Evaluating Performance through Motivation and Conflict Management Discussion - Essay Example

Order 509464 Topic: o Evaluate motivations theories and organizational behavior.  o Discuss how different organizations apply motivation theories to motivate employees.  o Analyze conflict management strategies used in the workplace.  o Of the organizations discussed, analyze which conflict management approaches work best, and why. What compels people to act? How does people’s action affect organizational behavior? How should managers approach conflict situations in workplaces? This essay aims to explicate two interdependent ideas.

One, about motivational theories in relation to organizational behaviors in workplaces, and second, about conflict management approaches for employees in conflict situation. Let me first discuss about the theories of motivation applied to organization’s behaviors and to employees of workplaces. Motivation is etymologically a Latin word "movere"-- to move. It is an internal drive motivating behaviors and determining direction. It is a moving force that motivates organizational behavior. Maslow's “Hierarchy of Needs Theory” point that motivation is driven by needs and of certain conditions that motivate them to exemplify these needs.

This hierarchy features five major areas which start with “basic needs toward more complicated and self-fulfilling needs. It includes physiological, survival, security and stability. Human being’s social nature needs venue for social interaction to bolster our self-esteem and competence in order for us to develop our full potential for self-actualization. Maslow's believes that unsatisfied lowest-level need has the greatest motivating potential. Alderfer's ERG Theory is also somewhat similar to "Needs Theory” but has only three characters which explains satisfaction and motivation.

These are “existence needs”, “relatedness need” which can be satisfied through communication and “growth needs” which is considered complied if persons are motivated to be engaged in many activities. Another motivational theory held by McClelland explained needs are met when a person acquire stable personality characteristics after undergoing through “life exposes, expectancies, and experiences.” This theory maximizes situations as variables to explain when motivational factors will be exhibited (Quisenberry, 2006).

Its motivation is based on goals, outcomes, and desired performance’s feedback. People are perceived to have acted on matters due to inherent desire to improve themselves, to be affiliated with others, and to be able to fit in interactions (Quisenberry, 2006). There are also Process Theories of Motivation that focused on how motivation actually occurred. Some of these processed-based theories are Expectancy Theory, Equity Theory, and the Goal setting theory. Expectancy theory deals about the expected outcomes of people’s behaviors or to explicate the probability of achievement (Romando, 2011).

A classic example is about an employee working hard with a goal in mind to become a company’s manager. Equity theory on the other hand, often used in governmental transactions, balances the input and outputs of their initiatives for desired result. This calls for balancing an economical setting to illustrate and explicate employees’ feelings when they felt unfairly paid with their labor (Romando, 2011). Sociologists also call this “zone of indifference.” It is a range of authoritative requests Meanwhile, ‘final theory’ is goal-centered, with guidelines, and uses feedback mechanism to as evaluative measures of performance; incentives and rewards for well-done jobs; and managers assist to effectively deliver the tasks (Romando, 2011).

All these theories detailed how people are inspired to act to achieve specific goal and also dictates organizational behavior (Derrick, 2011). The motives of persons, leaders or companies that drove them to work for their aims are reflected on how they underwent the process of valuing what is needed, required, demanded or teleologically valued. People work, leads or follow because they value an interest, whether this is economic, aesthetic, social, political or religious or maybe personal. With regards to conflict management, this theory relate to conflict resolution or conflict transformation to ensure that desired teamwork is sustained in all workplaces.

Conflict, if left unresolved, may escalate and may badly impact the goals of the company or may fracture the relations of workers as well as their employers. Thus, it is recommended that conflicts be understood as part of the dynamism for growth; must be looked at positively; and that it can be resolved effectively. Conflicts should be managed well so that workers will be able to discern with understanding about the situation and increase the workers and employees’ cohesion through showing deep respect to each other (Bhatti, 2010).

They will also be appreciating the details of their goals and decide to collaboratively pursue their works. They would tend to be compromising and accommodating than loss grounds. There are neither short cuts nor best strategies, but once parties understood the causes and nature of conflicts, mediator can identify what best approach to employ. Parties to the conflict must retain flexibility, respect their differences and possess clarity of feelings. They must dialogue and be openly discourse so that parties with their mediators can come up with mutually satisfactory solution that will mutually benefit them all and of the company.

Swinton (2011) assert that resolution should answer all needs and concerns to prevent outbreak of hostilities and to ensure job satisfaction. This could be further bolstered with management by merging units for them to be able to address common challenges in order to improve performance and relations at work (Newman, 2009). In conclusion, it is therefore imperative for business or organizational managers to motivate employees within the platform of mutuality in goals, influence, respect, responsibility and rewards.

This is because mutual commitment entails mutual performance of responsibilities to yield better economic performance. Effective motivation of human resource must be founded on equal trust, better relations and collaboration to ensure achievement of goals. REFERENCES William Quisenberry (2006) Organizational Behavior and Motivation: Psychological and sociological Insights. Helium Psychology. Andover, MA, USA http://www.helium.com/items/82955-organizational-behavior-and-motivation-psychological-and-sociological-insights Richard Romando.(2011) Motivation Theory.

EzineArticles.com http://ezinearticles.com/?Motivation-Theory&id=410700 Accessed: March 10, 2011. Roy J Derrick. (2011). 15 Ways to Motivate Yourself. EzineArticles.com http://ezinearticles.com/?15-Ways-to-Motivate-Yourself&id=6055805 Accessed: March 10, 2011. John B. Miner (2002). Organizational Behavior: Foundations, Theories, and Analyses. Contributors: - author. Publisher: Oxford University Press. Place of Publication: Oxford. Publication Year: 2002. Page Number: 3. Lyndsay Swinton (2011).

Workplace Conflict Management: Strategy for Successful Resolution. Management for the Rest of Us Online (MFTROU.com) http://www.mftrou.com/workplace-conflict-management-strategy.html Shalu Bhatti (2010). The Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI)5, Conflict Management Strategies.Buzzle.com http://www.buzzle.com/articles/conflict-management-strategies.html Accessed: March 10, 2011. Michael Newman (2009). Conflict Management Strategies In the Work Place. ArticlesBase.com, http://www.articlesbase.

com/organizational-articles/conflict-management-strategies-in-the-work-place-1321511.html#ixzz1GEF3F2PG Access March 10, 2011.