Memo
The study of increasing the motivation of employees in the workplace to enhance productivity is an essential topic. Opportunities to increase this parameter affect the quality of the work performed positively, and performance indicators are the evidence of a specific motivational strategy’s effectiveness. In this regard, it is required to find appropriate methodologies and techniques aimed at increasing the desire of employees to improve their potential for the benefit of a particular organization. These strategies are useful both for the leaders of a certain enterprise who are interested in the development of their company and the employees themselves who can hone their skills and qualifications.
The search for optimal initiatives to increase the motivation of workers can be considered in the context of the existing theoretical academic base. Strategies to stimulate employees’ interests in more efficient and productive execution of their direct responsibilities are the subject of different authors’ research, and the corresponding techniques and approaches may be useful in considering potentially successful interventions. Techniques to increase working motivation can be assessed concerning their effectiveness in the framework of both individual enterprises and the labor market as a whole.
The methods described may be useful for the heads of structural divisions of different companies, senior management, and employees. It is expected that the material collected can be used as a guide for learning and a manual for developing interventions in the work process. The initiatives mentioned may be implemented almost at any enterprise, which makes them universal and valuable in terms of the ease of use. Employers can consider them and take topical measures to introduce these interventions into the work process without disturbing the natural working conditions.
Executive Summary
Statement of the Problem
Increasing employees’ motivation in the workplace is one of the priorities of management. Different strategies and approaches used by the leaders of organizations may be effective if these incentives meet the needs of subordinates. External and internal systems of motivation should be supervised by managers, and timely participation in enhancing the activity and productivity of workers is essential for a certain company to develop successfully.
Analysis
Among the theoretical techniques that examine the possibilities for increasing motivation and the criteria that affect this process, Maslow’s concept can be considered (McLeod, 2018). According to its provisions, each employee needs a certain list of needs that are to be viewed. Moreover, the separation of bonuses into tangible and intangible premiums is to be taken into account, and specific incentives may be developed for employees.
Stakeholders
The main stakeholders involved in implementing the appropriate motivation strategy are employers and employees. At the same time, there are different perspectives for these two groups. Senior management should participate in the development of relevant systems that encourage subordinates’ success. Employees, in turn, have an incentive to work hard if they see that their leaders take measures to encourage their efforts. Consequently, constant interaction is an essential criterion for labor productivity.
Graph
The graph proposed is one of the strategies for finding resources to achieve certain tasks and motivate employees. This scheme is one of the potential ones. The emphasis on stimulating the activities of subordinates can be successful if the necessary actions are taken by the management to maintain a favorable microclimate and create comfortable working conditions. Non-compliance with these conditions, on the contrary, may lead to the loss of interest and the poor performance of immediate duties.
Statement of the Problem
Motivation is, first and foremost, a psychological process that governs the actions of a particular person. Consequently, the motivation of the staff is the creation of special working conditions and incentives within the company that stimulate the employee to perform his or her immediate duties qualitatively and to achieve the set goals. A motivational system within a particular organization is called upon to perform certain tasks. For example, the creation of a positive mood within the team is one of the priority areas of team leaders’ work. According to Daniels and Bailey (2014), it is impossible to achieve goals successfully if the staff is not cohesive and there is no mutual assistance in the team.
Human activities are influenced by the motives that have arisen in the process of interaction of the employee with the task assigned and the stimuli that have emerged from the external environment and motivate to actions (Said, Zaidee, Zahari, Ali, & Salleh, 2015). In the first case, internal motivation is meant, and its example may be the desire to achieve and complete work, acquire experience, and gain valuable skills. In the second case, the incentives for activities are caused by external influences. It is an outward manifestation. When managing a particular organization, it is important to consider the presence of these two types of motivation since the leader can rely on just an external type, but at the same time taking into account the possibility of an internal one in the employee.
This separation of the evaluation system into a separate subsystem is due to several reasons. Firstly, the assessment itself is a motivating factor, therefore, it also influences the system-forming factor – employees’ behavior. Secondly, the evaluation of internal motivation allows receiving the degree of priority and satisfaction with the primary criteria of the working environment. It also contributes to building a stimulating profile and identifying the values and priorities of employees, which should be taken into account in management and, in particular, when building the subsystem of external motivation. Thirdly, the assessment of work quality and effectiveness is one of the essential reasons for the distribution of incentives. Besides, the evaluation subsystem provides a built-in mechanism for assessing the effectiveness of the motivation system in terms of such important indicators and criteria as the quality of work, labor results, turnover, that is, the constant self-assessment of the system is ensured.
While analyzing and designing such a complex management system as motivation, a system approach is very effective. Each method contains elements, links, goals, subsystems, that is, it has its structure. As Furnham and MacRae (2017) note, the system of motivation, like any system of human activity, is to be described by principles and methodologies. At the same time, while flexible, it should be subject to constant analysis and adjustments.
One of the difficulties that the management may encounter is the search for the most appropriate strategy for motivating subordinates. According to Osabiya (2015), different social and cultural backgrounds, gender differences, and other factors have a significant impact on the formation of people’s perceptions of their operational model. It, in turn, should encourage leaders to take active measures to find a universal methodology that will be relevant to the team with different people. Staff requirements should also be taken into account. Nevertheless, competent management implies a successful balance between achieving the goals through the quality work of subordinates and the search for such control strategies that will not cause complaints from employees. Having an opportunity to combine these types of activities effectively, it is possible to achieve significant performance success and, at the same time, provide each subordinate with a decent incentive to work. As one of the tools for analyzing human motivation in the workplace, Maslow’s theory, which provides for the classification of needs, maybe useful (McLeod, 2018). Its provisions can help assess the degree of interest of employees in the performance of certain duties and consider key criteria that affect performance and productivity.
Analysis
The lack of desire to apply maximum effort for the benefit of a certain company is not always the sign of inefficient staff. A mistake can be made by leaders who did not take measures timely and did not provide subordinates with sufficient motivation to see specific goals and strive for them. The use of appropriate techniques or even several methods is one of the few ways to return the team to its natural rhythm of work and to achieve the high-quality fulfillment of duties. However, it requires knowing how the motivation process works and what characteristics are typical for almost any team of specialists.
Each person has specific interests. When constantly implementing them, people reach heights, feeling the satisfaction of life. For it to happen, motivation is required. There are dozens of concepts on this subject, but the most popular theory is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (McLeod, 2018). It is created in the form of a pyramid and represents the basic system of motivation. Due to it, everything that a person needs is displayed. This model has another name – Maslow’s staircase. This comparison is not accidental because the individual ascends each step slowly, gradually moving to a new level. If the lowest requirements are not met, other goals will not be implemented. However, it is essential to realize that the scientist did not divide the growth of all people’s outlook, and each person separately (McLeod, 2018). There are no specific plans that apply to humanity as a whole. In general, this system includes the following components:
- Physiological needs, which are at the very bottom of the pyramid. It applies to food, water, rest, and other essential components of human life.
- The need for security since any person wants to feel protected and not to fear.
- The condition of belongingness and love is another higher need. Close relationships with relatives and friends are an important part of harmonious life.
- Almost every individual seeks respect and recognition, therefore, approval is an essential element of the hierarchical pyramid.
- Finally, the need for self-realization occupies the highest line of the system. The ability to develop and improve individual abilities and skills is a significant condition for motivation, and it is this component that occupies the highest line of the pyramid.
When talking about the ways of motivating the staff about this pyramid, the monetary rewards satisfy only two lower levels of needs. Consequently, the material way to stimulate the activities of employees may be successful, however, its effect will not last very long. Dissatisfaction with the need for higher levels is fraught with the loss of interest in the performance of immediate duties, therefore, additional ways to increase subordinates’ desire in the performance of assigned tasks should be determined. It is essential to distinguish among the ways of motivation to understand what types of encouragement exist.
The forms of material incentives may include any manifestations of financial incentives for employees, as well as fines for failure to meet the objectives (Kuvaas, Buch, Gagné, Dysvik, & Forest, 2015). Bonuses and perks, cash premiums for high KPI, the provision of benefits and insurance services are included in the category of such incentives. In this case, motivation can also be based on non-monetary rewards. It can be upgrading workers’ skills at the expense of the company, overseas business trips, improving the technical equipment of the workplace, and other privileges.
The employees of organizations can also be stimulated with intangible methods. As practice shows, bonuses and premiums are not always a sufficient incentive for subordinates to strive to apply as many efforts as possible to achieve high performance. According to Furnham and MacRae (2017), The effective types and forms of non-material motivation include providing employees with career opportunities, ensuring a favorable microclimate in the team, allowing participating in making strategic decisions, and other significant perspectives. Such types of incentives for employees’ activity can be no less valuable than monetary bonuses. Therefore, it is significant to take into account the characteristics of the personnel and the structure of a particular company as a whole to build the right motivation strategy.
Stakeholders
Employers
Concerning the influence of the motivation mechanism based on the pyramid of needs, it can be noted that the prospects for employers and employees will differ. Managers should take into account that only the two lower stages (physiological and safety needs) can be met through material compensation. At the same time, the overwhelming majority of subordinates work to earn, therefore, as Daniels and Bailey (2014) remark, the increase in salaries should be associated with the rise of the levels of motivation. Because not all requirements can be met through monetary compensation, appropriate strategic decisions are to be made. If the management of a certain company intends to increase the productivity of subordinates, not only financial but also other initiatives should be offered. For instance, the opportunities described to provide career growth or work in a cohesive team are very successful means of achieving a positive result.
However, the company’s leaders should establish the correct system of control over employees and periodically assess the degree of their satisfaction with the existing working conditions. According to Osabiya (2015), the development of the potential of subordinates is to be accompanied by managers’ participation since these are the leaders who can provide workers with the appropriate opportunities for success. The quality of incentives implemented should be assessed not only from the standpoint of their effectiveness but also the degree of workers’ satisfaction with new labor conditions. If senior management is idle, the growth of activity and productivity is unlikely to be observed. Therefore, leaders as stakeholders in raising the working motivation of the staff should take into account the opinion of the team and, at the same time, be aware of the theoretical basis for stimulating activities.
Employees
When talking about employees as stakeholders in the process of implementing motivational strategies, other perspectives are opened. The opportunities provided by material incentives allow satisfying natural needs, while the higher values (self-realization, need for love, and others) are not affected. Employees need to be aware that their management does everything possible to ensure that their working conditions are comfortable enough, and if the staff does not experience difficulties in the workplace, the level of activity will certainly be high. For example, the lack of resources to perform particular tasks is not the personnel’s problem, and leaders need to monitor the availability of relevant materials for the quality work of subordinates (Said et al., 2015). Accordingly, if the organization is equipped with the necessary material, workers will have an opportunity to maximize their potential.
Also, additional intangible bonuses are always highly valued by employees. When workers see that their senior management is interested in encouraging subordinates for their services and making efforts to increase productivity, it is appreciated by the staff. As Daniels and Bailey (2014) argue, while receiving free insurance, taking part in training courses, and having other bonuses, employees are ready to take retaliatory steps and work for the benefit of their organization. Although incentives may be small, the personnel can value the bonuses offered if they are useful and necessary. As a result, the cooperation of the team and the management allows finding the best opportunities for introducing relevant motivational means and acquiring the necessary resources that increase the activity and productivity. Therefore, the personal interests of workers play a significant role, and they are to be taken into account when forming a specific strategy.
Graph
This graph provides an opportunity to consider one of the potential strategies for increasing staff motivation in the teamwork. At the initial stage, the management concludes that a concrete task is to be achieved. Further, leaders determine the presence or absence of all the necessary resources that may be needed to meet a particular need. In case there is no possibility to find them, the management applies various motivational strategies to stimulate the staff. Finally, the involvement of employees in active work gives a possibility to acquire the necessary resources and thereby achieve the solution of the task. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is not the only system that may be taken into account (McLeod, 2018). The emphasis is primarily on achieving benefits for a particular organization. However, the competent management of personnel can provide subordinates with all the necessary tools for work and encourage perseverance and diligence. It is just one of the possible strategies, and the activity may differ. It is significant to ensure such a mode of work so that subordinates could be satisfied with the current labor conditions and the evaluation of their activities.
Conclusion
The introduction of a relevant motivational strategy aimed at encouraging staff and stimulating their performance is one of the top management activities in virtually any organization. The decision to attract subordinates to find resources for a particular task may be effective if specific workers’ needs are met. The development of motivation proposed through material and non-material bonuses can be successful due to the interaction of senior management and subordinates. The strategy described may be implemented in any company where employees need to solve specific goals set by their managers.
References
Daniels, A., & Bailey, J. (2014). Performance management: Changing behavior that drives organizational effectiveness (5th ed.). Atlanta, GA: Performance Management Publications.
Furnham, A., & MacRae, I. (2017). Motivation and performance: A guide to motivating a diverse workforce. London, UK: Kogan Page.
Kuvaas, B., Buch, R., Gagné, M., Dysvik, A., & Forest, J. (2016). Do you get what you pay for? Sales incentives and implications for motivation and changes in turnover intention and work effort. Motivation and Emotion, 40(5), 667-680. Web.
McLeod, S. (2018). Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.Simply Psychology. Web.
Osabiya, B. J. (2015). The effect of employees’ motivation on organizational performance. Journal of Public Administration and Policy Research, 7(4), 62-75. Web.
Said, N. S., Zaidee, A. S., Zahari, A. S., Ali, S. R., & Salleh, S. M. (2015). Relationship between employee motivation and job performance: A study at Universiti Teknologi MARA (Terengganu). Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 6(4), 632-638. Web.