Fixing Work: A Tale about Designing Jobs Employees Love

by David G. Henkin, Thomas Bertels

Work is broken. But it can be fixed. Most employees are not engaged in their work. Turnover rates are increasing. Productivity is stagnating. Why? Because when designing work, we rarely consider the deep-seated human need for meaningfulness, autonomy, and feedback. Drawing from decades of research, executive and entrepreneur David Henkin and management consultant Thomas Bertels take us on an investigative journey to solve this problem and make work more productive, satisfying, and meaningful. Through their allegorical tale of a typical office with typical employees, they allow us to see ourselves in the characters while learning strategies to create better jobs and perform at higher levels. By empowering his team with these methods, manager Jerry provides a road map for us to fix what's broken at our own companies. Fixing Work is a clarion call for managers and executives at all levels. Instead of treating employees like automatons and discouraging creativity, ownership, and engagement, we should rethink how work gets done and structure jobs to be intrinsically motivating. Not only does motivational work design increase employee engagement; it also improves productivity and the customer experience, strengthening the company as a whole--a triple win.

Genres: Nonfiction

232 pages, Hardcover

Published September 12, 2023

Reviews

[Dora Okeyo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was drawn to the statement: work is broken. But it can be fixed. So, I added this book to my netgalley shelf-because after covid, and with new tax policies, there is a lot about work that makes it less motivating, and I wanted to get out of that slump.
The format of this book follows a story and each chapter tackles an aspect at work with a team and a team leader willing to do his very best to ensure that everyone is heard and their needs met, and I think that is what sets this book apart. It is not in form of 'do this,' and 'do that,' rather you read about characters doing what it takes to make things right.
Thanks Netgalley for the eARC.

[Createpei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes a book just hits you somewhere physically, and this book hit me not only in my mind but also in my heart - resonating within me as truth. I can honestly say that this book was easily one of my favourite business and leadership books of the year and I will be referring to it again and again in my role as a leader within my organization.

David Henkin and Thomas Bertels tell a tale similar in style to Patrick Lencioni - using a parable to illustrate how employers need to change the way that they approach productivity and creativity in today's modern corporations. It is through properly designing work, roles, and responsibilities that the next generation of competitive advantages can be achieved.

The authors offer a clear plan and framework for helping you to find out what your employee's passion and purpose are. You will find yourself cheering for an underdog and hoping that despite stacked odds and overcoming objections the good team will win the day.

I wish to thank the publisher Greenleaf Books and Net Galley for providing me with a Kindle version of the book (time limited) in exchange for my honest review. I have received no compensation nor influence in providing this review which is my own opinion.

NOTE: While I received a review copy, upon finishing the book, I immediately went out and bought my own copy so that I might return to the lessons learned again and again. This purchase can be confirmed on my amazon.ca review page.

[Romann Weber · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fixing Work is essentially the business equivalent of The Celestine Prophecy, by which I mean it constructs a rather thin fictional plot to create a book-length parable out of ideas that would easily fit on a single page. However, unlike The Celestine Prophecy's adventure and intrigue involving the Peruvian government and the Catholic Church, Fixing Work's plot is much more mundane, featuring office politics within an Atlanta-based insurance company that sells employee benefit programs. This is not meant as praise for The Celestine Prophecy (which I did not like) or a dig at Fixing Work's setting. Indeed, a number of interesting novels have been set within dry bureaucracies. Unfortunately, this is not an interesting novel.

While I give the authors considerable credit for trying something different with what is essentially a business self-help book, structuring the book as a work of fiction forces the reader to judge it as such. And here it comes up seriously wanting. The characters all seem to be inhabitants of the PG-rated universe where the scenarios depicted in commercials and corporate training videos take place. No conversation feels remotely real, and even the names of the characters seem as though drawn from a deck.

The plot involves a manager, Jerry, who is trying to cope with a huge backlog and high turnover within his group, which is tasked with processing corporate clients that need onboarding within his company's system. He's stuck with a bad commute, too many meetings, and a dysfunctional process. But at least he has a wife, Haley, who feeds him steady encouragement, often in the form of mottos that read like options from the classy part of the menu at a tattoo parlor. ("Be the author of your life. Write your story forward.") Haley has a life of her own, or so we're led to believe, because she is occasionally not home when Jerry gets home from work. Or she's asleep. Every other time, she is eager and willing to hear all about Jerry's day and not say a word about hers.

Jerry also finds a generous ear in the guru-like Mike Cuthbert, an old classmate who has become fabulously successful by unloading his businesses on other companies and, apparently, giving free advice. Cuthbert's role in the narrative is to dole out the Celestine-esque business insights that help Jerry turn his group around and become a hero within his company. These insights are actually somewhat interesting, and they take the fairly novel perspective that a job is a product for which the employee is the customer. These insights also touch on how to make a job "good" by incorporating autonomy, feedback, and meaning into it.

The insights are revealed early on in the book. The rest of the book is devoted to deploying them in the very specific case of this insurance company's operations. And Mike, God love him, is always super enthusiastic about getting detailed updates as to how these nuggets of his are transforming Jerry's insurance work. If you think that a narrative about redesigning insurance workflows, reviewing charts, and having meetings couldn't possibly be interesting ... well, you'd be right. But the book does at least have a villain, in the form of Elrod Tubbs from the IT department, and even a slight twist toward the end resulting from the book's lone example of character development.

While this is admittedly a negative review, I do appreciate that the authors at least tried to make this narrative compelling. The book is a breezy read that can be knocked out in one or two sittings, and it closes with an appendix collecting Jerry's notes from Cuthbert's downloads of wisdom. These contain some of the more interesting and actionable items for the book's likely intended audience. Curious readers browsing libraries or bookstores might wisely choose to start there.

[Jeff Matlow · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10

I find that most business books are bad. I just can’t get through them. Usually business books lay out a concept in 50 pages and then spend another 150 pages blabbering on with useless filler in order to justify charging book prices instead of it being just an essay.

This book is different.

We all love stories. We love beginnings and ends and character transformation. What the authors do differently with this business book is that they tell a story to bring home their point. And it’s a pretty darn compelling and relatable story.

The premise is that work is broken. Large companies are operationally inefficient. The inefficiency is due to poor job / organizational structure - people don’t have the autonomy and immediate feedback that they want for greater satisfaction.

In the story, the authors outline the model of how to fix work and be more productive while increasing job satisfaction.

I rarely finish a business book but I couldn’t put this one down.

Highly recommended for any leader, seasoned or aspiring.

[Laurent Choain · Rating 5 out of 5]

The last thing you wish while reading a book is to go back to your nitty-gritty work reality. At the same time, reading dry essays can be as painful. Henkin and Bertels are smart enough to avoid these two traps - and here are the adventures of Manager Jerry, Jerry Anyone-of-us. Jerry is a nice guy, has good intentions. He is compassionate, kind, full of doubts and willing to do things right. But it's not enough, organizations are often meaningless, whatever you do. Jerry is a Camusian hero, a "stranger" in a world of nonsense where he has yet to play his part. At the end of this reading, I couldn't tell if organizations can be better places. But for sure the way individuals decide to behave can make the world go a bit more round. We need to imagine Jerry happy.

[Caitlyn Meyers · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF: I'm so sorry, I really tried to finish this. I made it to 75%. This book takes these really great business ideas and turns them into a novel. But the most boring novel ever. The dialogue reminds me of teenage popstars trying their hand at acting on the Disney Channel. Just so cringy.

That being said, I think the concepts in this book are great and very applicable to many work situations. However, they would be much more digestible for readers in a blog post or article format. A business novel is a cool idea, but unfortunately this one is a flop.

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

During these times of disenchantment among so many working professionals, this book: FIXING WORK by Thomas Bertels and David Henkin is a refreshing story of a business leader who made a difference—for his customers, his team and the organization, despite overwhelming pressures to comply with a narrow cost cutting mandate. The themes here will seem very familiar to most, but the solution to the challenge may be enlightening. A quick read—and very worthwhile.

[Valentina Thoerner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really nice story flow - kept me engaged to the very end and I learned some very practical things to implement at work, even though I definitely have some translations to do to make it work for a remote or hybrid environment. Daily huddles in front of a physical white board just don't cut it any more in 2023.

[Che Hee Han · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kept me glued to my Kindle and finished the book in two sittings. Touches on critical aspects of organizational behavior, management and employee motivation, which is artfully intertwined into a fun and fluid story. Is a great read for business students, managers and those seeking to improve their impact on the job and overall employee welfare.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fixing Work is an eye opening read. Excellent book. Applause for this writer.

[Carol & Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book

[Jodie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes, the story is written in simple terms, but the overall concepts were strong. It was great to read how despite the initial rumblings of change, the team was able to think outside the box to agree on an improved process for everyone, while simultaneously using the strengths of its members. Thanks to Greenleaf, I received a free Kindle copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.