Booklet 10 : Motivation Flashcards
Define Frederick Taylor’s management theory and state three advantages and three disadvantages of this theory (8)
Taylor’s theory 1911 put forward the idea that workers are motivated by pay, he believed that individuals should be paid by the work they do and paid by piece they produce (2)
Advantages
1. Improves productivity, more output means more money which motivates employees
2. The increased productivity lowers unit costs
3. Workers can be given one repetitive task so they can learn to master it, this makes them become more efficient and be an expert in one area
Disadvantages
1. The theory goes off the impression workers only care about money not considering their welfare or job satisfaction
2. Work can be very boring hence mistakes can be made
3. Business might lay off workers if productivity is increased
Define Abraham Maslow - Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs management theory and state three advantages and three disadvantages of this theory (8)
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs refers to motivation from a range of needs, Maslow argued that only when an employees needs have been met for one level can they move onto the next level to the higher-order needs.
Level 1 - Basic Needs e.g food, water and rest
Level 2 - Psychological Needs e.g friends and relationships
Level 3 - Self-fulfilment Needs e.g achieving one’s full potential
Advantages
1. Easy to identify where individuals are in the hierarchy
2. Provides opportunities to meet staff needs to improve motivation
3. Productivity increase as a result of motivation
Disadvantages
1. There is a problem deciding when a need is fulfilled as sometimes it cannot be developed inside the workplace
2. Once needs are satisfied the employee may not be motivated
3. The model assumes the workers want to be mothers
Define Herzberg’s two-factor management theory and state three advantages and three disadvantages of this theory (8)
Herzberg’s theory is divided into two different categories:
Motivators - factors which give worker’s satisfaction like being recognised for their effort or being given responsibility, making workers more productive
Hygiene factors - factors if which absent can lead to workers being dissatisfied e.g pay or working conditions. Improving these conditions should increase satisfaction
Advantages
1. Management can identify the hygiene factors and can reduce them to a minimum to make the working environment a better place for employees
2. Herzberg’s theory relates to the actual job employees are doing
3. A business will know to offer training and increasing the level of development programmes for employees to satisfy them
Disadvantages
1. One factor may be motivating for others but dissatisfy another
2. Herzberg’s theory assumes everyone will seek motivators and responsibility which is not always the case
3. Job satisfaction doesn’t guarantee motivation, Herzberg assumes that pay cannot be used to motivate
Define monetary methods of motivation, and state three advantages and three disadvantages of this method (8)
Monetary methods of motivation are the range of financial rewards payable to employees for work, it is an estimation that the more money employees receive the more loyal they become and harder they work (2)
Advantages
1. Motivation is increased from financial rewards meaning employees will try to work harder for a higher wage
2. Incentive schemes can be linked to increased productivity, suggesting an increased output
3. Develops a competitive working environment
Disadvantage
1. Workers may not be able to achieve targets through no fault of their own e.g if a machine malfunctions
2. Changes to external environment affecting the demand for the product or service e.g recession
3. Employees may begin to resent one another if others are achieving higher pay
Define time rate (2)
Employees are paid per hour, which is calculated by the number of hours they work times their hourly rate (2)
Define piece rate (2)
Piece rate refers to the payment per unit an employee produces which rewards the employee for their effort the system is effective in situations where output is easily quantified (2)
Define commission (2)
Commission is a payment made as a percentage of the sales a salesperson has made, employees are rewarded for the quantity or value of work that they sell (2)
Define fees (2)
Fees are the one-off payments to subcontractors by the business for completing one-off tasks the amount will vary depending on the time taken and the skills needed to complete the task (2)
Define fringe benefits (2)
Fringe benefits are employer-provided benefits such as the use of a company car, pension or gym membership (2)
Define profit sharing (2)
Employees are entitled to a share of the profits annually when determined at the end of the financial year (2)
Define performance-related pay (2)
This links an employee average salary to their performance, including the payment of bonuses, performance is usually measured by comparing the employees performance with actual targets (2)
Define non-monetary methods of motivation and state three advantages and three disadvantages of this method (8)
Non-monetary methods are in an attempt by management to increase employee job satisfaction in a role by methods that don’t relate to financial factors (2)
Advantages
1. No financial cost
2. Employees views are recognised as they are dealing with day-to-dat activities
3. Increased job satisfaction and productivity
Disadvantages
1. Some employees are only motivated for money as it’s their reason for doing the job
2. Would need management to be committed in order for many of the methods to be successful
3. Not all employees want the extra responsibility
Define job enrichment (2)
This involves the vertical expansion of an employees existing tasks and duties to increase an employee’s degree of control usually by increasing the variety of tasks involved in the job (2)
Define job enlargement (2)
The horizontal expansion of an employee’s duties to make their work more interesting, more tasks at the same level are added to the job e.g a teacher is asked to teach two subjects as opposed to one (2)
Define job rotation (2)
Job rotation involves employees moving from tasks to task gaining additional skills to widen their skill set which allows staff to experience different tasks (2)
Define employee participation and empowerment (2)
Employees are given authority to make their own decisions and control their working life, a type of delegation which involves trust and responsibility (2)
Define quality circles (2)
When a group of employees discuss production techniques in an attempt to solve production problems to improve quality (2)
Define team working (2)
Team working involves setting up the process into teams, the members of each team decide between themselves how the work should be distributed and how to resolve problems (2)
