Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #402555 in Books
• Published on: 2005-01-30
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 400 pages

Richard Drezen, Washington Post/New York City Bureau
"This is a valuable book containing practical advice for both managers and workers. Highly recommended."

Review

From Library Journal:

One of the best business books of 2005

“The authors, all consultants, have written a book based on extensive

research looking into what motivates employees in the workplace. ... this is a valuable book containing practical advice for both managers and workers. Highly recommended.”

-Richard Drezen, Washington Post/New York City Bureau

From Kirkus Reports, February 10, 2005 Vol.2 Issue 1

The Enthusiastic Employee: How Companies Profit by Giving Workers What They Want
By: David Sirota, Louis A. Mischkind, and Michael Irwin Meltzer
Publisher: Wharton School Publishing
Pub Date: January 2005

Employee enthusiasm can be an invaluable asset to a business, but 90% percent of employees become indifferent to their workplace over time, says this trio of management experts. How do they know? They’ve surveyed over four million workers in 89 countries over the past 30 years to find out (although conclusions in the book are drawn from research conducted between 1993 and 2003). So, what are the lucky ten percent of companies doing right? They’re meeting the three goals that the vast majority of employees desire at work: equity, achievement and camaraderie. And those goals go for all workers, whether they’re baby boomers, Gen X, Gen Y, or Gen D (digital). While explaining just what those terms mean, the authors provide plenty of examples of management doing things right: Former Alcoa CEO Paul O’Neill (later became the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury) met with hourly workers in the plant and gave them his home number so that they could call him if there were safety problems. Nordstrom’s employee handbook has one rule: “Use your good judgment in all situations.” Now there’s an organization that respects its workers. Numerous quotations from employees surveyed keep things brisk and absorbing. Bottom line: pure good sense on how to keep employees happy and productive

Download Description
"Enthusiastic employees outproduce and outperform. They step up to do the impossible. They rally each other in tough times. Most people are enthusiastic when they're hired: hopeful, ready to work hard, eager to contribute. What happens to dampen their enthusiasm? Management, that's what.

The Enthusiastic Employee draws on 30 years of research and experience to show you exactly what managers do wrong¿and what they should do instead.

Drawing on detailed case studies and employee attitude surveys in hundreds of companies, the authors offer research-proven solutions¿not fads, nostrums, or phony shortcuts. Along the way, you'll identify the dollars-and-cents business case for high employee morale, learn exactly what employee morale means, and discover the specific management practices that offer the greatest positive performance impact.

The definitive guide to encouraging, sustaining, and profiting from employee enthusiasm!

• Techniques shown to increase employee performance 30-40%¿and increase stock performance, too!
• Proven solutions, real data, not fads! Based on research with 2,500,000+ employees in 237 companies
• Fairness, achievement, camaraderie: delivering the three core elements of a healthy workplace
• Stop your organization's managers from demotivating your employees
• Build a real partnership culture for the long term

Customer Reviews

Follow It
"The Enthusiastic Employee" by Louis Mischkind, Michael Irwin Metzer, and David Sirota is a quality book for employers and employees. From entry-level workers, to lower, mid, and upper-level managers. All parties can benefit by just being aware of the points in this book even if they don't even implement some of or all of the concepts. (Awareness.)

The "Enthusiastic Employee" contains numerous important points. There is quality. But, will these ideas and concepts be followed and implemented? I don't think this question is cynical; in today's world many workers are realistic. The contemporary studies and polling reflect this phenomena.

And herein lies the rub: One of the positive points advocated in this book is that the concepts in it can help increase a company's stock performance, too. Investors will be happy. As for the research, the authors studied 4 million workers in over 89 countries around the world. Domestically, American labor laws are the worst in the industrialized world.

Three styles of management noted are: Autocratic, Laissez-Faire, and Participative. The latter involving communication that is sent and received up and down organizational and communication channels. A two way flow. This is theoretical. Idealistic but not followed for many, and implemented by some. The organizations that implement this according to the book, are listed.

The Window Dressing:

There are 4 parts. The chapters:

Chapter 1: What Workers Want - The Big Picture
Chapter 2: Employee Enthusiasm and Business Success
Chapter 3: Job Security
chapter 4: Compensation
Chapter 5: Respect
Chapter 6: Organization Purpose and Principles
Chapter 7: Job Enablement
Chapter 8: Job Challenge
Chapter 9: Feedback, Recognition, and Reward
Chapter 10 Teamwork
Chapter 11 The Partnership Organization
Chapter 12 Translating Partnership Theory in Partnership Practice

Part IV: Appendices

The quotes in the "Enthusiastic Employee" seem well chosen.

Books such as this can be helpful - if followed. However, the statistical surveys on U.S. management practices and about how employees feel about their jobs shows a distinct dichotomy.

This is a refreshingly optimistic book with positive ideas.

A Real Understanding of People
A scholarly but very practical book on how to help the people of a company maximize their performance and contribution. The three writers obviously understand the key motivating elements necessary for superior company results. Following the suggestions will inevitably improve operations.

Many similar concepts to those in the book "In the Best Companies - People Are Everything.

The Enthusiastic Employee: How Companies Profit by Giving Workers What They Want
Great book! As a long time manager and executive, I kept saying, yes, yes! Looking at the quantitative research findings validated much of my thinking about people, organizations and leadership.

It helps sort out what is important for leadership of an organization. A great read for anyone in leadership.

I couldn't put it down once I got started.