Methods of Improving Employee Motivation in Workplaces, Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation - Coursework Example

Name Course Instructor Institution Date IMРRОVING MОTIVАTIОN ОF THЕ STАFF IN THЕ WОRKРLАСЕ Introduction At the core of a successful organization, there exist employees who are highly motivated. For customers to be well taken of, employees must first be given a conducive working environment. Motivated and well taken care of staff reflects the image of the company to clients. Motivated employees work in a single company as long they can remain productive thus reducing costs incurred during recruitment and training of new hires. It is vital that top level and mid-level managers focus on employees as human beings when they are working and handling issues with them. This essay will explore various methods of improving employee motivation in workplaces and the difference between extrinsic (external) motivation and intrinsic (internal/self) motivation. Extrinsic and intrinsic employee motivation There is always a reason as to why a majority of people engage in different activities, for instance, one may exercise to cut weight and remain healthy or use for professional sports engagement. The key word here is the reward for engaging in the activity. For employment, the major reward/compensation is the salary followed by the commission if one doing sales, bribes for illegal jobs and benefits that accrue work. Additionally, punctuality as one of the rules of any organization may be an extrinsic motivator because employees have the fear of punishment for lateness. Major employees are programmed to perform well in their duties more rather for fear of punishment more rather than self-drive. Extrinsic employees are those who are majorly motivated by financial reward for work whereas intrinsic workers are moved by passion for services they provide (Gubler, Pierce and Nickerson 14472-14472). Research has shown too much investment in external motivation ends up been an undoing to the company because the trend has to carry on failure to which employees will slow on producing excellent results. However, there a few employees who are moved by passion for the profession they engage in. Intrinsic employee motivation has led to growth on an individual and consequently growth of the company. It is when one is driven by personal gain to perform tasks. In a majority of cases of people who are driven by passion often surpass their expectation and that of his peers and bosses. Recently, after been accepted as an Information Technology interns in one the geo-mapping organizations, I observed a scenario that illustrated the two different types of employee driving force. In one case, an interviewee was asked what other kinds of programming language he knew apart from those mentioned in his CV; he said none and went further to say that he is satisfied with what he knew. These led to his failure at the interview because he demonstrated himself as a person who is not agile. In the same interview, the few developers who were familiar with more than one programming language and went further to explain they were ready to learn more got the chance to work for the company. Communication Communication cuts across all levels in an organization. From top level to top level management and mid-level to top level management, communication is key ingredient in the running of a company. Employees are free to interact with senior and junior coworkers often perform exceptionally well compared to their counterparts who have limited freedom of expression. Engaging an employee increases their loyalty towards the organization because they feel they are part of the decision-making team. Motivated employees rarely hold back information that may be crucial in the success of the company. Professionalism Whether one is a senior manager or a mid-level manager, it is important first build a culture of handling issues and business matters in a professional manner. The manager’s behavior must portray a leader who respects an organization’s code of conduct and ethics. From then on, junior employees will be motivated to work on their professionalism in order to emulate their leaders. One way of motivating them to conduct themselves in the accepted way of behavior and ethics is to journey with them all through and to recognize when they achieve a substantial. Management style There is a reason as to why each organization whether profit oriented or non-profit driven has a management. The main purpose is to lead other who is under your mandate. Unfortunately, there are some leaders who used their authority to trodden junior employees. One way of the motivating fellow employees is to invite them to be part of the decision-making of the company. The feeling of been part of the decision-making clique increases the loyalty of an individual. Also, leaders are servants of people rather than masters of people thus, it is important to check whether in the organization you are managing some employees have worked there for a substantial period. A long serving staff is an indication of well-motivated team which has remained loyal to the company. Training Training means doing something repeatedly more than once to perfection. There are different divisions of the Australian army; they include; the Australian Marine, Australian air force, Australian ground troops and the Australian Special Forces. Every division has its different kind of training to suit its assignment and expertise. Let’s focus on the Special Forces team. These are team highly trained military personnel who tasks are different from the rest of pack. They train in extremely harsh conditions to condition them for hard tasks they are usually handed to them. Their primary task is launch stealth like attacks to clear the way for other troops, they arrive before the rest access the situation and gather information. The same applies to employee training. If employees are exposed to the right training program tailored to suit their work definitions, they will excellent results. They grow into a confident team which consequently grows into a leadership of which productivity is good, and finally the results are replicated at the financial statements of increased revenue and profits. Recognition No matter how strong an individual may be, it is always important to show them an appreciation for the little things they do. Organizations should have systems put in place to recognize efforts put by employees both senior and junior. To ensure that for more employees work towards achieving the common goal set by the company, rewards are offered to those achieve outstanding results in all aspects of the company. For instance, it is important to recognize employees when talking about initiatives that a company is undertaking. Use of words like “we” does highly impact how employee feel when they are addressed. Fun at work Fun increases bonding of workmates and the overall image of an organization. Activities like team building and challenge outdoor games which engage each member at different levels should be encouraged to foster a round team of staff. There are organizations that offer the utilities of team building; every organization should make it an integral part of the company’s annual schedule. Work place environment It is an open secret that the best multinationals have invested heavily in setting up of environments that are; eco-friendly and bring the best in their employees. The setting on any place affects the performance of any human being, be it your home, workplace, and public places thus organizations like Google have gone the extra mile to provide work environments that present work as fun. Besides, breaking the monotonous of working environment by changing where people work from and the routine also promotes creativity. Showing Trust towards juniors One way of initiating employees into a higher office is usually to train them in a gradual manner. However, the effectiveness of the training heavily depends on who and how it is delivered by the trainer. Additionally, senior officers who are ready to retire should significantly show trust on those who are about to fit into their shoes by gradually guiding them into the intrigues of the new environment. One of the best ways to initiate a junior officer into an office is to tag then along in important meetings and involve them in key decision-making activities to instill trust in them. Every organization’s leadership should use trust as a motivational tool that will open up new opportunities especially when there exists transparency in both seniors and juniors. Proving capability to deliver A few old generation employee may conquer with claims that today’s generation is more focused on replacing them, however, a majority of young workers have been under pressure from themselves to prove their ability to deliver same or better results compared to their senior counter parts. Ease of access to information on ways of improving productivity has increased workplace competition rendering the old generation in emerging fields like Artificial Intelligence irrelevant. Additionally, the desire to deliver when faced with difficulties and performance at high offices has further worsened the situation. In-house competition has been acknowledged as healthy for an organization's growth. Foundation Building When a child is growing up their success in all aspects of life is primarily dependent on the foundation they receive from those who are raising them. Similarly, the success of an employee is dependent on the foundation they receive when been initiated into an organization. A proper and thorough orientation is key to the success of every new employee. For instance, new employees can be taken through the history of the company and be shown around the premises, these makes them feel at ease and manage to ask questions without coming out as awkward. Setting out the growth map The reason as to why roads were built since the Roman Empire is because people needed to follow definite paths to get to common destinations. The same theory applies to growth of an employee. A leader has to guide his juniors through the path they want to follow by accessing their current position and chatting a way forward by outlining a growth path to be followed. Employees who are shown this kind of appreciation feel motivated all through their days at the particular companies they work for. Invest in workers A company can pay for in-house training on specific job fields. These and other activities like sponsored seminars motivate staff to be goal oriented. Additionally, there are companies that offer pay education for activities like adult enlightenment. This kind education may have minimal effect on growth of profits but will motivate them because they will know the company cares about their welfare in general. Appreciation Achievements no matter how small or big they are must be shown appreciation. There are individuals who rarely thrive on praise. However their morale is boosted when they know somebody acknowledges their efforts. Keeping your promises It is important to keep promises when handling human beings more so employees who have given their all knowing they are in for a reward. If the reward was in terms of a promotion or a salary raise, it is important to honor the agreement whether verbal or written. Matching Talent with Tasks There is a reason why the eagle fights the snake when it is airborne; it takes advantage of the snake’s inability to move. The same scenario applies in workplaces in that it is important to match skills with talent. Different employees are gifted differently thus placing them where they best fit increases productivity. Conclusion A system is defined as the combination of different factors put together to produce certain results at the end of every stage. It is important for every component of a system to achieve its intended purpose. The same scenario represents workplace set-up. From the security guards to the tea girl all must work in sync to achieve the objective of the organization thus the importance of keeping employees whether senior or junior in check as they are motivated to surpass their own expectations. Works Cited Gubler, T., L. Pierce, and J. A. Nickerson. "What Drives Employee Performance? Evidence On Extrinsic And Intrinsic Motivation". Academy of Management Proceedings 2013.1 (2013): 14472-14472. Web. Read More