Motivation, Rewards Systems, and Employee Performance - Term Paper Example

Motivation, Rewards Systems and Employee Performance The corporate world is always engaged in stiff competition, and theoverall performance is associated to many factors which human effort being the primary factor input. It is important to note that the overall performance of employees in any company is fueled by incentives which are a constituent of motivation. Rewarding employees in different ways boosts their morale and enhances their input in realizing the aims of the organization. Several motivational factors have been addressed by scholars and the consequences on the aggregate organizational performance. The increasing competitive gap that is shown by some firms in various industries in the contemporary society is significantly related to the employee performance which is in turn pegged on sound human resource management. There is a strong relationship that exists between motivation, performance and reward systems in any social set up and the business organizations in specific. The reward system influences the behavior of the workers through motivation which in turn influences their effort and personal drive towards performing their duty with the goal of boosting the organizational output (Klarsfeld 170). With the current globalization pressure, the social, economic and political structure of the society has been redefined and the reward systems that were used long time ago are facing irrelevance hence need of reforms. Whereas most firms attached a lot of importance on quantifiable rewards with negligible concern on qualitative aspects, the current situation champions for quality as the greatest motivational aspect of individual performance. Taking the case of IKEA Company which is the leading furniture retail chain in the world that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture, appliances, and home accessories the concept of reward can be explored in depths. From the data available on the global corporate performance records, the company was the world's largest furniture retailer as of January 2008. This is one of the firms that have reaped from sound human resource management and sets the pace for its competitors as far as employee reward is concerned. IKEA is one of the multinationals that give much attention to the individual input of each employee by offering incentives that motivate the overall performance of its workforce. While several companies in the same industry still rely solely on salary as the only motivational factor, IKEA has gone a notch higher and adopted non-monetary incentives that mean a lot to employees, and this explains its continued excellence in the industry (Klarsfeld 174). Reward system works better in improving the overall effort of employees in their contribution in value creation in firm, and IKEA seems to have realized this concept from the word go making it clinch the first position ahead of the park. It longstanding overall performing standing is basically tied to the quality of its services and good public image it has. It employs for attitude and trains for skill, and this is one factor that has boosted the exemplary performance and an unmatched competitiveness in the industry and the corporate world at large. Rewards compensate for additional sacrifice of efforts towards attaining specific goals and when it comes to the mission of IKEA, satisfaction of the customer takes central concern and forms the basis of the team’s goals. To achieve this dream, the management realized that motivating the workers through incentives and other modes of rewards significantly boosts their efficiency which translates to aggregate firm performance. Since it deals in decorative items with much focus on art and beauty, IKEA relies on human capital and real commitment from its employees and this can only be realized through motivating them to deliver up to the standard. IKEA has adopted diverse reward systems in its management policies that suit various needs of different employees within its workforce. These rewards take into account age factor, gender, culture and other specific social needs. IKEA takes lead in offering relatively higher wage rate to its employees so that they reflect this in total commitment to quality. When employees are satisfied in terms of salary package, they are always motivated to deliver to their best to show appreciation to the firm. This is the case with IKEA, which equally employs highly trained personnel with excellent academic background. Wage rate is more of quantitative that qualitative in value and is not enough to put IKEA where it is. In the wake of increased campaign for better treatment of employees across the world, IKEA has always organized trips and get together parties to its employees that provide an avenue of interaction and further interpersonal understanding among staff and management. This significantly boosts their relationship with the management and instills the spirit of solidarity hence motivation to perform. There is a comprehensive healthcare insurance and retirement benefit allocated to IKEA workers, and this has significantly boosted the morale of its employees which can be traced to their efficiency and consistent outstanding performance in quality output (Thompson and Frank 232). It is notable that the IKEA has recreational facilities in some of its value creation sites where employees can take some break and re-energize or come with families over the weekend and relax at zero cost. This fact incorporates the social life of the employees in their working life hence promoting harmony in duty of purpose by the company of improving the overall welfare of the society. It has equally adopted flexible working concepts which give nursing mothers break to meet the needs of the young ones a move that is in line with employee welfare concern and firm’s support to the family life of the workers which is a central player in their psychological life. Other organizations have remained mediocre performers, and the question that remains unanswered is why the organizations always fail to achieve its goals in different dimensions of the societal structure. Several theories have been advanced concerning the concept of reward system and its contribution towards employee performance in respect of the motivational factors considered by the employee. It is equally important to note that the reward system is inconsistent with what is expected from the reward, and this explains the continued underperformance of most organizations. Failure by the managers to reconcile reward with the expected outcome from employees promote quality based results with little quality outcome, and this is responsible for the observed lower personal achievement by employees hence reduced efficiency and this is where IKEA takes competitive advantage (Thompson and Frank 234). It has been realized from past research that the behavior being rewarded are the same ones management wants to discourage and thus culminate into conflict of ideas and confusion leading to retarded the efficiency and the aggregate performance of the employees. This concept is commonly referred to as fouled up system since they present a different expectation in regard to the expected outcome. There are several instances of commonly practiced management reward follies. This is because even the management is much focused on quantifiable outcome in terms of output; revenue; among others as the motivation of the employees also concentrate on the amount of salary and benefits. This leads to complete the disregard to the intrinsic qualities expected from individual employees that will promote individual performance and enhance efficiency. The overall effect of this reward system practiced by IKEA motivates employees through internal feeling of showing appreciation and warrants obligation to deliver quality work. The diverse incentives provided overrides the effect of salary as they are of more value to the employees, and they feel like considered part of the company hence the sense of belonging which makes them give their best. In this respect, it is worth to note that objective reward system seeks to meet personal goals of individual and incorporates them to make a whole which translates to teamwork and overall performance of the organization. Reward system like in the case of IKEA which focuses on the welfare of the employees motivates them to improve and refine their skills which is reflected in increased productivity, and this offers a competitive advantage in terms of human capital quality and output standard. Works cited Jens Hansengard. IKEA’s Reward For A Productive Valentine’s Day.The Wall Street Journal. February 15, 2013, 1:01 PM http://blogs.wsj.com/corporate-intelligence/2013/02/15/ikeas-reward-for-a-productive-valentines-day/ Klarsfeld, Alain. International Handbook on Diversity Management at Work: Country Perspectives on Diversity and Equal Treatment. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Pub, 2010. Internet resource. Thompson, John L, and Frank Martin. Strategic Management. Andover: Cengage Learning, 2010. Print. Read More