The performance of employees is a product of both their abilities (e.g. skills & experience) and motivation. Motivation is important because it is the psychological catalyst employees and owners require to reach the goal. Motivation is important in business because it impacts mental and physical human reactions. It makes the individuals to take action to achieve a goal or to fulfil a need or expectation. Understanding what motivates employees at work ensures that a business not only has employees that have the knowledge, skill and ability to do the job, but who are also committed to achieve a high standard of work. There are many positive behaviours that indicate employees are motivated such as: employee taking responsibility, teamwork with co-workers and being commitment to achieving company targets and goals. Highly-motivated individuals and staff have a willingness to get the job done efficiently and effectively, resulting in higher productivity, increased revenue, cost savings and satisfied employees and business owners. Business leaders want their organizations to be filled with people in this state of mind. That's why it's vital that you as a leader and manager, its important to keep the team feeling motivated and inspired.
As individuals we are all different and therefore we are motivated by different factors at work. In a business institution the prevailing approach to motivation is ambivalent. On the other hand, companies and business organization are introducing individual, variable and performance- related pay. This form of remuneration apeals to employees self- interest, rewarding exceptional performance on an individual base. The importance of employee identifying with the job and company for which their work is always being emphasized. When employees see a reward on for their succes, motivation then improves and the goal has a better chance at being realized. Ultimately, employees are motivated by factors that directly and positively impact their careers and personal lives. Intrinsic motivation is the desire to accomplish goals and develop professionally. Extrinsic motivation involves work factors such as pay and promotions. In some cases, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can be combined, such as when a promotion leads to a pay raise as well as welcome to additional responsibility.
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a theory in psychology proposed by Abraham Maslow in his 1943. Maslow theory focuses on the psychological needs of employees. Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a motivational theory in psychology comprising a five tier model of human needs. He visualized the hierarchy as a pyramid. At the bottom of the needs hierarchy pyramid. At the bottom of the needs hierarchy pyramid are physiological needs which include the most basic needs that are vital to survival e.g water, air, food and sleep. Safety needs are the next and those are important for survival but are the next and those are important for survival but are not as demanding as physiological needs, example: steady employment, health, insuarance, safe neighbourhoods and shelters from the environment. Social needs include needs for being loved and feeling affection. Further up the pyramid the needs becomes for personal esteem and feelings or accomplishment. He emphasized on importance of self-actualization which is a process of growth and development as a person in order to achieve individual potential. In every business, management should be concerned for the employees recogonition.(Mustafa, 1992)
Deficiency in needs arise due to deprivation and are said to motivate people when they are unmet. Also, the motivation to fulfill such needs will become stronger and longer in duration when they are denied. For example, the longer a person goes without a promotion in a business, the more effort they put in their work to met their goals. Needs recogonition of employee's needs particulary their desire for quality worklife, job satisfaction, having knowledge of what is going on in an organization and being informed of what changes before they even take place. Individuals employees acts on the basis of his/her perception of reality.(Mc oliver, 1996)
When a deficit need has been 'more or less' satisfied it will go away, and the employee's activities become habitually directed towards meeting the next set of needs that they have yet to satisfy. These then become their salient needs. However, growth needs to be felt and may even become stronger once they have been engaged. Moslow noted that the order of needs might be flexible based on external circumstances or individual differences.A business organization should therefore offer different incentives to workers in order to help them fulfil each need in turn and progress up the hierarchy. Managers should also recognise that workers are not all motivated in the same way and do not all move up the hierarchy at the same pace. For example, he noted that for some individuals, the need for self-esteem is more important than the need for job security. For others, the need for creative fulfillment may supersede even the most basic needs.( locke & Lathan, 2004)
This hierachy of needs outlined in maslow theory is widely used and applicable in any business organization and employee manangment. Moslow concept of self- actualization relates directly to the present day challenges and oppourtunities for employer and the organization. Employees have a basic human need and e right to strive for self- actualization, just as much as the corporate directors and owners do. (Locke & Lathan, 2004)
A sustainable success is built on a serious and compassionate commitment to helping people, identify pursue and reach to their own personal unique potentials. When people grow they become more effective and valuable as employees. Infact, virtuality all personal growth, whether in a hobby, a special talent or interest, a new experience, production of new skills attributes, behaviours and wisdom thT are directly transferable to any sort of job role. The modern employers recogonize this and as such offer development support to their support staff in any direction thag the person seeks to grow and become more fullfilled. (Matt Mckay, 2015)
Alderfer's ERG theory is a simplified version of Maslow's hierarchy of needs that suggests that all human needs can be accessed and satisfied simultaneously, rather than from the bottom up. Either way, as needs are satisfied, employees are motivated to strive to satisfy a new need. The theory. ERG theory shows that a person works on fulfilling these needs simultaneously or separately depending on the difference of goals, status, and the environment. He recategorized Maslow’s hierarchy of needs into three simpler and broader classes of needs: Existence needs- These include need for basic material necessities. In short, it includes an individual’s physiological and physical safety needs. Example, ese are constantly and pervasively important in the work setting. Some of them are job security, suitable working conditions, reasonable working hours, pay and fringe benefits. Relatedness needs- These include the aspiration individual’s have for maintaining significant interpersonal relationships (be it with family, peers or superiors), getting public fame and recognition. Maslow’s social needs and external component of esteem needs fall under this class of need. Growth needs, These needs are those that compel a person to make creative or productive efforts for him or herself. The satisfaction of growth is what a person needs to experience in a sense of completeness as a human being. These include need for self-development and personal growth and advancement. Maslow’s self-actualization needs and intrinsic component of esteem needs fall under this category of need.
According to ERG theory, if a higher- level need aggravates, an individual may revert to increase the satisfaction of a lower level
need. This is called frustration regression aspect of ERG theory. For instance, when growth need aggravates, then an individual might be motivated to accomplish the relatedness need and if there are issues in accomplishing relatedness needs, then he might be motivated by the existence needs. Thus, frustration/aggravation can result in regression to a lower-level need. ERG Theory of motivation is perceived the needs as a range rather than perceiving them as a hierarchy. According to Alderfer, an individual can work on growth needs even if his existence.
An effective manager has to understand where a particular individual might exist in the ERG schematic. In doing so, a worker's motivation can be maximized by applying the particular set of needs to an applicable situation. For example, if someone has started in a job and needs the financial security of a position in order to alleviate other costs and expenses, they might be in the "Existence" needs of the model. Perhaps, their motivation can be increased with incentives and financial bonuses. Since their needs are driven by the need for basic material necessities, incentivizing their work in this domain could increase their motivation to work at a particular job.(Mc Gregor, 1957)
If the managers understand the Egr theory then they will be able to apply the mehod in different individual needs of their employees. In knowing their employees, managers can increase an indivisual motivation. Individual employees find comfort if motivation was placed in a position where their personal needs and strengths are validated, then there could be a greater motivation for these individuals to perform better and maximize output at their jobs. (Carlson N, 2007)
Conclusion
Lack of moltivation in a business especially in staff motivation can become contagious if the cause is not identified and addressed. Management needs to be conscious of employee motivation, and that means being able to identify the factors that cause a lack of motivation in the workplace. Become familiar with the factors that can degrade staff motivation and design plans to combat these productivity killers. Employees are not motivated by the notion that their hard work will make company owners and executives rich, organizational change consultant Paul Levesque claimed. The more internalized a company's goals sound, the less motivated employees are to fulfill those goals.
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