Workplace communication platforms like Slack and Microsoft Teams are often criticised for lowering productivity by inundating employees with constant messages and prompting immediate responses. However, innovative research led by Wen Wen, an associate professor at Texas McCombs specialising in Information, Risk, and Operations Management (IROM), demonstrates that these platforms can be harnessed to boost worker motivation. The study emphasises a practical approach: publicly acknowledging high-performing employees on all-staff channels, which is beneficial when in-person interaction is limited.

Wen explains many organisations’ central challenge: “How to motivate remote workers and keep them productive?” Her research offers practical strategies for crafting and sharing peer-related messages on digital platforms, which can lead to significant productivity improvements. This approach, which Wen and her team call the ‘Power of Praise,’ can potentially transform how we motivate and engage our remote workforce. It involves sending detailed, personalised messages with emojis via a Slack-like app whenever a sales representative secures a deal. These messages are classified into two types: praising efforts and innate abilities. The impact of these messages on other employees’ performances was the primary focus of the study.

The analysis conducted by Wen, alongside colleagues Andrew Whinston from Texas McCombs, Stephen He from The University of Texas at San Antonio, and Haoyuan Liu from Nanyang Technological University, involved scrutinising data from a Chinese IT firm with 340 sales staff across 28 branches. They found that both types of messages increased productivity: effort-based praise led to an average of 0.9 more calls per day per employee, and ability-based praise resulted in an average increase of 1.2 calls per day per employee for every ten percentage point increase in message intensity.

However, the effects of these messages varied depending on whether employees personally knew the individual being praised. While effort-based messages boosted productivity regardless of personal connections, ability-based messages had a more substantial motivational impact on employees who were socially close to the praised individual. For those who were socially distant, the increase in productivity was negligible. This finding was supported by a second study that surveyed 228 U.S. workers from various companies.

Wen’s research suggests that the difference in impact between effort-based and ability-based messages stems from psychological factors. Effort is seen as controllable and directly related to success, making it a universal motivator. This finding underscores the potential of effort-based messages to inspire and motivate universally, regardless of personal connections or social distance. In contrast, ability-based praise resonates more with those who perceive themselves as having capabilities similar to those of the praised individual, encouraging them to work harder.

This insight is precious for companies with many remote workers who may not know each other due to physical distance. Wen advises, “For a distributed workforce, managers should probably consider crafting effort-focused messages when sharing peer successes, instead of ability-focused messages. People can be influenced by effort-focused messages about peers they don’t know.” This strategy fosters a more universally motivational environment by resonating with employees across different social distances, potentially leading to greater productivity in remote work settings.

More information: Haoyuan Liu et al, Peer Influence in the Workplace: Evidence from an Enterprise Digital Platform, MIS Quarterly. DOI: 10.25300/MISQ/2024/16308

Journal information: MIS Quarterly Provided by University of Texas at Austin