Motivational Factors Affecting Employees Satisfaction - Assignment Example

Importance of the Motivational Factors Affecting Employees Satisfaction Motivation is one of the most important factors that spur and inspire human beings to achieve their goals and objectives, it the guiding principle that drives one to remain focused and on their endeavors notwithstanding the obstacles and challenges that may stand in the way. That is just one of the many definitions, it has further being defined as the process that governs and directs the choices and individual makes and accounts for their intensity determination and persistence in their tasks. Concisely, one can say that motivation is the determining factor for how much effort one puts in to their work. Understandably, many employers take motivation very seriously and it many theories have been evolved to attempt and explain its different forms and functions; modern study of motivation can be traced back to as far as 1960 aimed at harnessing the maximum productive form the workers. This paper will endeavor to discuss the importance of motivation in the workplace as well as exploring the different theories that have been developed on the subject by different thinkers. As aforementioned, motivation is crucial in determining the level of effort and personal investment an individual puts in an action, for employers, motivation is unequivocally important since the productivity of their staff is directly depends on their motivation (Burton, et al, 1993). The following are some of the main benefits of motivation in the workplace: Considering that every concern in the work place requires effort and human and financial resources to accomplish, motivation allows maximum use to be made of it, this is done by building up the works willingness to work and ultimately the enterprise will thrive in the long run. Motivation also leads up to the achievement of organizational goals since when staff is motivated the resources can be fully utilized; there is cooperation among the employees as well as goal orientation. Motivation is also crucial in bring about employee satisfaction since they feel their efforts are appreciated and when they work they know that their effort will be rewarded. Employer should keep this in mind as they design plans for rewarding and giving incentive to their staff, this incentives could be both monetary and non-monetary, the can also take the form of promotions and other perks for deserving employees. Furthermore, motivation in the work force leads to stability; this is because when employees are satisfied, as a good motivation scheme is wont to make them, it promotes their good will and respect toward the employee. Workers will often feel like they are participating in management if well motivated and this makes them very loyal, this is an advantage to both staff and employer and it creates a good public image for a firm to potential employees and customers(Yurtseven and Halici, 2012). The more motivated employees are, the more empowered they feel and ultimately they will be more creative and desire to show their gratitude by being even more productive. When employees are motivated they will be have a healthy relationship with their bosses and problems will often be discussed openly thus resolved amicably as opposed to Acton such as strike and go slows which hurt everyone at the end of the day (Robbins et al, 2011). Abraham Maslow proposed the hierarchy of needs model in 1943 in a paper titled “A theory of motivation” by studying the exemplary people he could find in their respective fields, loosely described as the one “percenters”. Maslow's Hierarchy states that human must satisfy each of the needs contained in the model beginning with most basic need for survival, and moving up to others up the hierarchy such as influence, power and personal improvement (Weinberg, 2005). However, in the event that one’s lower needs are withdrawn the higher needs lose precedence and they automatically focus on the lower needs. The needs, listed from the bottom up begin with biological needs for air food, food sex, sleep and other basic survival needs; these are followed by the needs for security and protection from the elements order and the legal protection (Maslow, 2000). As one move up the Hierarchy, they find the need for beginning and love, and family and friendship, from here, the next step up includes the esteem needs, these comprise of the desire to achieve, skills and mastery as well as acquiring status in society such as leadership and generally dominance over others. Finally, the self-actualization needs are at the top of the hierarchy, these are characterized but ultimately achieving ones goals in life and fulfillment of one’s life goals. In 1970, two more needs were added between esteem and self-actualization; the cognitive and aesthetic needs, which involve fulfilling the need to be knowledgeable and educated as well as, achieve beauty and appreciation respectively. These, ideas have been extensively used over the years by employers to provide a satisfactory work place environment, motivate employees to achieve maximum potential. This can be done by ensuring that they fulfill the basic needs first such as ensuring they can afford good food, accommodation, and job security so they can focus on higher thing such as excellence for the firm. Fredrick Herzberg tried to understand that reasons for employee’s dissatisfaction, he set out to do this by asking people to describe the situations in the job when they felt either god or bad (Ayd, 2012). From his studies, he formulated the Herzberg Motivation theory that is also known as the two-factortheory that was published in an article entitled “one more time; how do you motivate employers”. Herzberg proposed that there were certain factors, which were related to job satisfaction, and others were related to lack of it. The factors that were often critical in satisfaction included, achievement recognition, advancement work conditions and the work itself, the factors responsible for dissatisfaction include company policy, supervision relationship between supervisor and peer and security. The conclusion made was that job satisfaction and dissatisfaction were not necessarily opposites and reducing the causes for distraction does not necessarily translate to satisfaction nor does increasing the causes for satisfaction reduce dissatisfaction. Herzberg determined that if one sets out to remove the factors for dissatisfaction, which are the hygiene factors, they might create peace but not necessarily result in satisfaction. Thus if one wants to create satisfaction, the need not only focus on factors that reduce dissatisfaction but also those that directly enhance it such as recognition of their staff and awarding them promotions and increased responsibility. He proposed a two-step policy; the first step would involve reducing dissatisfaction such as harsh company policies, ensure wages are competitive and enhance job security among others. The second step is increasing satisfaction such as providing promotions making the work rewarding giving staff training and responsibility, thus workers actively have to be protected from dissatisfaction before job sat faction policies can be applicable. The Expectancy theory states that an individual’s behavior is motivated since they select certain behavior over others due to their expectations of the result of that particular behavior.The key components of this; Expectancy probability, Instrumental probability and valance: Expectancy probability where ones expectancy is based on fact that the expectancy will result in desired performance (Steel and Konig, 2006).It is based on past experiences self-confidence as well as the tasks perceived difficulty, which influences the effort that is put in the performance, then the Instrumentality probability, which is based on the belief that a person will receive a reward if they perform well. However, expectance I slow of the reward for all effort remains the same since one will not feel the need to put in more effort (McShane, Olekalns and Travaglione, 2010). When one feels they can influence the process of reward Instrumentality tends to increase, thus when a firm uses formalized policies the staff will normally make a positive connection to them.The third step is the Valence which is the value that an individual places on the offered rewards based on their needs objectives and values as well as the source of motivation in question (Gray, 2000). One may ask themselves for instance of the need the promotion that may result from extra effort, then they will possibly ask if the promotions is really worth all the extra effort. The equity theory was developed by John Adams, who was a workplace and behavioral psychologist in 1963, this theory transcend the self and covers other factors and individuals in the work place (Tudor, 2011). According to John Adam, when people feel like they are treated fairly and equally in the work place as compared to their colleagues, they will be more likely to be motivated. On the other hand, when employees feel they have been treated in an unfair way they will be likely to feel disaffected and unmotivated (Ayd, 2012). Thus according to this model, equity is not relative to the extent and individual feels they are sufficiently rewarded but a sense of fairness and comparative equality in regard to their colleagues as one constantly compares the rewards offered to them for similar effort and when they feel they are equal, they will feel motivated. For example, one may be happy with their current job and reward scheme, then the next day that mat realize that other people working in the same capacity are given better rewards than them. This will result in acute feelings of dissatisfaction and at this point the extent of their individual rewards no matter how high becomes irrelevant since they will feel they are been comparatively short charged (Yusuf and Mawoli, 2011). In many organizations which underperform, all the factors necessary for production are present, one may find they have the capital, and resources and the staff know what should be done but simply do not feel motivated to do it. For decades, organizational psychologists have endeavored to make a connection between motivation and job performance, while it often presumed there is no specific connection, many thinkers have invested considerable effort in proving they are related in a particular way (Marisa and Nor’Aini, 2011). Increase in productivity is a cardinal goal of most organization, however that standard cannot be achieved unless the workers are stimulated and inspired to perform and this is where motivation comes in. At the end of the day, a motivated worker is a happy worker and a happy worker is an excellent worker, motivation puts staff into action and improves the efficiency levels. Study conducted in the University of Mines and Technology, Tarkwa, Ghana, on the relationship between performance and motivation was instrumental in drawing distinct connections between the two (Afful-Broni, 2012). Among the conclusion were the following findings, for instance, a low salary and general deficiency in motivation greatly reduced the morale in the university among workers. Notably, and in line with the earlier assumptions of Herzberg’s theory even provision of higher pay does not naturally translate in more productivity, quizzed on the main cause of low enthusiasm many of the staff attributed it to poor motivation.The more a company invests in motivating its employees, the more productive they become, ultimately, while not all may agree on the direct effects of motivation, it is unequivocal that it plays a crucial role in boosting performance. The question of whether money is a suitable motivator or not has been examined extensively over the years; many small business and major corporations use money as the key motivator in form of bonuses and raises (Manzoor, 2013). While conceding that money is an effective motivator, when not used well it can appear like a form of coercion and not unlike a carrot stick approach. Therefore, to prevent these employers should allow their staff autonomy and show them respect while using money as reward in order to avoid disempowering the staff that might have the opposite effect of demotivating them. For instance, a firm demanding long and grueling hours in return for cash bonuses may get workers working longer but not necessarily translate to good quality work. Thus while money should be used, it should also be incorporated with other forms of incentives, careless us of cash incentives will often reduce the staff’s objectivity and blind them to the companies goals which they may see simply as a means to getting money (Alexander et al, n.d). Therefore, while using money, the employers should ensure the employees see it as a means to an end not as an end in itself; otherwise they will start taking shortcuts and compromising the quality of work to make more money. For this reason, leaders should pay attention to the firm’s objectives and goals as well as attitudes ensuring to reward only those who most fully engender these, that way they will have no problem with staff compromising product or service quality for monetary rewards. In conclusion, the crucial role of motivation for increasing productivity is unambiguous; workers will often respond to motivation by working harder and being more sincere and productive in their work effort. The most prominent theories in the subject include Maslow’s theory of needs, in which he posits that people will be unmotivated to pursue their higher needs if the lower ones have not been fulfilled. Herzberg’s hygiene theory on the other hand attempts to disabuse the notion that in the absence of dissatisfactory factors automatically translates to satisfaction. Then the equity theory in which an employee’s satisfaction depends on their perception of fairness as compared to their colleagues. Money as a motivator is crucial but it should be used carefully;otherwise, it may have a negative effect, ultimately motivation in whichever form is a crucial factor in promoting and ensuring effectiveness and productivity at the workplace. References Steel, P.and König, C. (2006). “Integrating Theories of Motivation” The Academy of Management Review, Vol. 31, No. 4, pp. 889-913. Gray, R. (2000). “Workplace Motivation a review of the literature” KumpaniaConsulting. 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(2011). “An Evaluation Of Staff Motivation, Dissatisfaction And Job Performance In An Academic Setting” Australian Journal of Business and Management Research Vol.1 No.9 [01-13]. Tudor, R.T. (2011). “Motivating Employees with Limited Pay Incentives Using Equity Theory and the Fast Food Industry as a Model “International Journal of Business and Social Science Vol. 2 No. 23, 95-101. Weinberg, H. (2005). "The Effective Time-Binder and Maslow's “Self-Actualizing Person"." et Cetera 62.3: 313-7. Ayd, O.T. (2012). "The Impact of Motivation and Hygiene Factors on Research Performance: An Empirical Study from A Turkish University." International Review of Management and Marketing 2.2: 106, n/a. Manzoor, Q. (2013). “Impact of Employees Motivation on Organizational Effectiveness” European Journal of Business and Management www.Vol 3, No.3. Alexander, D. S. (n.d). “The Diferential Engagement And Relative Effects Of Incentive, Motivators On Work Performance”. Department of Management and Human Resources University of Wisconsin-MadisonIn Press - Academy of Management Journal. Retrieved from http://www.researchgate.net/publication/228923941_The_differential_engagement_and_relative_effects_of_incentive_motivators_on_work_performance/file/79e4150c0d50760d9b.pdf McShane, S., Olekalns, M. &Travaglione, T. (2010) OrganisationalBehaviour on the Pacific Rim, Third Edition, McGraw Hill, Sydney. Robbins, S., Judge, T., Millett, B. & Boyle, M. (2011).Organisational Behaviour; Sixth Edition, Pearson, Frenchs Forest. Read More