Blog #1: Hawthorne Studies

Blog #1: The Hawthorne Studies

I really liked the Hawthorne Studies talked about in chapter 3 (pg 83). Having worked in sales for a majority of my life, I have seen first-hand the manifestation of this theory. The Hawthorne Studies proved that a little bit can go a long way. Let me explain: as a manager your job is to manage your employees. What a lot of managers tend to lose sight on is that they still need to interact with said employees and not just place orders. As seen in the studies, production went up and continued to rise when the managers took part in the daily lives of their employees. It sounds trivial to say that a “good job” or a “keep up the good work” makes an immense difference in employees’ attitudes, but it does. Who wants to do a good job for a manager who doesn’t care? The Hawthorne Effect is a very valid result and the studies, or at least a cliffnote version, should be read and understood by all managers.