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A N I T A K U M A R I R A B A D A :1 0 2 0 2 1 5 7

D O N A C H A T T E R J E E

: 1 0 2 0 2 1 5 8S A B A : 1 0 2 0 2 1 5 9

D E E P A N S H U D E E P S I N H A :1 0 2 0 2 1 6 0

S U B H A S I S H D A S H : 1 0 2 0 2 1 6 1

5 WAYS TO REWARD THE B-PLAYER IN YOUR TEAM

By Labonita Ghosh(THE ECONOMICSTIMES),7 FEB. 2011

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WHO ARE B-PLAYERS ?

y The people in an organization are often divided intothree categories: A , B and C players,

A : are the high-achieving stars

B : are the solid, good-enough middle team

C : are the very limited bottom-end.

y Many companies, however, put too much emphasis

on their star A-players which leads to battles anddissatisfaction amongst A-players and devalued anddejected B-players, who may leave or give less thanthey could.

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UNDERSTANDING B-PLAYERS :

y A-players are high delivery but also highmaintenance. They often have big egos that needregular massaging and big pockets .

y On the other hand, B-players are more modest, withless expectations and with a greater need for work-life balance.

y A good B-player is a solid worker who delivers

regularly and steadily. They just quietly get on withthings whilst the A-players are getting all the glory.

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B-PLAYERS TYPES :DeLong and Vineeta Vijayaraghavan (2003)

1. Recovered A-players

y A-players sometimes burn out or otherwise down-shift to a lower stress position

y Their position as ex-A-players means that theyunderstand the A-player mind and are hence good at

working with current A-players.

y Their ex-A-player status means that they have higherexpectations than other B-players and may well needto be handled carefully

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CONTI

2. Truth tellers

y The 'truth teller' B-player are often experts in theirown fields and can be relied upon to provide deep

analyses and sound opinions on topics in their owndomain.

y They may also have strong values and morals interms of being honest and telling the truth as theysee it, and be strongly critical of people who'bullshit'.

y They are often trusted as much for the fact that theyare not ambitious than their expertize.

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CONTI

3. Goto people

y 'Goto people' are those who, guess what, other go towhen they have need for particular knowledge and

skills.y They are often walking encyclopedias and enjoy

acting as expert reference points for others in theorganization.

y Their knowledge may be of how the organizationworks and their extensive networks means that theycan get things done when others might fail.

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CONTI

4. Middling people

y Are the solid team players who get on with the job,whatever it might be.

y They are generally risk-averse and will needencouragement to go along with changes and doanything outside of their normal work sphere.

y They are not as competent as other B-players, but

they are at least highly motivated and very loyal.

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MANAGING B-PLAYERS :

y First accept that they are different from A-playersand that they respond better to individual treatment.

y A-players thrive on high-stress and high loads of

work. B-players can step up to the plate whenworkloads increase, but they cannot sustain this, sogenerally design the job to give them the work-life

balance they seek.

y Do give them your attention and show that you valuewhat they do. Show them how they fit into the biggerpicture and how they are adding much-needed value.

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CONTI

y They are often well-qualified professionals and donot need to be treated like children, but do need to

be treated like responsible adults.

y Reward them for their work and otherwise makethem feel valued. Give them responsibility and

choices.

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5 WAYS TO REWARD THEM :

1.Write a thank you note :

y Why not write two notes a week to someone

who has been a steady and trusted

person working for you,and expressgratitude ?

y Why not take a group out to a

dinner ,in recognition of their

commitment to the organisation ?

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CONTI

2. Be strategic about recognition :

y During the performance

appraisals,why not start

with the stalwarts in

the oraganisation.

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3.Dont take them for granted :

y You take granted the wheels of your car until you geta flat tyre .You take for granted the air conditioning

in your house until it breaks down .Thats howfundamental stalwarts are to a company .

y They go about their business,without the slightest bit

of recognition.

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4. Save your hugs :

y JACKWELCH :we hug our star performers over andagain .what we should do is hug them once,and save the

rest of the hugs for the stalwarts.

y They are not asking for a whole lot-just an attaboy! or anattagirl! and news of this small gesture moves like wildfirethrough the ranks.

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CONTI

5. Give them a chance :

y Stars crave attention from the top management.Theywill even manipulate their environment to get

it.Stalwarts look for such opportunities ingroups,both big and small.

y They want to be close to people who have

influence,and want them to care about them.

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