Knowledge of Techniques for Motivating Employees

A manager can foster a motivational environment , give encouragement ,

lend support , and reward generously , and there still may exist employees
who fail to respond. Even the best coaching efforts can falter if the
employee loses motivation at some point of the process.

Motivation is influenced by both internal and external factors. Internal

motivation is driven by four factors. Feeling, thinking, doing and physiology
all interact to impact motivational levels

Feelings: Feelings have a direct impact on thinking and physiology

Thinking: Thinking inspires action. Individuals might feel good about

themselves ( skilled and knowledgeable)

Doing: If, after approaching the task with confidence , individuals find the
task overwhelming they will change the way they think

Physiology: Feelings, thinking , and doing all either directly or indirectly

impacts one’s physiology. In a similar manner , physiology impacts feelings ,
thoughts and actions

Motivation: Motivation is a complex and dynamic integration of feeling ,

thinking , doing , and physiology. If one component of motivation changes it
can impact all the others

Environment: Although a person has ultimate control of his or her feelings ,

thoughts , actions , and to an extent , physiology, all of these components of
motivation respond to environmental stimulus , but not always in predictable
ways

Manager as Motivator:
There are evaluation tools to assess what motivates an employee/individual
People will do what they want to do or otherwise motivated to do. Some
may naturally motivated to achieve , while others require external stimuli
Motivation is the Key to Performance:
Performance is considered to be a function of ability and motivation, thus
Job Performance= Function (ability)(motivation)
There are seven areas in which the manager has a responsibility for
providing motivational drivers

These areas include:

Positive reinforcement and high expectation:

Most employees will attempt to live up to their manager’s expectations.
Communicate high expectations to and about employees
Reinforce performance efforts with praise and show support for employees
Who are struggling. Make top performance known publicly too others , and
give development feedback privately.

Effective development and discipline:

Make it a rule to develop an employee before taking disciplinary action – if
the situation allows. When development efforts have failed , or when the
severity of the situation dictates , discipline swiftly and fairly in a manner that
is consistent with organizational guidelines

Fair treatment of all employees:

Managers need to make every attempt to treat all employees in a pleasant
and equitable manner. Both favoritism and discriminatory practices can
have a negative impact on employee motivation.

Satisfaction of basic workplace needs:

It is the managers responsibility to see that employees have the resources
to do the job.

Setting clear and achievable workplace goals:

Performance goals must be high, yet realistic

Restructuring jobs to reduce inefficiencies:

Periodically the structure of a job needs to be evaluated to ensure that the
job is designed to be done in the most efficient way possible

Provide rewards based on Job Performance:

Meaningful rewards are earned , not given.