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A lot of places do/did this. IBM sales reps were subject to the 70-20-10 principle. 70% of people are average, 20% are above average and get bonuses and 10% ar
by dtap 17y ago
A lot of places do/did this. IBM sales reps were subject to the 70-20-10 principle. 70% of people are average, 20% are above average and get bonuses and 10% are below average and are fired. It was brutal for morale and hurt productivity in a lot of ways.
- TomOfTTB 17y agoHow is this brutal on morale? In fact, how is this not what goes on at every company of IBM's size? The reality is a company the size of IBM is always going to have a turnover of 10% or more so the "lower 10% rule" is just a way of getting rid of those people who can't do the job. The 70% might feel a little demoralized but if they're good employees they'll use that to make themselves better. The upper 20% are the best of the best and deserve to be treated as such. So to me the 70-20-10 principle just seems like IBM being honest with employees about where they stand and giving them a chance to recognize it and do better if they so choose (some people are happy with average).