Be careful with the ratio

I saw recently that Mark Zuckerberg had had millions wiped off his ‘fortune’ by a small dip in Facebook’s stock value.

Laving aside the morality of the vast fortunes of these tech billionaires, I wonder whether  one can create a truly engaged workforce when the leader of the organisation ‘earns’ so much more than the rest of the ‘team’.

“We are all in this together’ cannot really apply - there may be work teams carrying out key processes but I think it unlikely that there is one cohesive organisational team.

People often talk about the difference (in attitudes and culture) between the private and public sectors …. but I think there is much more difference between small and large organisations. ‘Organisation’ causes changes in relationships … and this is exacerbated by huge differences in earnings levels.

Of course, perhaps my attitude is the result of envy - but I don’t think so, Perhaps it is a UK perspective - possibly.

I am not sure whether one could set a limit on the earnings multiple of the leader compared to the lowest paid but I believe it should be lower than it is in many firms.

What worries me on a practical level is the degree to which senior executive’s strive for short term performance to improve their annual bonus, perhaps at the cost of poorer longer-term performance. 

So, keep an eye on the ratio in your organisation and put yourself i the shoes of your employees.  Are they pleased with your success - or demotivated by the gap between you and them?