Management situation in which you are to apply a prominent motivation theory to improve performance - Essay Example

This theory posits that every individual has specific motivational needs, which are the driving factors for their efforts. Vroom (1964) explains this model of motivation (M) based on three components namely, Valence, Instrumentality and Expectancy. The Expectancy theory or the VIE theory states that motivation is a product of valence, instrumentality and expectancy (M=VxIxE). Valence (V) refers to the value of an outcome that an individual places on various outcomes of their jobs like pay, incentives, interest in the work, relationships, etc.

If an individual values relationships, then he/she would be happy to work where relationships are strong and valued. Instrumentality (I) refers to an employee’s opinion or belief about the extent of efforts required to achieve an outcome. Employees tend to put in efforts to perform a specific job only if they believe that their efforts would result in outcomes they value. The third component, Expectancy (E) refers to the employees’ perception about the extent to which his/her effort will result in certain level of job performance.

Expectancy refers to level of confidence individuals possess about a specific action or job (George & Jones, 2008). These components have a strong relationship between each other and on overall motivation. The relationship between effort and performance is referred to as the E-P linkage, which is determined by expectancy. Instrumentality refers to the relationship between performance and outcome, referred to as the P-O linkage. Any limitation in these linkages or in the valence significantly impacts individuals’ motivation because motivation is a product of these three components (Isaac et al, 2001).

In the present case two issues have been identified: one is related to the expectancy and the other is about instrumentality. The expectancy of few employees is low as evident from their low confidence because of knowledge and information related issues associated with the new process. The valence of this group lies in abilities, knowledge and skills. In this case, as suggested by Isaac et al., (2001) the supervisor must diagnose the members’ abilities and their perceptions related to the new process.

Secondly, the supervisor needs to train, coach and mentor the members on the new process until they achieve the desired outcomes. The supervisor needs to spend more time with the team and encourage every achievement. Appreciating individuals that achieve the desired outcomes will improve their confidence because the appreciation will act as recognition to their valences. This will slowly improve their confidence and strengthen their expectancy and performance linkage. The supervisor needs to constantly provide support when team members are facing issues in achieving the desired outcomes; moreover, the leader needs to provide constant feedback to the team members in a way that their mistakes are being corrected and their self-confidence is also not being disturbed.

Another motivational issue in the present case is with instrumentality, which impacts the P-O linkage. A few members that valued pay were not motivated to work because they believed that the amount of effort required to produce the specific outcome is not worth the pay they were getting. In such situation, the supervisor should talk to the individuals and explain the situation with