Pithy Posters and Personal Change

Most readers, at one time or another, have probably mocked the motivational posters commonly found in most office settings. They typically fuse eye-catching images with generic platitudes in a vain attempt to rally employees past difficult professional obstacles.

Peruse any Web site and one is likely to find an example: A photo of a sapling in a forest of tall trees, paired with a cliché maxim about the value of determination, or the image of a stoic wolf heading its pack, beneath it a trite maxim about how leaders are trail-setters. It’s not just posters. Over the last several decades, a cottage industry has sprouted up, one that emphasizes productivity through cleverly branded tchotskes from calendars to coffee cups.

Admit it: They’re ripe for mockery. But believe it or not, they also might be useful, too, says one business professor.

“A motivational poster alone is like a drop of rain in the ocean… but if they’re part of a broader campaign, with clearly outlined goals and a commitment from management, they may have some impact,” said Kenneth G. Brown, an associate professor of management and organizations at the University of Iowa’s Tippie College of Business who studies employee motivation. He recently presented his findings on the subject – a study called “Giving Goodies in Training: Are There Benefits?” – at a meeting of the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) in New York City.

Brown says management often drops the ball when trying to change employee behavior. Research suggests that moving people out of old work habits can be difficult, and managers have to be clear and persistent about what behavior they do want to see. And no amount of giveaways or inspirational sayings will increase productivity without a strategy in place first.

“It’s hard to alter people’s behavior, so getting workers to increase their value to a company is not easy,” he said. “If the change effort is part of a multi-pronged strategy with committed management working to create change, and they create a sense of urgency that change is needed and clearly explain the reasons, then posters and coffee mugs can be a small part of it.”

Still, even when a strategy is well developed and management is fully committed, only some employees may change, Brown’s research suggests.

His study involved giving a group of students small gifts when they came to a training session, and playing music during breaks to perk up their moods. A second group of workers, a control group run for comparison purposes, received their gifts at the end of the day and heard no music. What he found was that people who were naturally upbeat and positive reacted positively to the gifts and music, and their moods became more positive. However, those who were not naturally positive actually reacted negatively to the gifts and music. Brown suspects this is because the less positive individuals are skeptical and question the motives of the experimenter.

The lesson for insurance agency managers: Look beyond silly posters if you really want to motivate your employees.