"'What he told them was that if you win at this level, then your reward is that you get to play again at the next level, but guess what: The next level is more difficult,' said Don McDougall of Palo Alto, Calif., a former vice president of technical products at Data General."

That's great insight into how to motivate people to do their best.

I read the book The Soul of a New Machine many years ago, but already long enough after it was published that the technology sounded a bit primitive. It was a grippingly good read, a glimpse into how different personalities mesh to solve a tough technical problem.