Beyond Carrots and Sticks: Rethinking Municipal Motivation

Imagine: It’s Monday morning, and a city manager is staring at the latest employee engagement survey results. Despite implementing performance bonuses, employee-of-the-month programs, and standardized recognition initiatives, engagement scores remain stagnant. Department heads report increasing difficulty motivating their teams, and the traditional “if-then” rewards aren’t moving the needle on performance or satisfaction.

If this scenario feels familiar, you’re not alone. Across the country, municipal leaders are discovering that traditional motivation strategies – while well-intentioned – often fall short in today’s complex public service environment.

The traditional approach to motivation in municipal government has largely remained unchanged for decades – annual reviews, standardized raises, and occasional recognition programs. Yet as Daniel Pink demonstrates in “Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us,” study after study shows these methods not only fail to improve performance but can actually diminish the intrinsic motivation that drew people to public service in the first place. What’s particularly fascinating is that while the private sector has begun embracing new approaches to motivation based on the science Pink presents, many municipalities remain tethered to outdated practices that could be actively undermining their teams’ potential.

Let’s explore three key insights from Daniel Pink’s book “Drive” that can transform how you approach motivation in your municipality:

1. The Public Service Paradox
   Traditional incentive systems were designed for straightforward, mechanical tasks. But today’s municipal work requires creative problem-solving, strategic thinking, and complex decision-making. When a public works director needs to devise an innovative solution for aging infrastructure with limited resources, or when your planning department must balance development pressures with community preservation, simple carrot-and-stick approaches can actually hinder performance.
   
2. The Currency of Choice
   Money matters – but it’s not everything. In my work with municipalities across the country, I consistently observe that employee engagement soars when people have greater autonomy over their work. Consider project management in your city: When departments have the freedom to organize their teams and determine their approach – while maintaining clear accountability for outcomes – we typically see stronger collaboration and more efficient project completion. The key is finding the right balance between freedom and framework.
   
3. The Power of Purpose Alignment
   Your municipal employees chose public service for a reason. When we connect daily tasks to meaningful community impact, motivation naturally follows. Consider your regular reporting processes – what if they went beyond numbers to include the real impact your teams are making? Helping employees see how their work directly affects community well-being can transform routine tasks into meaningful contributions.

The need to reimagine motivation in municipal government has never been more urgent. Let’s be honest – when most people think of enthusiastic, driven workplaces, city hall rarely comes to mind. The stereotypical image of government workers (think of the DMV scene in Zootopia with the sloth) persists because we’ve allowed outdated motivational approaches to calcify into cultural norms. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Your municipality can break free from these stereotypes and create an environment where motivation flourishes naturally. The key is taking deliberate action to shift from traditional carrot-and-stick approaches to methods that tap into your team’s intrinsic drives.

Taking Action: Your Next Steps

As a municipal leader, you can begin transforming your approach to motivation today:

1. Audit Your Assumptions: Take a fresh look at your current incentive systems. Are they helping or hindering intrinsic motivation?
   
2. Connect the Dots: In your next team meeting, dedicate time to explicitly connecting daily tasks to community impact. Help your team see the direct line between their work and citizen well-being.
   
3. Experiment with Autonomy: Look for opportunities where giving your team more control over their approach – while maintaining clear expectations about outcomes – could enhance both engagement and results.
   

Remember: This isn’t about abandoning all traditional motivation tools. It’s about evolving our approach to align with the complex realities of modern municipal leadership.

*The next four blogs in this series and the 5-part companion podcast series working through the key insights in “Drive” by Daniel Pink, is a member-exclusive deep dive for the Municipal Leadership Development Circle (MLDC). To join our community of city managers and leaders from around the nation, dedicated to making 2025 a substantial year of growth and impact, learn more here:
–> Experience a Year of Transformation

---

Seth Winterhalter is President of HaltingWinter Municipal Solutions, dedicated to making stronger cities through stronger leaders. Through executive coaching, results-based consulting, and the Municipal Leadership Development Circle (MLDC), HaltingWinter helps city managers and municipal leaders transform their leadership impact and their organizational culture.