Notesale: Turn your study into money

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Employee motivation and work
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(DuBrin, 1978)
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All- encompassing nature of the concept-complexity of the concept (human aspect makes it
complex)
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Issue of technological advancement – job design
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It is an internal state experienced by the individual
The individual experiences a motivational state in a way that gives rise to a desire, intention
or pressure to act
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Motivation is a multi-faceted phenomenon a complex process
Individuals differ in terms of their motivational state & the factors that affect the individuals
motivational state vary across time & situations
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Motivating other people involves getting them to move in
the direction you want them to go
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Motivating yourself is about setting
the direction independently and then setting about taking a course of action which will ensure that
you get there
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People are motivated when they expect that a course of action is likely to lead to achieving a goal
and a valued reward (one that satisfies their needs)
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The organisation can provide
the context within which high levels of motivation can be achieved by providing incentives and
rewards, satisfying work and opportunities for learning and growth
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And get people to give it their best
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Management must motivate employees through extrinsic and intrinsic outcomes
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Extrinsic outcomes are tangible & visible e
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pay increase, company car
Intrinsic outcomes relate to the satisfaction of personal wants & desires e
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increased
autonomy, responsibility & feedback
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These needs create wants, which are desires to achieve or obtain
something goals are then established which its expected will satisfies these needs/wants & a
behaviour path in selected which its believed will achieve the goals
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If the goal is not achieved the behaviour and the action are less likely to be repeated
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(Hull 1951)
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People react in
different ways to different stimuli and theories of employee motivation seek to identify factors that
induce good or bad performance, suggesting how management might apply these at company level
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It is also acknowledged that motivation is only one factor affecting performance; other factors
particularly technology, training & individual ability, will have a significant influence on performance
levels
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If needs are satisfied, employees are motivated to work at high-performance levels
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Content theories
Focuses on the wants & needs that indiviuals are trying to satisfy or achieve…
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Process theories
Focuses on how the external context drives individuals to behave in a particular fashion
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Vrooms expectancy theory
Adams equity theory
Goal theory – latham & locke (1979)
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The process theory is also known as cognitive
theory because of its concern with people’s perceptions of their working environment and ways
in which they interpret and understand it
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Which he
suggests have been shown by extensive research to be wrong
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Most employees dislike responsibility & prefer direction
Employees want only security & material rewards
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If the work itself & organisation
environment is appropriate, employees will willingly work without need for coercion or
control
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People at work want responsibility
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Herzbergs dual factor theory
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Motivating factors – factors which contributed most to employees satisfaction at work
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(e
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pay, working conditions, status, personal life)
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1
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2
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Herzberg’s research identifies a number of basic needs such as achievement,
recognition, advancement and the work itself
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This research has also drawn attention to the concept of
intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and the fact that intrinsic motivation which is mainly
derived from the work itself will have a longer lasting effect
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The process theory is also known as cognitive theory because it is concerned with peoples
perceptions of their working environment and the ways in which they interpret and understand it
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Process theory can be more useful to managers than needs theory because it provides more realistic
guidance on motivation techniques
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Feelings about equity (equity theory)
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Focuses on the relationship between effort put into completion of activities & the
expectations that accrue as a result of effort
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Influenced by factors such as personality, perception, motives, skills & abilities &
organisational factors e
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culture, structure & managerial style
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Instrumentality: probability that a given level of achieved task performance will lead to
various work outcomes
Valence: value attached by the individual to various work outcomes
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It assumes a type of rationality with respect to how the individual thinks and behaves, which
may not exist
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Adams equity theory:
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Based on a comparison between inputs (what an individual brings to employment) &
outputs (factors received in return for input)
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Where inequity is perceived, the individual tries to restore equity
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Disregarding the comparable other & referring to a new one
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Job design:
Job design is concerned with the specification of the contents, methods, and relationships of jobs in
order to satisfy technological & organisational requirements, as well as the social & personal
requirements of the job holder
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Central issue is how to design to ensure best fit

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Work organisational design refers to the way the various tasks in the organisation are
structured and carried out
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The job
can be regarded as a unit in an organisational structure that remains unchanged whoever is in the
job
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Routine or machine controlled jobs exist in most organisations but
increasingly the work carried out by the people is not mechanistic
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A more flexible approach
than the previously used rigid one is more often required to use in an organisation that needs to
respond swiftly to an ever changing work environment
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To satisfy the requirements of the organisation for productivity, operational efficiency &
quality of product or service; and
2
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Clearly these aims are interrelated & overall objective of job design is to integrate the needs of
the individual with those of the organisation
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The tasks that have to
be carried out if the purpose of the organisation is to be achieved
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Consideration must also be given to another important aim of job design: to fulfil the social
responsibilities of the organisation to the people who work in it by improving the quality of working
life, an aim which is cited in Armstrong that depends upon both efficiency of performance &
satisfaction of the worker
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An integrated approach to job design suggests that the following motivating characteristics are of
prime importance in job design
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Autonomy
Variety
Use of abilities
Feedback
Belief that the task is significant
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Task specialisation
- Classical approach to job design
- Reflects the traditional approach to the organisation of work to maximise the efficiency of
the technical system
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(more about this on handout
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This provides for intrinsic motivation by giving people autonomy & the means to control
their work, which will include feedback information
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A self managing team:

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Enlarges individual jobs to include a wider range of operative skills (multiskilling)
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Distributes tasks itself among its members
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None the less, the strength of this system is that it does take account of the group or social
factors & the technology as well as the individual motivators
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Seeks to increase employees influence & involvement in work organisation & job design
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Low QWL
-Low levels of significance
Variety, identity and feedback
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Motive behind HPWS is desire & need to improve overall competitive position of the
organisation
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Main aim is to generate high levels of commitment & involvement of employees &
managers
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Involves new/different approaches to management of employees & structure of jobs &
systems
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More strategic focus

Focus on performance rather
than job experience

QWL
Concentrates on reducing
absenteeism and turnover

Long term comprehensive
strategy

Rationale was based on
improving the job experience
of employees
More limited involves only a
re-orientation in the role of
first line supervisors
Quick fix applied to isolated
& problematic work groups

Representative of strategic
HRM

More of a personal
administration technique

Major change in
management style

HPWS
Improve organisation
competitiveness through
increased flexibility & quality
Strong focus on performance
criteria
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Major change initiative
affecting the whole org
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Key element of strategic
HRM
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1
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2
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3
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However it would be a mistake to assume that money motivates everyone in the same way and
to the same extent as some people are more motivated by money than others
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Do financial icentives motivate people?

Money may I itself have no intrinsic meaning but it acquires significant motivating power
because it comes to symbolise so many intangible goals
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Goldthorpe (1968) from his research into the affluent worker suggests that pay is the dominant
factor in the choice of employer & considerations of pay seem most powerful in binding people
to their present job
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Less confident employees may not respond to
incentives that they do not expect to achieve
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Money can provide positive motivation in the right circumstances, not only because people need
& want money but also because it serves as a highly tangible means of recognition
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Determining the worth of the job plus setting up basic pay levels are critical aspects in
establishing a pa system
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The choice of
system reflects corporate approqch to human resource management, while impacting on areas
such as employee relations, supervisory style & employee motivation
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(mooney 1980) reward package will be influenced by:
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Company ownership – international companies use performance related bonus schemes
Size of organisation – PRBS are more common in larger companies while SME’s tend to use
flat rate only
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Compensation/ pay systems include:
1
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2
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3
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4
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5
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g
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6
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7
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(i)
Flat rate only-traditional approach to reward, these schemes pay an employee for
the time spent on the job & no incentive is provided for actual performance
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Particularly useful for managerial and admin jobs
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They help to attract employees to join the organisation but their motivation or
potential is limited
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Also found that the system was
increasingly being combined with incentive payment pay systems based on some measures
of performance
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However in this instance,
working time is organised on an annualised rather than a weekly basis
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According to O Sullivan (1996) it is increasingly being regarded as an
important alternative to the standard 39 hour week plus overtime in Irish business
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Reduces overtime costs, closer match between output& demand & a
reduction in absenteeism
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Methods for calculating annual hours contract:
2 methods both producing same result:
1
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18 weeks
Annual leave = 4 weeks
Public holidays = 1
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working week = 46
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82 (net basic working hours)
2
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25 days comprise of 8766 hours e
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employee works 39 hours a week
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25/7= 2035 hours a year
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20 days annual leave 7
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8x9
In addition to the above methods the company should benefit from the efficiencies of an annual
hours contract system because of a closer match between output and demand
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The disadvantages cited by O’Sullivan (1996) include: the necessity to recover monies owing to the
company if an employee leaves during the year, In addition to the need to reorganise and make a
culture and value changes which may be met with resistance
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There is a belief that the traditional wage/employment relationship, where the employees are
simply rewarded by straight salaries, is ideal for a modern competitive economy
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Employee acceptance will depend on perceived equity in performance evaluation
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