Theories to Use by Managers at the Workplace - Essay Example

Citing motivation theory, explain how managers at the workplace can make practical use of two theories of your choice. There are two different kindsof motivation theories, some are focusing on extrinsic rewards whereas other are focusing on intrinsic ones. Personal satisfaction and self -accomplishment are examples of intrinsic rewards (internal to the individual). Money is an example of extrinsic rewards (external incentives to the individual). Extrinsic motivation has been typically used to motivate employees through wages, promotions or punishment. Another distinction can be made between direct and indirect motivation. In direct motivation, the act fulfills a need whereas in indirect motivation, the act fulfills and intermediate goal, which in turn conduct to the satisfaction of a need. In the following two theories of motivation which will be presented, it is important that the reader keeps in mind that both their authors are American. Abraham Maslow proposed in 1954 his hierarchy of needs theory. In his theory, Maslow describes the humans needs as being either "basic needs" or "higher needs". According to him, human beings would only seek to satisfy the higher needs if they could previously meet the basic needs (A. Maslow, 1970). In other words, humans are not interested in a higher need in the hierarchy if the previous need (inferior need) is not fulfilled. Maslow shared his pyramid into five sections (from the bottom to the top), each section related to one kind of need. The first needs are the physiological ones (hunger, thirst, sleep, etc…), his second level is known as the safety needs (security, health, employment, property, etc...), his third level is called the "belonging and love needs" (friends and companions, identification with a group and intimate relationship), the fourth level is called "esteem needs" (self-esteem, self-confidence, and respect of and by others). Finally, the top of Maslows pyramid is described as the "self-actualization need" (morality, creativity, lack of prejudice and acceptance of facts) (A. Maslow, 1970). Frederick Herzbergs two factor theory claims that some factors in the workplace create job satisfaction whereas others do not, but if absent will conduct to job dissatisfaction (Frederic Herzberg, 1968). He made the distinction between motivators which create positive satisfactions to employees and hygiene factors which will not motivate if at hand, but which will demotivate if missing. In other words, dissatisfaction is the outcome of a lack of hygiene factors. Hygiene factors include pay, relationship with co-workers, physical environment and supervisor-employee relations. On the other hand, motivators include achievement, recognition, work identity, responsibility and promotion (Frederic Herzberg, 1968). Employers can use these theories to motivate employees through the attraction of company ownership by giving them stocks of the company as by doing so employees would invest more of their time and energy by pursuing their own interests and this will indirectly benefit the whole company. Explain the importance of Norms and Roles in groups. According to Gilbert & Sneed, culture is one of four dimensions of an organization. The other three are structure, systems and people. Organizational culture is a "system of shared values and beliefs that produces norms of behaviour and establishes an organizational way of life." Culture manifests itself through the beliefs, values, norms, stories and other symbols within an organization. "Schein defines the culture of a group or organization as shared assumptions and beliefs about the world and their place in it, the nature of time and space, human nature, and human relationships." (Cited in Yukl 329) A more detailed definition of culture is based on del Bueno and Vincents work. They state: Culture includes both implicit and the explicit contracts that include what is expected of members and the rewards or sanctions associated with compliance or non-compliance. Culture is a pattern of basic assumptions or behaviours that have worked in the past and are taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, to think, to feel, and to ad. Schein (cited in Hackett. Lilford & Jordon) defines culture on three levels: basic assumptions, values and artefacts. Hackett et al. state: The deepest and most difficult element of culture to change is basic assumptions - the correct way to do things around here. Values are the next level and describe a sense of what ought to be within an organization. Finally, artefacts are overt beliefs and physical manifestations of culture, e.g. procedures; technology used; and size of offices which are the easiest to change. The established culture is communicated through myths, stories, rituals and ceremonies that reflect the values and beliefs about an organization. New employees are indoctrinated into the culture through the use of organizational metaphors. Metaphors can take on a militaristic, sports, anthropological, and mechanistic implications. Three outside forces have been identified by Hackett et al. as significantly influencing the culture in organizations. They are customer requirements, the competitive environment and societal expectations. These authors believe that societal expectations may have the greatest effect within their study domain of healthcare. "Society increasingly expects doctors and clinical professionals to be competent, capable and caring." (Hackett et al Stakeholders involvement can play a major role in the formation and or changing of a culture. They can provide tools to focus on change and be a source of power to support the change. (Hackett et al.)Over the past decade an increasingly discussed topic in the literature on organizational culture and leadership is that of the learning organization, a term first made popular by Senge. It would be helpful to the project to explore a more specific type of culture, the learning culture and its relationship to the principles of a quality performance management system. ‘Different leadership styles may be exhibited by managers’. Discuss with reference to leadership theory. A fundamental question that needs to be addressed in People Management is what style of leadership will facilitate the development of a culture that will engage all stakeholders in a performance management system. This function of leadership can be supported by and executed through a well-designed performance management system. Yukl (1998) writes, "Leadership is a subject that has long excited interest among people. The term connotes images of powerful, dynamic individuals who command victorious armies, direct corporate empires from atop gleaming skyscrapers, or shape the course of nations." The definition of leadership is dependent on context and can be arbitrary and difficult to define. Morrison, Jones and Fuller define leadership as "...the ability to influence a group toward the achievement of its goals." .A more complex definition of leadership is "the pivotal force behind successful organizations and that to create vital and viable organizations leadership is necessary to help organizations develop a new vision of what they can be then mobilize the organizational change toward the new vision." (Bennis & Nanus) Lippitt adds a different perspective on the definition of leadership. She states, "Leadership can be defined as getting people moving in a direction making a decision and supporting paths they typically wouldnt have selected." There are a number of social and economic forces driving changes in leadership. Bridges (1994) states "That much sought after, much maligned social entity, a job is vanishing like a species that has outlived its evolutionary time". Second, demographic changes have created a more diverse society. Camevale and Stone state, Workers in an environment receptive to diversity are empowered to use their full capacity. As a result, they, their work, and the organization as a whole benefit from this.". Situational Leadership theory provides a framework for considering the supervisors role in the overall performance cycle. It attempts to explain a correlation between the time the leader spends on task related versus relationship related behaviour with employees and the readiness level of the direct reports to perform the work. Empowerment explains the groundwork needed to balance the issues of task and relationship to create a culture that supports the individual employee to become self-determined and accountable. Transformational leadership appears to have a powerful influence on job satisfaction both directly and indirectly through its influence on a persons intrinsic task motivation (empowerment). Transactional leadership, on the other hand, has no effect on empowerment; although it does have a direct effect on job satisfaction Basss suggestion that transformational leadership augments the effects of transactional leadership is also resoundingly clear. Passive management by exception is negatively related to job satisfaction and empowerment. In summary there is no one leadership theory that will provide all the answers to designing, implementing and engaging employees in a performance management system. Theories about appropriate emphasis on task and relationship, flexible leadership behaviors, productivity and capability, empowerment and trust provide dues to what makes a leader successful. References Abraham H. Maslow (1970). Motivation and personality. New York; London: Harper & Row, 2nd edition. R. G. Geen (1995). Human motivation: A social psychological approach. Belmont, CA: Cole. Accel team (2007). "Employee motivation. Motivation in the workplace -theory and practice". Available from: http://www.accel-team.com/motivation/index.html, [accessed on 05.04.2007]. Businessballs website. "Frederick Herzberg motivational theory, motivators and hygiene". Available from: http://www.businessballs.corri/herzberg.htm, [accessed on 05.04.2007]. Appelbaum, E., Bailey, T., Berg, P. and Kalleberg, A. Manufacturing Advantage: Why High-Performance Work Systems Pay Off Ithaca, NY: ILR Press, 2000. Avolio, B. J., & Yammarino, F. J. Transformational and charismatic leadership the road ahead. 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