Motivation Theories Flashcards
Fredrick Taylor’s scientific management
money and that they should be told exactly how
to do their jobs.
* He broke down the production process
into a series of small tasks that could
be carried out by relatively unskilled
employees.
* He believed in close supervision of the
workforce to ensure that they continued
to make the maximum effort possible,
motivated by pay.
* He believed in paying people according to
how much they produced – piecework.
Scientific management in practice
Taylor’s ideas of scientific management based
motivation on financial rewards. When applied
to the workplace, there are several features
that characterise scientific management:
* employees are paid for carrying out
specific tasks – they are not paid for
thinking
* they are paid for levels of output
produced – this involves the use of piece
rate payments
* there is a tall hierarchy within
organisations, with little scope for upward
communication
* the best (most efficient) method of
working is to be adopted by all employees
* close supervision of employees and
monitoring of performance exists.
Mayo- Hawthorne effect
He found that productivity increased with every change,
even when the changes made the conditions worse.
He believed productivity rose because of:
* greater communication
* better teamwork
* showing an interest in others
* involving others in decision-making
* ensuring the wellbeing of others
* making work interesting and non-repetitive.
Herzberg Two factor theory
Herzberg Two Factor Theory
He identified two major sets of influences at work:
Hygiene factors are all around the job, but are not
part of the job. They do not lead to motivation, but
without them employees become dissatisfied with:
* company policy and administration
* supervision
* working conditions
* salary
* relationship with fellow workers.
Motivators relate to the job itself and can be used to
positively motivate employees:
* personal achievement
* recognition
* interest in the work itself
* responsibility
* growth and advancement.
Herzberg believed that hygiene factors and motivators
should be used together.
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
Maslow’s theory was that employees have a series
of needs they seek to fulfil at work. These are in a
hierarchy – once a lower level need is satisfied,
individuals strive to satisfy needs further up the
hierarchy.
Self-actualisation
Esteem
Social
Security
* Physiological Needs – By offering competitive
salaries, etc. a business is able to satisfy basic
needs of their employees in relation to food,
drink, rest and activity. Staff discounts.
* Safety Needs – By providing a healthy work
environment. Helps employees to choose the
best option for a healthy work-life balance by
offering good holiday entitlement.
* Social Needs – Affiliating or being part of a
group – teamwork, open communication. A
sense of belonging is generated.
* Esteem Needs – By recognizing that all
employees should feel that they contribute to
the achievements of the business and placing
great emphasis on providing positive feedback
rewarding staff for their achievements.
Promotion from within. Ensuring they feel
competent – provision of good training.
* Self-Actualisation – By providing employees
with the opportunity to take on challenging
and stimulating responsibilities in an attempt
to reach their full potential. For example,
providing the opportunity for individuals to take
ownership of projects – this enables them to
develop and improve.
Porter and Lawler expectancy theory
Porter and Lawler Expectancy Theory
They propose that an individual’s motivation is
affected by the reward they expect to receive for
completing the task. The individual’s view of the
attractiveness of the possible reward will determine
their level of motivation. In addition though, they
categorised the reward as intrinsic and extrinsic.
* Intrinsic rewards include the positive feelings
that the individual experiences from completing
the task, e.g. pride, satisfaction. In order to give
a job more intrinsic rewards they emphasised
the importance of job content.
* Extrinsic rewards are rewards that come from
outside the individual, for example material
rewards such as pay increases and bonuses
Vroom’s Expectancy Theory
Vroom Expectancy Theory
Vroom assumed that people acted in their own
best interests according to their beliefs about the
outcomes of their own behaviour. Generally, he
believed that people opted to maximise their
happiness and minimise their unhappiness.
Vroom’s expectancy theory relates to an individual
person’s beliefs rather than to any objective reality
and comprises of three components (VIE):
* Valence – an individual will undertake a task if
they believe that they will receive a worthwhile
reward as a result.
* Instrumentality – an individual needs to
believe that a particular action is likely to lead
to a particular result – an individual will be
motivated to work hard to achieve a particular
target if he or she believes that it will lead to
a positively valent result. For example, if the
individual believes that their hard work will lead
to promotion then they will be motivated to
work hard.
* Expectancy – an individual’s belief in the
likelihood of being able to achieve the target
that has been set for them.
Vroom believed that an individual’s motivation was
a combination of these three forces V,I and E
benefits of motivation
Benefits of a Well Motivated
Workforce
* increased productivity
* increased quality
* lower levels of staff turnover
* improved communication
* higher levels of innovation
* greater employee satisfaction
* lower levels of industrial action
* improved customer service
* better reputation – easier to attract quality staff
Financial and non -financial motivation
Financial Motivation
Definition: Financial methods directly involve
monetary rewards:
* pay increases
* bonus schemes – sales, performance, Christmas
* piece rates – employees are paid for each item
they produce or for each task completed
* profit sharing/share ownership
* fringe benefits – company cars, pension
schemes, sickness benefits, subsidised meals
and travel and staff discounts.
Advantages:
☑ Employees like to earn more money as this may
improve their standard of living.
☑ In many cases they motivate employees to
reach a certain target - otherwise why do
businesses continue to use them.
☑ For some employees, money is a major
motivator.
☑ Share ownership may also bring with it a
sense of belonging and motivate employees to
contribute more to the organisation.
Disadvantages:
☒ Some schemes can cause resentment,
especially when bonuses are linked to teams.
Some employees become de-motivated because
they feel that they are carrying some of their
colleagues.
☒ When targets are not reached the workforce
may be resentful, especially if the reasons for
not hitting the targets are out of their control,
e.g. bad management, late suppliers, etc.
☒ Jealousy – some employees are de-motivated
by the financial success of colleagues. Banking
bonuses are a good example.
☒ Some argue that financial incentives tend to
only have a short term impact on motivation.
Once employees become used to a certain
standard of living, they want a better one and
seek better financial incentives.
Non-Financial Motivation
Definition: The use of non-financial methods of
motivation demonstrates attempts by employers to
apply the ideas behind the theories of the likes of
Mayo, Maslow and Herzberg.
* Job enrichment – giving employees more
control over the tasks that they complete and
allowing employees to complete tasks that have
a meaning and are complete in themselves.
* Job enlargement – increasing the number of
tasks completed by an employee. For example,
a secretary previously employed to answer calls
might now have duties that include filing, letter
writing, etc. This adds interest to the job and
involves the employee in a more complete role
within the business.
* Job rotation – changing employees’ tasks,
which are completed at regular intervals. This
can be as simple as switching places on a
production line. The variety adds interest to the
job and reduces the number of errors that can
arise through boredom.
* Job design – jobs should include complete
tasks that are of interest to the employee and
challenging, which allow decision-making.
* Communication – communication is a key part
of motivation and can take place in a number
of ways, e.g. quality circles, works councils, cell
working.
* Empowerment – giving employees the power
to control their own jobs, make decisions and
implement their own ideas.
* Quality circles – groups of employees that
meet on a regular basis to discuss problems in
the manufacturing or service-provision process
and offer solutions.
* Training – the provision of a formal training
scheme is important.
* Flexible working – allowing employees to have
elements of their schedule that are under their
control
