Management
Concepts
Concept Version 6
Created by Boundless

Positive Reinforcement

Positive reinforcement is the addition of an appetitive stimulus to increase a certain behavior or response.

Learning Objective

  • Evaluate the approaches and outcomes attributed to positive reinforcement methods in the workplace


Key Points

    • Positive reinforcement can also be stated as rewarding a person for the good work he or she does. In an organization, this can be a positive factor to motivate employees to do better job.
    • In most situations, positive reinforcement is better than punishment.
    • An incentive program is a formal scheme used to promote or encourage specific actions or behavior by a specific group of people during a defined period of time.

Terms

  • incentive

    Something that motivates, rouses, or encourages.

  • appetitive

    Having the quality of desiring gratification.

  • Positive Reinforcement

    Positive reinforcement is the addition of an appetitive stimulus to increase a certain behavior or response.


Full Text

Reinforcement

Reinforcement is a term under operant conditioning and behavioral analysis. It is a process of strengthening a directly measurable dimension of behavior, such as rate (e.g., pulling a lever more frequently), duration (e.g., pulling a lever for longer periods of time), magnitude (e.g., pulling a lever with greater force), or latency (e.g., pulling a lever more quickly following the onset of an environmental event), as a function of the delivery of a stimulus (e.g., money from a slot machine) immediately or shortly after the occurrence of the behavior.

Positive Reinforcement

Positive reinforcement is the addition of an appetitive stimulus to increase a certain behavior or response. For example, an incentive program is a formal scheme used to promote or encourage specific actions or behavior by a specific group of people during a defined period of time. Incentive programs are particularly used in business management to motivate employees and in sales to attract and retain customers. Employee incentive programs are programs used to increase overall employee performance. Employee programs are often used to reduce turnover, boost morale and loyalty, improve employee wellness, increase retention, and drive daily employee performance. Dealer incentive programs are used to improve performance for dealer and channel resellers using sales incentive programs. It can motivate the staff which in turn helps business. These programs help companies capture market share, launch new products, reduce cost of sales, increase product adoption, and ultimately drive sales. "Reaping the Rewards" sales incentive programs are primarily used to drive sales, reduce sales costs, increase profitability, develop new territory, and enhance margins. Sales incentive programs have the most direct relationship to outcomes.

Importance of Positive Reinforcement

In most situations, positive reinforcement is better than punishment. Positive reinforcement can also be stated as rewarding a person for the good work he or she does. In an organization, this can be a positive factor to motivate employees to do a better job. They will work hard to improve the quality of their work and achieve the organizational goals. This helps the overall success of the organization. To facilitate the creation of a profitable program, every feature of the incentive program must be tailored to the participants' interests. A successful incentive program requires clearly defined rules, suitable rewards, efficient communication strategies, and measurable success metrics. By adapting each element of the program to fit the target audience, companies are better able to engage program participants and enhance the overall program effectiveness. For example, monetary rewards may include cash, branded merchandise, or non-cash rewards that have a high trophy value, such as employee of the month awards , gift cards/certificates, merchandise, or travel. Non-cash rewards may include flexible work hours, payroll or premium contributions, training, health savings or reimbursement accounts, or even paid sabbaticals.

Employee of the Month Award

Bugsy awards were given to one Employee of the Month for both the corporate office and the distribution center at the Warner Bros Studio Stores (WBSS). Every year, a store manager conference is held in Burbank, which culminated in the Bugsy Awards Ceremony. Bugsys were awarded to the top-performing store (and gallery) managers during the ceremony.

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