UNIT 3

MOTIVATION

DEFINITIONS OF MOTIVATION: According to Robert Dubin, “Motivation is the

complex set of forces starting and keeping a person at work in an organization.
Motivation is something that moves the person to action, and continues him in the course
of action already initiated.”

Motivation is defined as the process that initiates, guides, and maintains goal-oriented
behaviors. Motivation is what causes us to act, whether it is getting a glass of water to
reduce thirst or reading a book to gain knowledge.

It involves the biological, emotional, social, and cognitive forces that activate behavior.
In everyday usage, the term motivation is frequently used to describe why a person does
something.

MOTIVATION AS A CONCEPT

The term ‘motivation’ is derived from the Latin word ‘movere’ which means “to move”.
It is an inner state that causes people to behave in certain ways. The common frame of
reference includes one or the following words in the definition of motivation: drives,
goals, incentives, desires, wants, need as almost every-body has their own definition of
motivation. Motivation is the process that accounts for an individual’s intensity,
direction, and persistence of effort toward the attainment of a goal.

Motivation is to inspire people to work, individually or in groups in the ways such as to

produce best results. It is the will to act. It is the willingness to exert high levels of effort
towards organizational goals, conditioned by the efforts and ability to satisfy some
individual need.

APPLICATION OF MOTIVATIONAL CONCEPTS

It is very important to apply the various motivational concepts to the organizations so that
organizational effectiveness can be achieved. Various motivation techniques and
programs have gained varying degrees of acceptance in organizations. Some of
applications of motivation and their linking with motivational theories as depicted by
Robbins have been discussed below:
1. Management by Objectives: Management by Objectives (MBO) was first
outlined by Peter Drucker in 1954 in his book 'The Practice of Management'.
In the 90s, Peter Drucker himself decreased the significance of this organization
management method, when he said: "It's just another tool. It is not the great cure
for management inefficiency.

Management by objectives (MBO) is a systematic and organized approach that

allows management to focus on achievable goals and to attain the best possible
results from available resources. It aims to increase organizational performance
by aligning goals and subordinate objectives throughout the organization. Ideally,
employees get strong input to identify their objectives, time lines for completion,
etc. MBO includes ongoing tracking and feedback in the process to reach
objectives. The principle behind Management by Objectives (MBO) is to make
sure that everybody within the organization has a clear understanding of the aims,
or objectives, of that organization, as well as awareness of their own roles and
responsibilities in achieving those aims.

MBO Principles

Principles of MBO include the following:

i. Cascading of organizational goals and objectives

ii. Specific objectives for each member

iii. Participative decision making

iv. Explicit time period

v. Performance evaluation and feedback

2. Employee Recognition Programs: Employee Recognition Programs are the

programs that use multiple sources and recognize both individual and group
accomplishments. A recognition program does not have to be expensive. The
structure of a recognition program is limited only by your imagination. An
effective program has the following components: Fairness and High visibility
and consistency.

3. Employee Involvement Programs: Employee involvement is creating an

 environment in which people have an impact on decisions and actions that affect
their jobs. Employee involvement is not the goal nor is it a tool, as practiced in
many organizations. Rather, employee involvement is a management and
leadership philosophy about how people are most enabled to contribute. It is a
participative process that uses the entire capacity of employees and is designed to
encourage increased commitment to the organization’s success.

Ways of Employee Involvement

i. Participative Management - A process where subordinates share a

significant degree of decision-making power with their immediate
superiors.

ii. Representative Participation - Workers participate in organizational

decision making through a small group of representative employees.

iii. Work Councils - Groups of elected or nominated employees who must be

consulted when management makes decisions involving personnel.

iv. Board Representatives - A form of representative participation; employees sit

on a company’s board of directors and represent the interests of the firm’s

employees.

v. Quality Circles - A work group of employees, who meet regularly to discuss

their quality problems, investigate causes, recommend solutions, and take

corrective actions.

vi. Employee Stock Ownership Plans - Company established benefit plans in

which employees acquire stock as part of their benefits.

4. Variable Pay Programs: Variable pay programs are an increasingly popular

mode of compensation in today's business world. These programs, which are also

sometimes referred to as "pay-for-performance" or "at-risk" pay plans, provide

some or all of a work force's compensation based on employee performance or on

the performance of a team. Variable pay proponents contend that providing

tangible rewards for superior performance—a true merit system—encourages

 hard work and efficiency and serves as an effective deterrent to mediocre or

otherwise uninspired work performance. In Variable Pay Programs a portion of an

employee’s pay is based on some individual and/or organizational measure of

performance. Some of the more widely used variable pay programs are:

i. Piece-rate pay plans - Workers are paid a fixed sum for each unit of production

completed.

ii. Profit-sharing plans - Programs that distribute compensation based on some

established formula designed around a company’s profitability.

iii. Gain sharing plans - An incentive plan where improvements in group productivity

determine the total amount of money that is allocated.

5. Skill-Based Pay Plans: Skill-based pay refers to a pay system in which pay
increases are linked to the number or depth of skills an employee acquires and
applies and it is a means of developing broader and deeper skills among the
workforce. Such increases are in addition to, and not in lieu of, general pay
increases employees may receive. The pay increases are usually tied to three types
of skills:
i. Horizontal skills, which involve a broadening of skills in terms of the

range of tasks

ii. Vertical skills, which involve acquiring skills of a higher level

iii. Depth skills, which involve a high level of skills in specialized areas

relating to the same job.

THEORIES OF MOTIVATION

1. MASLOW’S NEED THEORY: One of the earliest and best-known content theories is

needs hierarchy theory. Psychologist Abraham Maslow (1954) focused on

motivating forces in individuals and established a "hierarchy of needs."

According to Maslow, individuals would move to satisfy their needs in a

 hierarchical manner.

Self-Actualization personal growth and

fulfillment

Esteem Needs achievement,

status, reputation

Social Needs:
Family, affection, relationships, work group, etc

Safety Needs:
Protection, security, order, law, limits, stability, etc

Physiological Needs:
Air, food, drink, shelter, sleep, etc.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

i. Physiological Needs: Physiological needs are those required to sustain life, such

as air, water, nourishment and sleep. According to Maslow's theory, if such needs

are not satisfied then one's motivation will arise from the quest to satisfy them.

Higher needs such as social needs and esteem are not felt until one has met the

needs basic to one's bodily functioning.

ii. Safety Needs: Once physiological needs are met, one's attention turns to safety

and security in order to be free from the threat of physical and emotional harm.

Such needs might be fulfilled by living in a safe area, medical insurance, job

security and financial reserves. According to Maslow's hierarchy, if a person feels

that he or she is in harm's way, higher needs will not receive much attention.
iii. Social Needs: Once a person has met the lower level physiological and safety

needs, higher level needs become important, the first of which are social needs.

Social needs are those related to interaction with other people and may include

need for friends, need for belonging, need to give and receive love.

iv. Esteem Needs: Once a person feels a sense of "belonging", the need to feel

important arises. Esteem needs may be classified as internal or external. Internal

esteem needs are those related to self-esteem such as self respect and

achievement. External esteem needs are those such as social status and

recognition. Some esteem needs are self-respect, achievement, attention,

recognition, reputation. Maslow later refined his model to include a level between

esteem needs and self-actualization: the need for knowledge and aesthetics.

v. Self-Actualization: Self-actualization is the summit of Maslow's hierarchy of

needs. Itis the quest of reaching one's full potential as a person. Unlike lower level

needs, this need is never fully satisfied; as one grows psychologically there are

always new opportunities to continue to grow. Self-actualized people tend to have

needs such as truth, justice, wisdom, and meaning. Self-actualized persons have

frequent occurrences of peak experiences, which are energized moments of

profound happiness and harmony. According to Maslow, only a small percentage

of the population reaches the level of self-actualization.

2. HERZBERG’S THEORY: The motivation-hygiene theory was proposed by

psychologist Frederick Herzberg. In the belief that an individual's relation to his
or her work is a basic one and that his or her attitude toward this work can very
well determine the individual's success or failure, Herzberg investigated the
question "What do people want from their jobs?" he asked people to describe, in
detail, situations when they felt exceptionally good or bad about their jobs.
Hygiene or Dissatisfiers:

• Working conditions
• Policies and administrative practices

• Salary and Benefits

• Supervision

• Status
• Job security

• Co-workers
• Personal life

Motivators or Satisfiers:

• Recognition

• Achievement

• Advancement

• Growth

• Responsibility

• Job challenge
Hygiene factors must be present in the job before motivators can be used to stimulate that

person. That is, one cannot use motivators until all the hygiene factors are met.

Herzberg's needs are specifically job related and reflect some of the distinct things that

people want from their work as opposed to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs which reflect

all the needs in a person’s life.

3. ALDERFER'S ERG THEORY: The ERG theory is an extension of Maslow's hierarchy of

needs. Alderfer identified three categories of needs. Alderfer suggested that needs could be

classified into three categories, rather than five. These three types of needs are existence,

relatedness, and growth.

i. Existence needs are the desires for material and physical well being. These needs are

satisfied with food, water, air, shelter, working conditions, pay, and fringe benefits.

ii. Relatedness needs are the desires to establish and maintain interpersonal relationships.
These needs are satisfied with relationships with family, friends, supervisors, subordinates,
and co-workers.

iii. Growth needs are the desires to be creative, to make useful and productive contributions,
and to have opportunities for personal development.