Organisation Analysis Assignment - Essay Example

Motivational Theories in Modern HRM Modern organizations, regardless of their size or nature, tend to emphasize on HR as their major focus of strategic design. The exceeding significance on this area is attributed to numerous motivational theories which brought forth the idea that employees’ level of performance is highly associated with their level of motivation. Although there is no unanimous opinion among the researchers about the elements that influence one’s motivation, the concept “A happy worker is a productive worker” seem to be the crucial aspect of every motivational theory. This paper intends to discuss this view with reference to various theories of motivation in the modern business environment. Needs theories The fundamental idea of all needs theories is that ‘needs’ is the driving force of individuals’ motivation. There are considerable difference between the needs theories namely on their need-count and structure. Among these theories, the prominent one is Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory. According to Maslow (1943), human motivation depends on one’s access to basic requirements which include psychological and physiological needs. In other words, human beings are motivated by their unsatisfied needs. Before a person becomes motivated to satisfy the future needs, his/her general physiological needs have to be fulfilled. As the basic needs are attained, individual moves toward growth and finally attains ‘self actualization’. Hence, according to this theory, for ample workforce motivation, management has to identify employees’ active needs. So the fundamental needs or physiological needs must be satisfied before moving to advanced stage needs. Furthermore, a satisfied need can no longer motivate an individual; instead the next higher need would take its place (Byrnes, 54). However, many of the modern organizations prefer to retain candidates with ‘change oriented carrier path.’ The system would not motivate individuals to attain self actualization as Maslow envisages because appraisal and rewards in these organizations are mostly based on result and performance and they have little concern about employees’ fundamental needs. According to the opinion of Mayo Roethligsberger (1939) concept, “workers are not solely concerned with economic needs and material comfort. Moreover they are likely to be more responsive to the influence of colleagues than to attempts of management to control them by material incentives” (cited in Tyson &York, 13). The working conditions and other environmental factors have great influence on labors. The interpersonal relationship and healthy interaction could motivate expected individual behaviors. At this juncture, one might be skeptical about the strategies of profit driven organizations. According to the Motivation- Hygiene Theory (Two Factor Theory) proposed by Frederic Herzberg (1959) a job would become motivating only if it raises reasonable challenges to make use of the full ability of the individual. In other words, high potential candidates must be given more challenging tasks; whereas employees with lower level of skill have to be assigned to comparatively lower level tasks. The theory explains that there are two distinct human needs that every individual wants to fulfill. Among them the first psychological needs require money (food, shelter) and the other psychological needs that can be fulfilled only by activities that cause one’s growth (Miner, 47-48). VIE Theory Another notable theory was introduced by Victor Vroom that is Valence-instrumentality-expectancy theory (VIE Theory) according to which the major motivational factor is the expectations about the attractive outcomes of future events. Motivation is the combination of three elements like valance, instrumentality, and expectancy (Landy, Conte, 373). Valance indicates the value of the anticipated outcome that an individual would take into consideration. In other words, each employee would assess to what extent the result would benefit him/her. Instrumentality is the further step when individuals think that the specific outcome can be achieved if they complete certain activities. It inspires them to follow the proposed path or guidelines to achieve the goal. Finally, individuals should gather confidence or belief that they are able to complete the proposed actions successfully to meet the objectives. Organizations which follow the expectancy theory would design their HRM strategy as follows; Organizations initiate desirable goals to attract employees’ concerns. Employees’ active participation depends on the value and accessibility of the organizational objectives. Organizations have to give proper guidance to employees regarding their strategies to achieve the goals at the earliest. It includes legal and ethical compliance, effective interaction, and information sharing. Organizations would give adequate training, knowledge, technical backup and easy access to information in order to support employees’ belief. The theory envisages that the above mentioned aspects would enhance employee motivation and help organization to attain their objectives. Cognitive Evaluation Theory This is the theory that believes what tasks people undertake is highly associated with their reasoning. People evaluate if a specific task would meet their requirements and par with their competency (Gill, Williams, 132). To illustrate, employees can be motivated only if they come to understand that the task is within their field of expertise and competency. Therefore, the major role of HR managers is to align potential candidates according to their proficiency/ability. Furthermore, employees have to be convinced of their potential and feasibility to attain the goal. While assigning roles, managers have to be aware of one’s current level of competency. According to this concept, if individuals believe that the task is attainable, they will surely be motivated to pursue the goal. Equity Theory John Stacey Adams (1963) introduced a rather broad extension to motivational theories of Maslow, Hertzberg and others. Unlike other theories, equity theory discusses the significance external aspects that influence individuals’ choices and decisions. These factors include comparison of other individuals’ (friends, co-workers, relatives etc) situations, rewards, and living standard. For instance, people usually assess if they are fairly treated- equal to their efforts- before they make their own choices (Pride, Hughes, Kapoor, 289). On the other hand, if they find that they are not rewarded according to their quality or effort (input), they would get frustrated. Adams believes that there should a reasonable equity in the ‘give and take’ process of one’s employment. However, it is not easy to determine the exact ratio of performance and justifiable reward. Employee satisfaction is associated with the individuals’ attitude to reward system. As Hunt (29-44) suggests, only people who are seeking money as their major concern can be attracted by a system in which performance and reward are highly associated with each other; on the other hand, people who value relationship will be attracted to jobs where integrated efforts and teamwork are the major part of the job. The writer points out the significance of both personal and intrinsic rewards in an organization. Goal theory This theory is attributed to Edwin A Locke (1968) who emphasized on goal setting as the significant part of employee motivation. It defines the relation between the goal difficulty and level of performance. Locke believed that there should be a cognitive process of motivation that begins from defining the exact goal to preparing employees to attain it (Daft, Marcic, 458). The process includes cognition, training, and interpersonal communication. Though several aspects of the theory seems to be the elaboration of previous models, like all other theories goal theory also purports that only contented workers can bring organizational success. Reward and Motivation As the employees’ perspectives on reward vary, it will be unfair if an organization designs its reward system solely based on fiscal aspects. Usually the reward devise in an organization is influenced by the managers’ performance assessment. One might admit that there are various factors which disturb performance-reward equation. For instance, the quality of leadership and organizational structure are highly significant when manager estimates the potentiality of an individual. So, in order to ensure employee satisfaction, the team that designs the incentives and reward must consider different individual perspectives and factors that would eventually contribute to the accomplishment of goal. An organization that fails to interpret the goals and to design a proper reward system would inevitably cause employee resistance. In the same way, while money is used as the sole mode of reward, intrinsic motivation derived from collective effort and unity is ignored. As Hunt (1992) reminds, the autonomy seeking individuals are always concerned about appreciation other than the level of pay or reward structure. The chart below illustrates some of the major individual rewards and intrinsic rewards that organizations render to enhance motivation; Individual Rewards Intrinsic Rewards Salary Pension Wages Commissions Bonuses Job satisfaction Autonomy Recognition Appraisal Relationship Conclusion Although researchers are deeply at odds regarding the reliability of various theories, they all tend to converge at the idea that “a happy worker is a productive worker”. As an emerging trend, organizations today spend major portion of their budget on HR with their main focus on employee satisfaction and retention. Obviously all motivational theories have contributed to the growth of HRM as the most important concern of entrepreneurship in the current business world. No theory can be left out for its insignificance; instead managers can incorporate the relevant aspects of various theories to their strategies in order to ensure employee motivation. Works Cited Byrnes J. W. Management and the Arts. Edn, 3, Elsevier. 2003. Daft R L, Marcic D. Understanding Management. Edn, 6. Cengage Learning, 2008. Gill D L, Williams L. Psychological Dynamics of Sport and Exercise. Edn, 3. Human- Kinetics, 2008. Hunt J W. Managing People at Work: A Manager’s Guide to Behavior in Organizations, 3rd edn, McGraw-Hill, 1992. Landy F J, Conte J M. Work in the 21st Century: An Introduction to Industrial and Organizational Psychology. Edn 3, John Wiley and Sons, 2009. Miner. Organizational Behavior: From Theory to Practice. M.E.Sharpe, 2007. Pride W M, Hughes R J, Kapoor J R. Business. Edn 10. Cengage Learning, 2009. Tyson, York. A. Essentials of HRM, edn.4, Elsevier, 2003. Read More