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Contents
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Introduction |
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Main Body |
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Conclusion |
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References |
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Introduction
Motivation is essential in managing people, especially in business environments where employee performance significantly influences organisational success. It incorporates individual, organisational, and environmental forces that promote the accomplishment of people's tasks and objectives. Every manager should acquaint himself or herself with motivation theories to develop a productive workforce. One prominent theory is Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory, which divides motivational drivers into two categories: needs referred to as hygiene factors including receipt, working conditions, and career opportunities and incentive factors including recognition, growth, and advancement. Hygiene factors help to avoid dissatisfaction while motivation factors lead to long-term employee satisfaction and high performance.
This essay will examine how managers can practically apply Herzberg’s theory to enhance employee motivation, drawing on a real-life example of a successful organisation. Also, it will examine the implications of understanding the differences among the employees, because different factors can inspire people. The essay will also give approaches for dealing with nonperforming employees, especially regarding motivation will also take into consideration the implications of failure in motivation and its effect on productivity and organisational culture. It is of paramount importance for managers to learn and utilise motivation theories such as Herzberg’s theory to produce a motivated and high-performance workforce.
Main Body
Theory of Motivation: Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory
Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory categoris
es motivational drivers into two distinct groups: hygiene factors and motivators. Some of the hygiene factors are the following: they are all extrinsic to the job content, and among them are the pay, job security, degree of physical conditions and the company’s policies etc (Hipos and Benavides, 2023). However, all these factors, as has been explained, are not conducive to long-term job satisfaction but conversely, their lack or insufficiency will create dissatisfaction and demotivation. For example, when people get poor working conditions or earn low wages, though their tasks may be enjoyable, their motivation may be adversely affected.
On the other hand, motivators are the internal factors that hinge on the characteristics of the job as well as on individual growth. Some of the rewards include recognition, which is an indication that the employees’ efforts are valued; responsibility which shows a claim on company assets; achievement which demonstrates that the employees’ performance is appreciated; and personal development in terms of growth and learning. Rewards play an essential role in encouraging commitment, and satisfaction at work and compelling employees to work to the optimum level. For instance, allowing workers to have purposeful work, acknowledging them for their efforts and promoting them to other jobs may enhance their desire to work and commitment levels extremely.
Herzberg’s theory can therefore be used by managers to fulfill the hygiene factors to prevent dissatisfaction while at the same time promoting the motivators towards higher satisfaction and productivity levels (Mehrad, 2020). It can also be seen that this dual approach is effective in motivating the employees and leading to improved productivity in organisations hence success.
The practicality of Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory can be well understood by managers on how to motivate employees. First, they need to ensure that hygiene factors are attended to ensure that dissatisfaction is kept to a minimum. This includes offering comparable wages, issues of employment security, decorating the working environment to be safe and comfortable, and having well-understood legal working policies. However, even if these aspects are perfectly aligned, they will not necessarily increase people’s long-term motivation but they are necessary to prevent median dissatisfaction in-workers (Oritseweyinmi, 2020). For instance, a clear compensation policy and an effective organisational environment mean that the employees are well-protected and satisfied with what they get and this is very important in making sure that they satisfy their base level of satisfaction (Mullins, 2016).
After these hygiene factors are achieved, the managers should concern themselves with the motivator to elicit a high level of performance among the workers. It involves rewarding the employees, providing them the chance to grow within the organisation, and giving them tasks which give them a feeling of responsibility and success. For instance, motivating employees to accept responsibility and take pride in their projects can go a long way in enhancing their internal drives and thus, their production.
Thus, by addressing both hygiene factors and motivators in the workplace, managers can provide an ideal ratio where the workers not only do not get dissatisfied but also get motivated to work with full efficiency (Ali and Anwar, 2021). As such Herzberg’s model offers a useful tool for maintaining and enhancing the motivation level of the workforce and consequently boost productivity.
Real-Life Example: Google’s Approach to Motivation
A real-life example of a corporation described under this framework and that employs diverse motivation strategies based on Herzberg’s theory is Google. Google is a company that can be characterised by a highly productive and innovative staff The company pays much attention to both hygiene factors and motivators (Uka and Prendi, 2021). They provide their employees with fair wages, attractive insurance packages, and the best working environment as well as good and comfortable offices and multiple choices of working from home. These hygiene factors help to make sure that the employees are content with the physical utilities of their workplace.
Still, what truly delineates Google is the motivators it places a great deal of emphasis in. There are many career development opportunities in the company for self-education, the company expects each employee to spend some of his or her work time on a personal project. This floats the employees’ white water, the need to accomplish something and the self-actualisation which is also a motivator according to Herzberg’s theory. Also, reciprocity is well observed by availing ‘Culture of Recognition’ where every valuable employee appreciates recognition from other employees and Google. Though there may be many factors that demotivate Google employees, such as lack of privacy and feeling overworked, Google always makes sure that employees are motivated and this is possible through granting autonomy in job roles, creativity, and career development.
It approximates Herzberg’s theory that motivation arises from internal forces (Hoque et al., 2021). These include freedom in exercising innovations, chances of career advancements, and the outright goal of recognition of the employees: all these factors work well as they enhance the ability of Google to retain talented employees and this leads to optimum levels of productivity.
Importance of Recognising Individual Differences
When using motivation theories, the managers need to understand that the employee in question will be unique in some ways for any other employee. Employee attributes including personality, cultural orientation, career goals, and individual situations affect the reception that motivators will receive. For instance, some of them need appreciation from their superiors and colleagues, while others are interested in further education, promotions, or flexible schedules. Due to this, there is diversity, which must be considered by the managers for motivation of the employees to allow for the variation in the preferences exhibited by the workers.
For example, let us consider an employee with high affiliation instinct as asserted by McClelland’s Theory of Needs; he/she will do well in an organization that fosters a team work spirit and discourages working in isolation (Cespedes and Nguyen, 2020). In contrast, an employee who is motivated by the need for achievement may desire to take more tasks that are difficult and are personalized in the sense that they can work independently without interference and the results of the job are vested on the employee. These are the differences of motivation that managers should consider to motivate the employees effectively and, in a way, appealing to them.
When the theorists do not include the human element in the learning process, problems like frustration, disengagement and low performance are observed. Managers must spend time listening to their subordinates regarding their motivational factors to be able to develop the best approach to the personnel. The management can successfully tailor motivation methods since doing so will benefit employees’ satisfaction as well as the overall office ethos.
Motivating Unmotivated Employees
Lack of motivation can be a very challenge to managers because unmotivated employees affect other employees in the organization. Inattentive employees may work inefficiently, destroy the atmosphere, and affect people around them. But the managers can do the following to ensure these employees are motivated:
Job enrichment is another useful strategy: this approach expands the number of demanding and interesting tasks in an employee’s description. In this case, Herzberg posits that one must increase responsibility and make employees understand the result of their efforts. For instance, seeing an employee’s poor performance level, a manager may assign him her or to head a specific project or assume a new task; they may get motivated again.
Open and concise information sharing is also very important. It is, therefore, important for managers to have the patience and try to find out the real cause of low motivation in an employee or group of employees could be due to; family problems, lack of incentives, or job dissatisfaction (Hee et al., 2018). It will be possible to find the solutions during the open conversations that may include the changes in employees’ responsibilities, the need for further training, or the chance to become mentors.
Reward and recognition are other activities that can be employed by managers to re-motivate inactive employees. Even if it seems mere tokenism, publicly valuing these people’s efforts can have the effect of increasing their morale and, thus, the worth of their work. Additional motivation can also be derived from other motivators like Performance bonuses, or an opportunity to work on a favourite project.
Consequences of Unmotivated Employees
The motivation affects the employees in every company, and it lowers the general performance of the business. They fail to work to the expected levels, produce poor quality results and most time complete their tasks a day or even later. In the long run, the employees will begin exerting corrosive influence on other workers in the company and generally high turnover is experienced. First, high turnover means several changes which affect the teamwork as well as the implementation of goals and objectives. Secondly, many changes result in higher recruitment and training expenses to the organization (Gallagher, 2013).
This essay makes use of an example of an organization that had to deal with cases of demotivated employees – Zappos.com – an online shoe and clothing store. Zappos has a clear focus on organizational culture and employee engagement (Yew, 2020). To obviate the chance of having the new employees be unmotivated, the company pays all its new hires a “quitting bonus” after the first week of training. If the employees believe that they do not get a chance to be motivated or do not fit the company’s culture, they can be bought out. This effective approach enables Zappos to keep its workers loyal and dedicated meaning that they uphold the interest of the business while delivering on the company’s objectives.
Through the adoption of engagement activities and addressing motivation problems as they arise, Zappos minimises chances of discontentment after a long time and therefore has a healthy working atmosphere. This approach shows that organisational management that involves addressing the issue of unmotivated employees before they turn out to be a threat to other employees or the whole organisational system is efficient (Leatherbarrow, Fletcher, and Currie, 2018)
Conclusion
In conclusion, motivation is an essential factor when it comes to managing people at the workplace as it influences people’s productivity and organisational performance. Herzberg’s Two Factor Theory is quite helpful for managers to understand the need to satisfy hygiene factors or the contextual satisfaction of the employees such as salaries and work environments, and motivators which include personal satisfaction or personal needs such as career growth, recognition within a company to improve the performance of the employees. Google is one of the successful firms that have embraced such motivational strategies because they create high levels of employee engagement and productivity.
Equally important is understanding the variations that exist in employees including any form of diversity. Promoting motivational strategies in line with the needs and preferred choices of the workers makes them feel valued, hence leading to improved morale. This is because dealing with unmotivated employees through means of job improvement, communication and incentive recognition eliminates the vices associated with disengagement such as low morale and productivity.
Ultimately, knowledge and use of theories such as Herzberg’s theory increase the capability of managers to motivate their workers, enhance their work output, and foster a healthy organisational culture that will be more advantageous to both the employees and the organisation. In addition to getting results, motivational theories ensure that an organisation creates a nutritious and loyal workforce.
References
Ali, B.J. and Anwar, G., (2021). An empirical study of employees’ motivation and its influence job satisfaction. Ali, BJ, & Anwar, G.(2021). An Empirical Study of Employees’ Motivation and its Influence Job Satisfaction. International Journal of Engineering, Business and Management, 5(2), pp.21-30.
Cespedes, A. and Nguyen, N., (2020). Teamworking: a practical approach.
Gallagher, K. (2013) for skills development, relevant to understanding motivation in a business context.
Hee, O.C., Yan, L.H., Rizal, A.M., Kowang, T.O. and Fei, G.C., (2018). Factors influencing employee job satisfaction: A conceptual analysis. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(6), pp.331-340.
Hipos, A.M.G. and Benavides, N.G., (2023). Motivation, Hygiene Factors, and Job Satisfaction of Elementary Teachers in Irosin Districts. United International Journal for Research & Technology, 4(05).
Hoque, F., Rabbany, M.G., Anny, S.A. and Akter, A., (2021). Level of job satisfaction in Agribusiness sector in Bangladesh: An application of Herzberg two factors motivation theory. Global Journal of Human Resource Management, 9(2), pp.31-59.
Leatherbarrow, C., Fletcher, J. & Currie, D. (2018) for HR management theories and concepts.
Mehrad, A., (2020). Evaluation of academic staff job satisfaction at Malaysian universities in the context of Herzberg’s Motivation-Hygiene Theory. Journal of Social Science Research, 15(1), pp.157-166.
Mullins, L.J. (2016) for insights on organizational behavior and motivational strategies.
Oritseweyinmi, I.D., (2020). Staff labor motivation system reengineering through key performance indicators of an enterprise.
Uka, A. and Prendi, A., (2021). Motivation as an indicator of performance and productivity from the perspective of employees. Management & Marketing, 16(3), pp.268-285.
Yew, S.Y., (2020). Holacracy in action: Zappos experience replicability.
