"As for the genius of innovation, clearly the one percent spark of inspiration is nurtured by a positive culture. But the 99 percent perspiration ingredient comes from employees who love what they do, as well as where they do it, and who invest in that Holy Grail of productivity called 'discretionary effort'." -- Organizational consultants Stephanie Quappe, David Samso Aparici, and Jon Warshawsky. In one of my Organizational Management courses I took while working on my MBA, we watched a series of TV commercials by Amalie Motor Oil, bragging about how its products exceeded all minimum government standards, ending with this tagline: "Better than it has to be—Amalie." I remember being confused: Why were they proud of being just good enough to squeak by? As I gained more experience in the … [Read more...]