Losing a meritocracy

I love being involved in companies that reward people based on merit. It's good to know that those who excel are noticed and compensated accordingly. Not only does it help those people, it actually acts as a motivator to inspire others to do better.

But, what happens when an organization decides that there is an "unfair" range of payments for what on the surface seems like the same work. They deny the differences between those who are excellent, and create a flat fee for a particular service.

So what does that do? It reduces the motivation to excel for everyone - and in short order takes the organization from splendid to ho hum.