It seems reasonable to begin with motivational issues that exist with MaCallister within the scope of his current service in the department. There are two crucial aspects to which attention is to be paid. Firstly, it is the fact that the officer is close to the end of his carrier. Such a state of affairs implies that MaCallister does not seem to pursue any of the related goals that can be achieved in the long run. He realizes that there is no necessity to gain a significant reputation among the management – the attainments of the officer’s long work in the police speak for themselves. In his mind, he is more focused on the way he will spend his future life without job-related responsibilities after retirement. Secondly, the motivational issue of his personal life should be provided at this point. Currently, MaCallister has several contradictions with his wife, and they are now in a quarrel. This is crucial as well, given that the officer has been dreaming of traveling with his wife after he retires. The dream is threatened, and MaCallister has an exact extent of depression.
Then, Officer Timons tends to have the following motivational issues. Unlike MaCallister, he is at the beginning of his service in the police. He expresses a willingness to gain a significant reputation and become a recognized professional. However, at times, Timons seems to “overdo” his duties and is too excited to serve as a policeman in movies like Dirty Harry rather than dedicate himself to public service. Moreover, Timons’s father is a retired Marine who is likely to put pressure on him to be aggressive in the struggle against crime. Timons has great potential which is confirmed by his performance at the Academy, but his over-eager approach is to be changed.
The revealed information about the officers allows for analyzing their motivational issues – as well as defining their basic need drives – through the prism of Maslow’s theory. The latter suggests that each individual has a complicated collection of extraordinarily intense needs. A need that is most pressing at any one time in a person’s life determines how they will act. Maslow classified human needs into five categories. Firstly, these are physiological requirements, such as those for food, clothes, air, water, and sleep. Secondly, these are economic, physical, and living environments – security needs. Thirdly, these are social demands that include communication, relationships, and group activities. Fourthly, this is respect for oneself, which implies advancement or recognition from others. Fifthly, this is self-actualization, which means developing oneself via self-expression and self-identification (Miller et al., 2020). According to the theory, any motivational plan must be developed and put into action with a thorough grasp of human requirements. In reality, management must seek out people’s unmet wants to start the motivating process after realizing the fundamental nature of human needs.
In MaCallister’s case, it seems that his social basic need drive is not met. His problems in his personal life negatively affect his performance at work. The officer does not see any sense in service, given that there is no confidence in the future after retirement. He is under the pressure of feeling lonely, which results in a lack of motivation. Then, Timons’s situation is different because he has trouble with the basic need drive of self-actualization (Compton, 2018). Indeed, his ambitions are high, and given Timons’s temperament, before reaching them, he will feel the worthlessness of his actions. Such a motivational problem does not allow him to assess his approach to service properly.
After the motivational issues of both officers were presented and analyzed, it is important to define the way I – as a manager – can help to address them. My managerial style is close to the established concept of transformational management. Typically, I push my employees outside of their comfort zones so they may learn they are more competent than they initially imagined (Bush, 2017). I believe change and progress are the only ways to stay ahead of the trend. Employees are encouraged to continue setting higher standards, which improves team performance. I tend to take into account employees’ needs and strengths, further helping them to convert these aspects into significant performance.
Given my management style, it can be appropriate for me to apply Theory Y in the motivational framework. It implies that the ultimate objective should be a level of integration where employees may pursue their objectives by focusing on the success of the company (Miller et al., 2020). To ensure the success of the department, Timons and MaCallister should be inspired to grow to the fullest extent possible. Hence, for the former, it will be important to reveal to him that his performance can be significant without being aggressive by showing my service as an example. For MaCallister, it will be essential to make him believe that his life experience and intelligence will inevitably help in resolving the problems with his wife. MaCallister and I can discuss their situation in an informal atmosphere.
It should also be noted that neither my nor the officers’ level of formal education would be an obstacle to addressing the issues. For instance, MacCallister’s problem lies in the sphere of life experience and does not require any educational background. Then, Timons’s case is referred rather to his ability to listen and follow the example of recognized officers. Finally, I possess the necessary knowledge to apply the mentioned theories in practice.
References
Bush, T. (2017). The enduring power of transformational leadership. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 45(4), 563–565.
Compton, W. C. (2018). Self-actualization myths: What did Maslow really say?Journal of Humanistic Psychology.
Miller, L. S., More, H. W., & Braswell, M. C. (2020). Effective police supervision (9th ed.). Taylor & Francis.