In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, the metrics and goals organizations prioritize and reward can define their long-term success or eventual downfall. This choice goes beyond mere numbers; it reflects the company’s ethos and strategic direction. When businesses inadvertently or deliberately reward the wrong objectives, they set themselves on a precarious path, often characterized by short-term gains but long-term sustainability challenges. This misalignment often stems from a misunderstanding of the organization’s purpose, leading to a focus on superficial indicators such as sheer customer numbers, market share, or the completion of numerous projects without considering their actual impact or alignment with strategic goals.
Such a flawed reward system can create a ripple effect throughout the organization, affecting employee behavior, decision-making processes, and, ultimately, the business’s overall health. It leads to a culture where the means are mistaken for the end, and essential aspects like customer satisfaction, quality, innovation, and team collaboration are undervalued. The consequences of these misplaced priorities are not just theoretical; they are evident in the stories of once-thriving companies that lost their way due to a misalignment of their reward systems with their core purpose.
By delving into various examples from different sectors, we can see a pattern emerging – businesses thriving or failing based on what they choose to measure and reward. From the downfall of giants in the technology sector to the struggles of renowned retail chains, each story offers a unique perspective on aligning rewards with meaningful, purpose-driven measures. These examples serve as cautionary tales, emphasizing the need for organizations to critically evaluate and realign their reward systems to foster sustainable growth and success. This analysis sheds light on common pitfalls and provides valuable insights for businesses striving to create a more purposeful and effective organizational strategy.”
Number of Customers vs. Number of Satisfied Customers Added and Retained: Failed Example: A classic example is Blockbuster. They focused heavily on increasing their customer base without paying enough attention to customer satisfaction, especially in the face of emerging online streaming services. This lack of focus on customer satisfaction and retention eventually led to their downfall.
Market Share/Sales vs. Profit/ROI/ROE: Failed Example: In the 1990s, Xerox focused on expanding its market share through the sales of copiers and printers, often at the cost of profitability. This resulted in significant financial losses and a decrease in shareholder value.
Fire Extinguishers vs. Problem Solvers: Failed Example: Kodak is a notable example. Instead of innovating and adapting to digital photography, they focused more on solving immediate problems (like declining film sales). This short-sighted approach led to their eventual bankruptcy.
Pet Projects vs. Strategic Projects: Failed Example: Yahoo! struggled because of its investment in pet projects that needed to align with a cohesive strategic vision, leading to a scattered business model and, ultimately, its decline.
Number of Projects/Work Requests Closed vs. Projects/Work Requests Closed with Deep Positive Impact: Failed Example: Enron focused more on closing numerous deals and projects, often using unethical practices, rather than creating sustainable, impactful work. This led to one of the biggest corporate scandals and bankruptcies.
Following the Process vs. Incremental Improvement and Innovation: Failed Example: General Motors in the early 2000s followed traditional processes without significant innovation, leading to a loss of market share to more innovative competitors like Toyota and Tesla.
Quantity vs. Quality: Failed Example: In the fast fashion industry, companies like Forever 21 prioritized quantities over quality, resulting in a loss of customer trust and eventual bankruptcy.
Information Technology vs. Business Technology: Failed Example: BlackBerry could not integrate their information technology advancements with evolving business technology needs, losing to smartphones that better-aligned technology with user demands.
Individuals vs. Team: Failed Example: Lehman Brothers’ downfall was partly due to a culture favoring individual achievements over teamwork, leading to risky financial practices and eventual collapse.
Managers vs. Leaders: Failed Example: Circuit City partially failed because management focused more on administrative tasks and less on visionary leadership, leading to poor strategic decisions.
Popular Technology vs. Business-Aligned Technology: Failed Example: Nokia’s reliance on Symbian, a popular technology, over more business-aligned operating systems led to its decline in the smartphone market.
Talkers vs. Doers: Failed Example: Sears is an example where there was more discussion about change than actual implementation, leading to a decline in the face of more action-oriented competitors.
In summary, these examples illustrate how vital it is for organizations to align their rewards and measures with their long-term goals and the organization’s broader purpose. Misalignment can lead to short-term gains but often results in long-term failure.
