Senior admin Manager (SAM) for Radiology Jack recognised that the admin staff need to be appreciated as they were undervalued ‘Admin staff don’t feel like they are valued by either the hospital or the public’.
The other senior employees had identified that Admin staffs don’t feel either the hospital or the public values them. It was also identified when they deal directly with the public they are the ones who receive a verbal beating if things didn’t go right.
Earlier ideas of tacky certificates, a photocopied letter from the Chief Executive of the Hospital Trust which employed them or a photograph in the Hospital newsletter were unproductive and did not ‘improve morale’ and ‘team spirit’ as primarily the admin staff did not really benefit from these schemes they saw them as empty gestures. Therefore ‘Where they help out above and beyond the call of duty’ the helping hands initiative was introduced as a reward scheme given to the administration staff for basically showing them how much the hospital appreciates them.
Jack’s admin staff liked him, and he believed that ‘money wasn’t everything’ through that he showed a ‘strong sense of morality and duty’.
Due to this Jack gives the impression of a McGregor’s Theory Y manager as he has tried to create opportunity for his staff to develop their own responsibility through the idea of job enrichment and motivation.
Blake and Mouton also suggest that managers with high concern for production and a high concern for people characterise the most effective leadership style. Jack also seems to be a structural leader featuring in the Four Framework Approach suggested by Bolman and Deal. As he focuses on structure, strategy, implementation, experimentation and adaptation of the Helping Hands Initiative for the workers.
The types of leadership seemed different in every department, but
As Daphne had a ‘reputation for being able to keep calm in a crisis’. It also appeared that as long as her department was running smoothly she wasn’t concerned about the others. She says ‘Don’t be so melodramatic’ and states ‘You just need to make sure you keep all you medics and PAMs in line like I do’ saying its an improvement for her staff as they ‘can understand what to do in any given role within her department’.
Job rotation was firmly supported by staff as they thought it would give them’ a greater understanding of the department’s operations’
Before admin staff reported to one manager but under the new reorganisation they were put into teams and were supported by all staff by a particular area of the departments. As a result the staff were responsive to whoever was in charge of the area. This could be anyone from a consultant to a PAM or an administrator.
Accordingly the problem develop into reporting responsibilities, everyone thought that they were in charge.
‘The junior admin staff are getting pulled in six different directions at once’.
staff unauthorised absences went up 20% and the ‘best admin officers handed in their resignations’. Furthermore the staff in the A & E became so disorganised from the reorganisation that they ‘were becoming experts in crisis management’
As stated by John Adair and his ideas of Action centred leadership; within the work group the three key areas that need to be met are the following:
- Task
- Team maintenance
- Individual needs
The reward will motivate employees on two fronts as it will satisfy their needs in two forms their Intrinsic and Extrinsic motivations.
It satisfies the extrinsic motivation because it is related to ‘tangible’ rewards such as, the work environment, conditions of work, salary, security, promotion, and contract of service. These tangible rewards are often established at the organisational level and may be in principal outside the control of individual managers.
It satisfies these to a lesser extent because they are given a rewarding benefit of a tangible reward i.e.‘weekend break at a health spa, or return flights for two in Paris, or Marks & Spencer vouchers, or a subsidised night out for the section they work in, or any number of things’.
Intrinsic motivation is when an activity is satisfying or pleasurable in and of itself; it is linked to psychological rewards such as chance to use one’ ability, a sense of challenge and success, receiving appreciation, and positive recognition, and being treated in a caring and understanding manner. The psychological rewards are those that can generally be determined by the actions and behaviour of individual managers.
Intrinsic rewards are available now through the recognition they will receive by winning the reward. The all feel excited by possibility and challenge of winning the award and receiving recognition for their caring work that they felt for so long they have not been receiving.
Leadership was not organised enough as they now also started to include Central Services on to the reward as well. In the case of Brenda however she set a new precedent by deliberately choosing to ignore the social relationships within the department in return for a personal reward. Some of the staff now thought ‘ it would generate level of distrust within the teams and disrupt the team spirit that they sought hard to develop’. Therefore this shows that others in her department thought she did not really deserve the award, she was also the first one to choosing the option of health spa for herself whilst the previous winners chose an option with their admin colleagues. Basically staff will not get motivated in their job roles if they believe that the award being handed to an undeserving person. Also the fact that previous award was shared and not this one may lead to team is isolating that member thus fragmenting the team. This will lead to the team morale and maintenance needs being affected in adverse way due to the initiative.
Lastly I will summarise all findings and clearly show all major factors that will influence the motivation of the administrative team deriving from the initiative.
My main findings are that leadership can only be improved with the hospital by better organisation and the leader will need to interrelate the demand of the task and the team as well as those of individual members. This means being directive when it is necessary; giving praise and constructive feedback when people need it; ensuring everyone and everything it operating to its full potential. This includes that they are clear about their objectives. The initiative works as a satisfier and gives staff the feeling of recognition and accomplishment it also motivates staff by rewarding them in a way, which improves employee morale. The feeling that staff gained by the award felt them will feeling of self-fulfilment.
