The Science of Motivation: Effective Strategies to Enhance Workplace Productivity

Motivation 

In any organisation, people work not only for money, but also for job satisfaction and happiness. The manager has to communicate and lead and also motivate his subordinates to work. To a large extent, the success of the manager's leadership abilities depends upon his ability to motivate his people to work. Motivation is a force or an impulse which makes a man move physically and mentally to achieve certain goals. Individual motivation is very important for group motivation. Although it is true that “Money makes the mare go’’ in modern business organisations, money is not the only motivating factor and has its own limitations. Money is only a means to satisfy wants. Motivation is something beyond that. Overall, the basic perspective on motivation looks something like this:

In other words, you have certain needs or wants (these terms will be used interchangeably), and this causes you to do certain things (behavior), which satisfy those needs (satisfaction), and this can then change which needs/wants are primary (either intensifying certain ones, or allowing you to move on to other ones).

Definition of Work motivation

Work motivation is a process to energize employee to the work goal through a specific path.

1. Process - This is not an object rather method or technique or art
2. Energize - Developing inner urge to put effort on successful performance.
3. Employee - Person employed to exchange his cognitive, affective and co native domains for achievement of organizational goal for salary etc. as contracted by the organization.
4. Work goal - This is well defined, achievable and measurable
5. Path - Specific roles and job responsibilities are measurable and related to goal achievement.

Importance of Motivation

1. Employees' performance is a result of their abilities and willingness.
2. If and when the employees are able, but not willing, it is necessary to motivate them.
3. Motivation is the force that moves a person physically and mentally to achieve goals.
4. Individual motivation plays an important role in group motivation.
5. Happiness and job satisfaction are functions of not only money but also needs and drives.
6. It involves (influence of the leader + ability of the followers + role perception of both).

The Basic Theories of Motivation 

Basically, the theories of motivation can be classified as follows:

1. Traditional theory - This theory is based on Scientific Management by F W Taylor who advocated that it is the manager's prerogative to decide the quantity, quality, the method of doing jobs and the system of financial compensation for work.
2. Human Relations Theory - This theory is based on the research studies of Elton Mayo and Associates at the Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric Co. near Chicago (US), who proved that the output of employees does not depend only on extrinsic factors like working conditions alone, but also on the intrinsic factors of satisfaction of their social and psychological needs.
3. The Human Resources Theory - This theory is based on the studies conducted by 20th century management experts including Abraham Maslow, Frederick Herzberg, David McClelland, Douglas McGregor, Peter Drucker, etc. who believed that people are motivated to work, not only by money alone, but also by the satisfaction of their higher order needs for authority, responsibility, achievement and meaningful work.

Barriers of Work Motivation

1. Attitude to employees - Considering employee as cog of the machine rather as a human system having unique needs, abilities, personality traits, values, aptitudes, skills etc.
2. Work Goal - Undefined, unachievable and unmeasurable
3. Path - Job responsibilities are undefined, unachievable, unmeasurable and unrelated to work goal.
4. Leadership - Leadership failure in manipulation of incentives.
5. Third party - Influence of informal communication systems through colleagues, unions and family members

Strategies to Overcome Barriers

1. Job Analysis - More emphasis on personnel specification and regression analysis to determine weight age on job related individual characteristics.
2. Human resource accounting - Accounting IQ, EQ, personality traits, aptitude profiles of each employee
3. Selection - Selecting right man for right place at the right time.
4. Attitude change - Employee as human system having specific needs, aptitudes, temperament, attitudes towards job and the organization
5. Role clarity - Well defined job description and work roles. Introduce role drama for role understanding for both lower-level employees and the managers.
6. Training - Periodical training to the employees about up gradation of skills, work role analysis and to the leaders about leadership development (communication, manipulation of incentives, decision making etc).
7. Survey - Periodical survey to study level of employee satisfaction, attitude towards organizational health and their relations to individual productivity and quality of working life for organizational diagnosis. Introduce organization development programmes for attitude change in considering results of regression analysis.
8. Work culture - Introduce quality circle, suggestion box system, and intermingle organization to the life style of the employees.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Abraham Maslow developed the Hierarchy of Needs model in 1940-50s USA, and the Hierarchy of Needs theory remains valid today for understanding human motivation, management training, and personal development. Abraham Maslow's book Motivation and Personality, published in 1954.The Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs five-stage model below (structure and terminology - not the precise pyramid diagram itself) is clearly and directly attributable to Maslow; later versions of the theory with added motivational stages are not so clearly attributable to Maslow. These extended models have instead been inferred by others from Maslow's work. 

Specifically, Maslow refers to the needs Cognitive, Aesthetic and Transcendence (subsequently shown as distinct needs levels in some interpretations of his theory) as additional aspects of motivation, but not as distinct levels in the Hierarchy of Needs Where Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is shown with more than five levels these models have been extended through interpretation of Maslow's work by other people. These augmented models and diagrams are shown as the adapted seven and eight-stage Hierarchy of

Needs pyramid diagrams and models there have been very many interpretations of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs in the form of pyramid diagrams.

Specific examples of these types are given below, in both the work and home context

NEED	HOME	JOB
Self-actualization	Education, religion, hobbies, personal growth	Training, advancement, growth, creativity
Esteem	Approval of family, friends, community	Recognition, high status, responsibilities
Safety	Freedom from war, poison, violence	Work safety, job security, health insurance
Physiological	Food water sex	Heat, Air, Base Salary

Herzberg two factor theory

Herzberg's Two Factor Theory is a "content theory" of motivation”. Frederick Herzberg's two-factor theory, also known as the motivation-hygiene theory or intrinsic/extrinsic motivation, concludes that while there are certain factors in the workplace that cause job satisfaction, a separate set of factors can cause dissatisfaction. The factors that motivate people can change over their lifetime, but "respect for me as a person" is one of the top motivating factors at any stage of life. According to Herzberg, intrinsic motivators such as challenging work, recognition, and responsibility produce employee satisfaction, while extrinsic hygiene factors, including status, job security, salary, and fringe benefits – if absent – produce dissatisfaction. Herzberg’s theory appears to parallel Maslow's needs hierarchy. Individuals look for the gratification of higher-level psychological needs having to do with achievement, recognition, responsibility, advancement, and the nature of the work itself. However, Herzberg added a new dimension to this theory, including factors that cause dissatisfaction as well, such as company policies, supervision, technical problems, salary, interpersonal relations on the job, and working conditions. This two-factor model of motivation is based on the notion that the presence of one set of job characteristics or incentives leads to worker satisfaction, while another and separate set of job characteristics lead to dissatisfaction. Thus, satisfaction and dissatisfaction are not on a continuum with one increasing as the other diminishes, but are independent phenomena.

Hygiene Factors 

Hygiene factors are based on the need to for a business to avoid unpleasantness at work. If these factors are considered inadequate by employees, then they can cause dissatisfaction with work. Hygiene factors

include:

• Company policy and administration
• Wages, salaries and other financial remuneration
• Quality of supervision
• Quality of inter-personal relations
• Working conditions
• Feelings of job security

Motivator Factors 

Motivator factors are based on an individual's need for personal growth. When they exist, motivator factors actively create job satisfaction. If they are effective, then they can motivate an individual to achieve above-average performance and effort. Motivator factors include:

• Status
• Opportunity for advancement
• Gaining recognition
• Responsibility
• Challenging / stimulating work
• Sense of personal achievement & personal growth in a job

There is some similarity between Herzberg's and Maslow's models. They both suggest that needs have to be satisfied for the employee to be motivated. However, Herzberg argues that only the higher levels of the Maslow Hierarchy (e.g. self-actualisation, esteem needs) act as a motivator. The remaining needs can only cause dissatisfaction if not addressed.

Applying Hertzberg's model to de-motivated workers 

What might the evidence of de-motivated employees is in a business?

• Low productivity
• Poor production or service quality
• Strikes / industrial disputes / breakdowns in employee communication and relationships
• Complaints about pay and working conditions

According to Herzberg, management should focus on rearranging work so that motivator factors can take effect. He suggested three ways in which this could be done:

• Job enlargement
• Job rotation
• Job enrichment

Implications of Two-Factor Theory 

The Two-Factor theory implies that the managers must stress upon guaranteeing the adequacy of the hygiene factors to avoid employee dissatisfaction. Also, the managers must make sure that the work is stimulating and rewarding so that the employees are motivated to work and perform harder and better. This theory emphasizes upon job-enrichment so as to motivate the employees. The job must utilize the employee’s skills and competencies to the maximum. Focusing on the motivational factors can improve work-quality.

Limitations of Two-Factor Theory 

The two-factor theory is not free from limitations:

1. The two-factor theory overlooks situational variables.
2. Herzberg assumed a correlation between satisfaction and productivity. But the research conducted by Herzberg stressed upon satisfaction and ignored productivity.
3. The theory’s reliability is uncertain. Analysis has to be made by the raters. The raters may spoil the findings by analyzing same response in different manner.
4. No comprehensive measure of satisfaction was used. An employee may find his job acceptable despite the fact that he may hate/object part of his job.
5. The theory ignores blue-collar workers. Despite these limitations, Herzberg’s Two-Factor theory is acceptable broadly.
6. The two-factor theory is not free from bias as it is based on the natural reaction of employees when they are enquired the sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction at work. They will blame dissatisfaction on the external factors such as salary structure, company policies and peer relationship. Also, the employees will give credit to themselves for the satisfaction factor at work.

Factors for satisfaction	Factors for dissatisfaction
Achievement	Company Policies
Recognition	Supervision
The Work itself	Relationship with supervisor and peers
Responsibility	Work conditions
Advancement	Salary
Growth	Status

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Sandeep Ghatuary

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