hours, coming in first and leaving last is not discretionary effort, it is simply effort. Going the extra mile, simply because you can’t complete your task in the mile you were given is not discretionary. Effort and hard work is required because you cannot do the job with the tools, time or skills that would normally be, or is actually, needed.
You see discretionary effort would be the day you decide to leave early because a colleague or customer happens to live en route and you have volunteered to pop in and help with their home IT issue, or deliver a package personally to ensure it does not get lost. I happen to be a rowing coach in my spare time and saw a brilliant example which illustrates my point perfectly. The club trailer was being towed to Banyoles, Spain for a training camp, and the rowing coach who was driving the vehicle and its load stopped for the night in France. On doing so, he felt slightly uncomfortable about the safety of all the equipment being left outside overnight, so rather than sleep in his warm hotel room he slept in the cab of the truck. That’s discretionary effort!
So where do we go from here? I am the champion of discretionary effort, I believe it is one of the best indicators of how people feel about their organisation or products. It is a fabulous endorsement of everything good for which you stand. Don’t try to measure it though. Instead, create an environment where it can thrive, and a community where it can flourish. Research tells us that the best lever to release discretionary effort is a clear line of sight to organisational strategy and ensuring individuals understand the part they play in delivering that strategy. That’s the starting point.
After that it’s about creating a workplace experience that stimulates this behaviour, but without formal measurement. For this you will need to encourage stories, and fables about unsung heroes and examples that can be celebrated but not ritualised. Now this may sound too woolly, but we have known for a long time that science has proved that nearly every decision we make is a feeling then justified by logic. “Oh it was on my way home”, “Ah well I didn’t want to leave her wrestling with the car seat in the rain”.
To conclude therefore, I would argue that modern management and leadership thinking needs to evolve beyond Taylorism and hard KPIs to include an awareness and understanding of the emotions that shape our work experience and consequently drive our behaviour. This is not ‘instead of’ but ‘as well as’, for this is the competitive landscape going forward. How do you feel about that?
