The Tragic State of Work in America | Barry Schwartz

For decades workers have been incentivized to work for a paycheck, but how does the pay-for-performance model impact motivation, productivity, innovation, and work satisfaction?

Professor Barry Schwartz studies how work operates in our culture and argues that monetary incentives are weak drivers of employee productivity. Barry explores the traits that can make work feel meaningful, and studies how companies can flip the script to build workplaces where employees are motivated, innovative, and happy.

In this episode, Dart and Barry talk about why the pay-for-performance model doesn’t work, what people really want from their work, the role of autonomy in the workplace, and Barry's tips for hiring the best talent.

Topics Include:
- Barry's book, Why We Work
- What HR got wrong about work
- What people really want from work
- Job to be done theory
- The paradox of choice
- Autonomy in the modern workplace
- The challenges of hiring
- Designing work for the future
- Academic theories vs real-world applications
- And other topics…

Barry Schwartz is the Dorwin Cartwright Professor of Social Theory and Social Action in the psychology department at Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, where he has taught for thirty years.

Barry is the author of Why We Work, Practical Wisdom, and The Paradox of Choice. He’s also the author of several leading textbooks on the psychology of learning and memory, including The Battle for Human Nature: Science, Morality, and Modern Life.

His articles have been published in The New York Times, the Chronicle of Higher Education, Parade Magazine, USA TODAY, Slate, Scientific American, Harvard Business Review, The Guardian, and others. Barry has appeared on dozens of radio shows, including Morning Edition, Talk of the Nation, Anderson Cooper 360, and CBS Sunday Morning.

Resources Mentioned:
- Barry Schwartz: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Schwartz_(psychologist)
- Why We Work by Barry Schwartz: https://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN9781476784861
- Practical Wisdom by Barry Schwartz: https://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN9781594487835
- The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz: https://www.amazon.com/Paradox-Choice-Why-More-Less/dp/149151423X
- Barry’s TedTalks: https://www.ted.com/speakers/barry_schwartz
- Jeffrey Pfeffer: https://jeffreypfeffer.com/
- The Human Equation by Jeffrey Pfeffer: https://jeffreypfeffer.com/books/the-human-equation/

Work with Dart:
Dart is the CEO and co-founder of the work design firm 11fold. Build work that makes employees feel alive, connected to their work, and focused on what’s most important to the business. Book a call at 11fold.com.