Introduction
In the James Bond film 'Live and Let Die ', Agent 007 is being pursued by a group of gangsters. The leader of the group announces over the radio -"The man that gets Agent 007 stays alive". This is the most commonly practiced form of motivation. However, is it motivation at all?
This assignment will attempt to evaluate and discuss how managers should but actually do try to motivate employees when there are so many different individuals with different needs, personalities etc. It will cover the history of motivation to its present day practice. It would also compare all the existing popular theories on motivation and what the "Gurus" on this subject have to say about it.
Motivation is a separate subject in its own right and many books have been written on it. Motivation is an art, commerce, and now science too. Is the biggest motivator/ de-motivator for most people how much they love the job/ task itself or is it money or something totally different altogether? Maybe William Shakespeare was right when he had said "To business that we love we rise betime, And go to't with delight".
One of every manager's most important roles is to motivate the team and in order to do so, he/she must understand how and why people are motivated as individuals as well as in teams. The problem really is that motivation can be brought about in a variety of ways and the manager may have to experiment (which can be a costly affair) to get to the most effective formula for the group/ individuals.
History of Motivation
Motivation must have existed since the evolution of humankind. It might have been in existence in different forms in different societies and situations. Our ancestors must have had some self-motivation to be able to create fire from their need for warmth and cooking and creating tools and weapons in their need for survival. The less motivated individuals or groups or those who might have been motivated in different ways might have been left behind in the competition against those whose motivation were in tune with the needs of the time.
Older motivation techniques
Before Frederick W. Taylor, the father of scientific management, the techniques followed were simplistic but often very successful. However, such practices are no longer socially acceptable in a modern industrialized society as it has become more civilized. Those pre-scientific methods were coercion, conniving, compensation, and most powerfully- fear. We must admit that they still operate in many of our smaller and unorganized organizations.
One of the most obvious forms of motivation is fear. Fear can be exercised in many subtle ways from rumor to naked aggression. The modern equivalents of the fear strategy are threats of job redundancy, being moved to a different area, change of job status and so on. There cannot be any doubt that in the very short run fear is a good motivator, but the people subjected to such a strategy will, eventually, want revenge, often in the form of leaving the organization, or at least, just functioning at the minimum level to remain in the organization.
Coercion can be regarded as a modified form of threat and fear using authority as a means of motivation. At its simplest, when the CEO asks the employee to do something it carries with it a greater implication of perceived threat than when the line-manager tells to do the same thing. Whether it is fair, to regard coercion as a motivational tool often depends on the organization and that in turn is dependent upon the history of the organization and how it has coerced people in the past.
Motivation can often be achieved by manipulation. Manipulation consists ...
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Coercion can be regarded as a modified form of threat and fear using authority as a means of motivation. At its simplest, when the CEO asks the employee to do something it carries with it a greater implication of perceived threat than when the line-manager tells to do the same thing. Whether it is fair, to regard coercion as a motivational tool often depends on the organization and that in turn is dependent upon the history of the organization and how it has coerced people in the past.
Motivation can often be achieved by manipulation. Manipulation consists of maneuvering a person into a set of circumstances where they feel that their best course of action is to act as the manager has intimated he wishes them to act. Manipulation is not designed so that the person being manipulated feels that they are achieving any goals of their own, usually the best they can hope for is that they are not placed in a disadvantageous position by non-compliance. One of the most common forms of manipulation exercised by organizations is when the company (without any undue pressure) offers promotion through a job move to a different location, and at the same time hints that in this organization promotion is only offered once by this route, and if you turn it down you will not be offered the chance again.
Positive motivation techniques
Up to this point, we have seen how people were motivated by various forms of fear, and they acted in ways indicated because they felt that any other course of action is detrimental to them.
There have also been positive motivation techniques practiced historically using incentives in cash or kind. Money had always been regarded as a prime motivator and other techniques like more power, better position, better job location etc. have been used throughout history. The naïve interpretation that people can be only motivated by money kept disappearing throughout time and finally motivation became a subject area of study.
Modern motivation techniques
We can now look at more positive motivation techniques where, by their correct application, people will act in the way we want them to because they believe it actually achieves goals of their own! Though it is true that if a person is not paid what they perceive themselves to be worth, then they will not feel motivated, money is not a motivator by itself, but its absence is a de-motivator.
Rewards as a motivator
Sometimes even rewards that seem to be a great idea can be counter-productive. ESOPs or Employee Share Option Plans is a modern reward given by some companies, but it can be de-motivating if the share prices fall, and we have all seen how volatile the shares market can be. In effect, employees then discover they are not only sharing the profits or the growth of the company, but also in its losses during recessions. Even 'employee-of the month/year' rewards can lead to de-motivation among other employees who feel they should have got the reward. It is the same case with the "employee-of the month/year awards" as it can seriously de-motivate all the other employees who think they should have got the awards.
Theories on Motivation
There are several theories on motivation, which can be divided into four categories.
Need Based Theories
The most widely known theories of motivation are the hierarchy of needs theory, developed by psychologist Abraham Maslow. This divides our needs into five levels starting with physiological needs, such as food, water, and shelter. Then come the safety needs, belongingness needs, esteem needs and finally our Self-actualization needs. (Bartol and Martin, 1984)
The ERG theory by Clayton Alderfer divides our deeds into Existence Needs, Relatedness Needs and Growth Needs (Bartol and Martin, 1984)
David C. McClelland offered a different perspective with his acquired-needs theory, which argues that our needs are acquired or learned based on our life experiences. It talks of Need for Achievement (nAch), Need for Affiliation (nAff), and the Need for Power (nPow) personal power and institutional power. (Cartwright R, 1998)
Cognitive Theories
Cognitive Theories: - Expectancy Theory/ Equity Theory/ Goal-setting Theory/ Assessing Cognitive Theories/ Theory X, Y and Z/ Hygiene Factors
These theories attempt to isolate the thinking patterns that we use in deciding whether or not to behave in a certain way.
(Cartwright R, 1998) A 1981 study by Pascale and Athos that compared major US and Japanese organizations, came out in the same year that W. Ouchi produced his Theory Z concept.
(Cartwright R, 1998) Theory Z was based on the employment conditions in many Japanese organizations at the time. Theory Z unlike McGregor's ideas was based on the organization and not people. Theory Z organizations were characterized by offering life time employment (thus ensuring a considerable degree of financial security), providing social activities for employees (including shops, schools and medical care), involving permanent staff in shared decision-making and had subordinate-manager relationships based on mutual respect.
The motivational calculus
Handy talked about a motivational calculus that allows us to decide how much effort to put n to a task based on needs and rewards (McClelland, 1985).
Each need has strength and each reward can be quantified in how instrumental it is in reducing that need. The effort required will depend on both these factors. This explains, in theoretical terms, why persistent failure produces a lowering of goals.
Psychological contracts: Handy divided psychological contracts into three types: - Coercive, calculative and co-operative (McClelland, 1985)
V. H. Vroom was the originator of what has become known as the expectancy theory of motivation.
EXPECTANCY THEORY
Source: Spencer and Adrian (1992)
Reinforcement Theories
According to this, our behavior can be explained by consequences in the environment and therefore, it is not necessary to look for cognitive reasons. Instead, it relies heavily on a concept called the law of effect, which states that behaviors having pleasant or positive consequences are more likely to be repeated than ones having negative or unpleasant ones are. (Spencer and Adrian, 1992)
Social Learning Theory
Noted psychologist Albert Bandura developed this theory which argues that three cognitively related processes are particularly important in explaining our behavior: symbolic processes, vicarious learning and self-control (Bandura, 1977).
Conclusion
Once people recognize that they are being paid a reasonable wage, then motivation ceases if they think that other goals are not being met. If a person does not feel that their work is of value, that their work is appreciated or that their work is making a significant contribution to the team effort, then no amount of money will motivate them. Such a situation might make an employee feel that they are being overpaid to 'buy' them in some way and they might then become resentful and angry. Often their personal circumstances may not let them leave the job but they will be locked in a de-motivating cycle that is not beneficial to themselves or to their company.
In the late 70s and 80s, it was obvious that pre-scientific motivation techniques were being challenged and human resource departments were putting in place modern, more-enlightened, and progressive methods of motivation. This included clearer grading systems, wider share ownership schemes, more open and frank appraisal systems and better training and retraining. Unfortunately- but not surprisingly- the 1990s had seen a fast return to the old motivation techniques and some managers openly started applying pressure on the workforce to achieve the organization's objectives. Fear of redundancy and mobility are even now widely practiced forms of motivation, which discourages most people from challenging the systems, which in the end will lead to inefficiency and the continuance of bad working practices.
The 21st century has seen some progressive leaders pushing ahead with 'cultural change' as a path of motivation, while at the same time developing quality and customer focus initiatives. One of the latest trends noticed now is to give fancy designations, such as a receptionist being called Lobby Manager etc., which has the power to retain staff just for the fancy name even with the same job and the same pay!
In conclusion, then, money is not the only motivator, if used as a reward it becomes a norm, and increased supplies of money are then required to achieve the same level of activity or commitment, until overload and resentment are reached. However, the lack of money can definitely be a de-motivator.
References
Bandura Albert, Social Learning Theory, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N. J., 1977
Bartol Kathryn M. and Martin David C., Management, 2nd Ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, 1984
Cartwright R, Mastering Team Leadership, Palgrave Master Series, 1998
McClelland David C., Human Motivation, Scott, Foresman, Glenview, Illinois, 1985
Spencer John and Adrian Prus, Managing your Team, 1992, Judy Piatkus Publishers Ltd.
Bibliography
Bandura Albert, Social Learning Theory, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N. J., 1977
Bartol Kathryn M. and Martin David C., Management, 2nd Ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, 1984
Cartwright R, Mastering Team Leadership, Palgrave Master Series, 2995
McClelland David C., Human Motivation, Scott, Foresman, Glenview, Illinois, 1985
Pinder Craig C., Work Motivation: Theory, Issues and Applications, Scott, Foresman, Glenview, Illinois, 1984
Spencer John and Prus. Adrian, Managing your Team, 1992, Judy Piatkus Publishers Ltd.
Steers Richard M. and Porter Lyman W. (eds.), Motivation and Work Behavior, 4th Ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, 1987
Management Theory & Practice Page 2 5/8/2007
Rishi Gosain MBA Semester 1 030RDATCF03
