It should be noted that there is a multitude of motivational factors to consider for a manager from both personal and organizational standpoints. In the case of the former, these include personal investment, personal growth, recognition, and achievement. On the organizational level, equity plays a critical role in impacting motivation since if there is a perception of inequity, then the disadvantaged workers will lose motivation. Dan Pink claims that there are also critically important and effective intrinsic motivators, such as autonomy, mastery, and purpose (TED, 2009). In addition, there are extrinsic motivational factors, such as rewards, pay, and bonuses.
The core motivational techniques, which have been used for the majority of management’s existence as a practice, include reward-based systems, such as positive and negative reinforcements and punishments. However, the recent findings in the field of motivation reveal that for most employees, it is better to provide more autonomy, such as Fedex days, ROWE, or 20% Google systems (TED, 2009). I fall into the category of autonomy because it allows me to be free to do my work as I prefer. The work will no longer feel as if it is a forced activity, which wants me to operate as a machine or robot, but rather as a respected professional whom the employer or manager trusts.
As a manager of a start-up company with limited cash and resources, I would ensure that the payment is appropriate with the industry standards. However, it will not serve as a motivational factor because I will attract the talent by offering them more autonomy and purpose. For the positions, which do not require constant presence at the workplace, I will reduce the mandatory office schedule by half compared to the regular formats since autonomy is among the effective intrinsic motivators for creative jobs (TED, 2009). In addition, I will incentivize employees to allocate 25% of their time to work on side projects, whichever they prefer.
Reference
TED. (2009). The puzzle of motivation | Dan Pink [Video]. YouTube. Web.