Essay: How To Formulate A Research Proposal

UNDERSTAND HOW TO FORMULATE A RESEARCH SPECIFICATION.

‘ Prepare a research proposal relating to a specified area of business.
Major construction projects engage the management of the workforce with a draconian approach. From my own experience I have witnessed this style of management throughout most of my career. Needless to say these work environments do very little to address the essential hygiene factors of individuals who work on them. The compensation for this however up until the economic downturn was the trade-off between hygiene factors and a good living wage. The problem for business though is that utilising a disposable workforce often results in producing demoralised and demotivated individuals who have little regard for the organisational objectives or of the project as a whole. In some worse case scenarios this despondency has culminated into bitter industrial disputes which are derogatory for company image the project and the industry as a whole.
Personally I often felt disengaged on many of these projects, but I am unsure if the majority of people who continue to earn a living this way feel the same or are they just happy with their lot and would they be motivated to greater extent if motivational techniques were implemented. Also from a management perspective would the issue of applying motivational techniques be viable and are they even aware of such theories.

For myself having been on one side of the fence and working towards moving to the other I feel this kind of research would give me some intuitive feedback as to how I will try to conduct myself in my future endeavours. Also I believe that if I am successful in moving into a project management role then having this as a balanced platform on which to build my own interpretation of the use and implementation of motivational techniques will be priceless. I am hoping that my findings will show that the contract workforce are receptive to motivational theory. Although I now understand that construction and engineering predominately embrace a task culture I would like to view myself as a transformational leader as opposed to transactional, helping individuals understand and achieve self-actualisation.
‘ Identify a research question or hypothesis and justify choice.
Based on the proposal my research question shall be defined as ‘the evaluation of motivational techniques within the construction project environment’. The reason why I feel this is relevant is that although there is a lot of existing literature and research regarding motivational techniques in general most notably Herzberg and Maslow there is little research into industry specific environments certainly here in the U.K. and especially that of construction.
Undoubtedly both of these theories are credible and are widely accepted as the sound basis for any motivational practice. The project environment however directly challenges many of those factors as already discussed the use of transient labour which are drafted in for individual projects are often on short term contracts usually around 18 months or as is a common practice now employed through an agency depending on the size and scope.
As Herzberg identified in his ‘two factor theory’ as motivators and satisfiers, within the project workforce environment you can discount job security or personal growth. From a business point of view though it would be very difficult to offer these incentives due to the nature of the environment. Projects ultimately come to an end and the workforce disbanded also due to the nature of construction more often than not a task culture is applied meaning relations between subordinates and supervision can be often tense as no real personal relationship is developed. The same can be said though for the supervision and their direct managers the culmination often been one of very little motivation at all and employees sole objective been capital gains. This also demonstrates how the culture of an organisation can clash with motivational techniques. Demographics also play a part as it is a very male dominated environment bravado and impertinence can often result from the workforce and management alike if the wrong strategies of monitoring and controlling are implemented. Below is a diagram detailing Herzbergs two factor theory ‘

*source www.onlinejobsapplication.com
As we can see hygiene factors can play a huge role in the motivation of an employee this motivation is ultimately achieved by satisfying certain psychological and physiological needs of an individual. However true positive satisfaction for an employee is delivered through the motivational factors which are concerned more with self-actualisation an individual working towards or achieving their full potential. This is clearly identified at the very pinnacle of Maslows hierarchy of needs.
I also believe that cultural change and attitudes to what is acceptable play a huge part in Herzbergs hygiene factors. As people become more informed and as health and safety plays a larger part in industry, working environments which were seen acceptable in the 60’s for instance would not be today. This poses a problem for business though as hygiene factors can only be implemented as far as is reasonably practicable. If the workforce are of the belief that they are not receiving fair or just treatment from the outset they will be demotivated before they have collected their first pay cheque.
As the U.K. has moved to a consumerist society and the cost of living rocketed money plays a far bigger role than ever before I believe individuals have to secure the best financial gains for their labour at the expense of other important factors. The culmination of this is that when people are simply working for a pay cheque it is unlikely that you are securing a 110% intentness than someone who is working towards self-actualisation or complicit with organisational strategy.
My own analysis of motivational theory leads me to believe that they are without doubt reliable and effective but I believe that in practicality implementation in full of such techniques in certain businesses and industries is not always conceivable.
Although construction management teams have moved with the times and embraced new and dynamic methods of doing business the attitude towards the workforce has remained steadfast. As we are now entering the new business cycle and demand for skilled labour increases and construction becomes a driving force within the economy again the organisations who can deliver an efficient motivated workforce will secure competitive advantage.

‘ Justify the chosen methodology in terms of the research question.
My methodology intends to test the applicability of Frederick Herzbergs ‘Two Factor Theory’ which is illustrated above and Abraham Maslows ‘Hierarchy Of Needs’ within the project environment. Maslows hierarchy of needs is not unlike Herzbergs two factor theory as it identifies different psychological and physiological needs of human beings and places them into a pyramid structure of interdependence. Maslow inferred that once a particular level of those needs had been satisfied then an individual would aim to secure the next. With the ultimate goal being self-actualisation. Below is a diagram illustrating Maslows theory-

*source www.hansengeorge.blogspot.com

Maslows motivation theory differs from that of Herzberg in as much that it does not deal specifically with a work environment it concentrates more on the basic structural needs of individuals operating within society. It does however demonstrate that at the very core of every individual is a desire to fulfil their potential. The basic needs of human kind has not changed since the birth of time at the very heart of motivation is instinct which is obviously responsible for pro-creation. Of course how we achieve self-actualisation has changed through the course of time. In modern western society this is often partly achieved through the fruits of our labour. So our work has become an important factor and can help provide us with a status in society for example were we live or the car we drive. The aspirations of early man were distinctly different to that of modern generations but the drivers were the same. It is this perception of what we as individuals can achieve for ourselves is at the very heart of motivation. If you can determine how an individual perceives their place within their work or society you can ultimately understand what drives them and how to help them attain that potential. This point I feel is important to understand for my research as demographics and class play a huge role in what may be seen by individuals as attainable or not. Does the young man growing up on a council estate aspire to be Prime Minister or a plumber both I am sure could be achieved but I feel the latter is more likely. So in that respect even though Maslows theory does not deal specifically with the labour environment it is still relevant to the motivation of individuals in the workplace.
Based on the assertions stated above the collation of information I intend to use is that of primary data. This will take the form of interviews of senior industry project managers and questionnaires to a sample of the contract workforce. Primary data will only be relevant for this type of study I feel secondary data of this nature maybe be open to conjecture and therefore runs the risk of not having sufficient validity.

‘ Prepare an action plan with target dates and methods for monitoring and updating.
Today being the 25th of January 2014 gives me five weeks to the completion of my research project I intend to monitor this through a work breakdown structure and from this produce a Gantt chart as illustrated below. This is a useful tool as I will be able to adjust start and finish times accordingly giving me a visual aid to my progress.

‘ Devise a code of ethics for the conduct of the study.
‘ According to Zikmund (1997) a code of ethics is a ‘statement of principles and operating procedures for ethical practice’. Having a code of ethics will not account for or solve every ethical problem, but it will help to ensure appropriate standards of practice by defining acceptable behaviours. These can be benchmarked and tested/evaluated.

William G. Zikmund is widely regarded as one of the foremost prominent orators and publicists on business research. Although much of his work and academia focussed on the principles of marketing over his lifetime many papers and publications he made covered varied aspects of management and business decision making through the principles of research.
During the course of my research I will be actively engaging with senior project managers from numerous organisations and also individuals who I will be hoping to complete my questionnaire from the ‘shop floor’. Needless to say there may be some suspicion from these employees as to how the information is to be used this of course could also hinder their decision making. For this reason at the very top of the questionnaire I intend to include a disclaimer stating exactly the purpose and use of the information and that it will not be circulated for any other means (this questionnaire can be found in appendix 2).
With regards to my interviews I have devised a five point code of practice which will be presented to all participants before commencing. This I feel will cover all aspects of any unease individual participants may feel. This is illustrated below-

‘ All information divulged will be treated in the strictest of confidence.
‘ Its purpose and use will be only of that for this research project.
‘ Any areas of questioning which you do not wish to extrapolate on will be cease immediately at your request.
‘ If at any point during the interview you wish to terminate the process all information collected will be discarded.
‘ Finally no information collected will be used in full or in part without your consent.

SECTION 2.
CARRY OUT THE RESEARCH PROJECT ACTIVITY.

‘ Match resources efficiently to the research question or hypothesis.
I have verified my research question as ‘the evaluation of motivational techniques within the construction project environment’. By establishing the hypothesis and carrying out research to accomplish substantiated results means that I will be adopting a deductive approach as opposed to inductive. This in effect means that I will be working from the top down devising the hypothesis and then using my collated data to draw valid and reliable conclusions. Illustrated below are the two approaches to conducting research-

*source www.teng3618.blogspot.co.uk
In relation to the above diagram I will be taking the theorists models as discussed of Maslow and Herzberg from which I have already created my hypothesis. Then I will be carrying out my proposed research to obtain how relevant the implementation of those theories are within my sector of industry. This is practically the best way to approach and obtain sound results for this project. The two theorist models being used are tried and tested methods of motivation and both widely regarded as the foundation of successful techniques to motivate individuals. For this reason it would be very impractical and not an effective use resources for me to carry out observations or case studies then try to devise my own theories in an inductive format. The inductive method in this instance could be applied, however the time and cost constraints would be greater than the advantages of taking this approach which may well be construed as an opportunity cost.
Also with regards to my research I will be taking into account the validity and reliability of how the data is comprised. In essence this means understanding how the validity and reliability of information is collected and utilised. Illustrated below is some of the considerations I will have to take into account when carrying out the research-
Measurement validity addresses how accurately the instrument measures the outcome or construct your intervention is attempting to affect. In this context, an instrument is valid if it actually measures what you intend it to measure. Items such as commercial rulers or scales are straightforward examples of instruments with strong measurement validity. However, the validity of a tool that attempts to measure growth in cognitive ability or increased behavior tendencies (such as increases in mobility) is not as clear.
Measurement reliability addresses the consistency of your instrument’s measurement. That is, would your testing instrument generate the same result in similar circumstances? Again, think of a typical measuring instrument, such as a ruler. Using a ruler ‘ the same ruler ‘ to measure something over and over again will give you a very reliable value. Yet standardized tests, such as the SAT or GRE, may generate very different results from the same individual at different points in time or under different conditions (e.g., paper and pencil vs. computer).
*source www.nationaltechcenter.org

‘ Undertake the proposed research investigation in accordance with the agreed specification.
For my research I intend gather two types of primary data qualitative and quantitative in the form of interviews and questionnaires. The use of these two types of data I feel will give me a grounded conclusion to my research question. This will be achieved as shown below-
Qualitative
I intend to interview several project managers from varying industrial backgrounds all of whom work within construction in some capacity. The interviews will be recorded on a Dictaphone and semi structured giving the individuals freedom of speech and the ability to extrapolate on certain questions as they see fit. Prior to commencement of the interview I shall provide each interviewee with diagrams of both Maslows ‘hierarchy of needs’ and Herzbergs ‘two factor theory’ as discussed in Section 1. The questioning will encompass both of these theories with regards to feasibility of implementation and how much of the two theories are already satisfied within their organisation.
Quantitative.
After carrying out my interviews and drawing on the outcomes I will then construct a questionnaire for a sample of the contract workforce based on those findings and again motivational theory. The questionnaire will be analytical and then drawing conclusions from variables will mean it is positivistic in its nature. This also means that it will entail closed questions which will be supplied to a large number of participants. The questionnaire itself (which can be found in appendix 2) will be rolled out by the project managers who were interviewed to their contract workforce some of whom will have been directly employed for a number of years and others who will be transient labour. Exact numbers of questionnaires supplied and collected will also be noted as I feel the amount of individuals who wish to abstain may also be interesting.
‘ Record and collate relevant data where appropriate.
As already stated my collection of data will be that of primary sources and quantitative and qualitative in its nature. The analysis and presentation of that data is illustrated below-

Questionnaire.
The questionnaire itself will be issued to several contract workforces in varying construction capacities. Ranging from a maintenance contract workforce and also that of a contractor which uses predominantly transient labour in a construction environment. The data itself will be presented in the form of varying charts and graphs using excel. The basis of the questionnaire will be constructed around the results of the interviews which are carried out this will also give us an indication as to whether the thoughts and beliefs of the workforce reflect that of the management.
Interview.
The main thrust of the interviews will focus on motivational theory as discussed that of Maslow and Herzberg in Section 1 but also the degree to which they are implemented within the construction environment if at all. This will be a deductive approach by doing so I hope to find a consensus or pattern of behaviour within the management framework with regards to attitude towards motivational theory. The interviews will be recorded by the use of a Dictaphone app on the I-Pad and at the end of each session I will carry out an interpretive analysis of the information received. In other words reviewing the recordings and writing a summary of direct quotes which are relevant and that interprets the information gathered. From this I will be able to categorise the responses and then distinguish relationships and patterns of thoughts and feelings of those individuals. This will give me an overall picture of the management receptiveness to my hypothesis. I believe that the information obtained will also give me a sound platform on which to base my questionnaire.

SECTION 3.
PRESENT THE RESEARCH PROJECT REPORT.

REPORT ON ‘
‘THE EVALUATION OF MOTIVATIONAL TECHNIQUES WITHIN THE CONSTRUCTION PROJECT ENVIRONMENT.’

INTRODUCTION.
Central to my research project is the understanding of the relevance and suitable implementation of motivational techniques within an industry specific setting. The industry been that of construction mainly within the major project environment. This particular area of industry I believe has been devoid of such theories or certainly been addressed as a direct result of organisational culture or structure. Project environments are of course different to that of normal organisational activities. They are temporary in their nature and once their objectives fulfilled disbanded forever, no two projects are ever the same. It is the very core of the project which makes it an unusual and difficult arena in which to monitor and control ultimately resulting with the inability to implement normal managerial practices especially that of motivation.
Having spent most of my working life on these construction sites and for the most part earning a very good wage there was always a sense of un-fulfilment. It wasn’t until I began studying my H.N.D. in Business & Management and was introduced to Abraham Maslows hierarchy of needs and Herzbergs two factor theory (diagrams of both of these can be found in the desk research) that I began to understand why I had felt such despondency towards not only my employers but also my work as a whole. For me personally I realised that the project environment did very little to address a lot of the basic needs that I had as a conscientious and hard-working employee. For me it was not just about the money I wanted more from the fruits of my labour.
As my studies progressed I understood more of the dynamics of the project environment and the difficulties which business face to run on time and on budget. It is for these reasons why I wanted to try and understand the feelings and thoughts of all individuals involved in these precarious environments and there receptiveness to the motivational theory of Maslow and Herzberg.

RATIONALE.
During the course of my studies so far the topic of motivational theory and the underlying psychology behind it is an area which I have found interesting. It has also probably been more intriguing to me as there would appear to have been a distinct absence of the implementation of it within my industry, or at least that is my belief. It is for this reason why I wanted to delve further into this particular area to try and ascertain the thoughts and feelings of the people who build our power stations our airports gas terminals and oil refineries fundamentally the workforce who are at the heart of our infrastructure.
Often the British construction worker is vilified in the tabloid press for been lazy and inefficient. Having worked in this industry for the largest part of my career I knew that even when often faced with a draconian management and feeling disengaged and despondency that I always tried to provide a reasonable amount of productivity, certainly enough to warrant a pay cheque. With one or two exceptions the same is true for the majority of my colleagues. On some projects however it almost felt as though the actions of the management were designed to de-motivate almost demoralising us to some extent. In hindsight I now wonder if this was an attempt to make us carry out our work like machinery almost a return to scientific management devoid of initiative or decision making of any relevance with a sole purpose of production.
If from my research I can get a better understanding though the position of management and also how their actions can inspire or de-motivate individuals it will be an invaluable lesson for myself progressing forward with my career. As I move towards the completion of my H.N.D I know that in the future I may well be faced with tough decisions things which may well go against my personal beliefs but I hope that from the experiences I have gained that I can deal with those predicaments with guile and tact. This is an important area for me as for the largest part of my career I have endured transactional leadership. I can count on one hand those transformational leaders who I really aspire to be. I know the results from my research will not give me all the answers but I hope that it will shine some light on the subject and give me another step in the right direction towards a transformational leadership style.
Due to the nature of projects in general it is obvious there can be no one single formula of success when it comes to the motivation of the work force. That is true of management in all of its guises the key of course is understanding the subject matter the arena in which the work force is operating in. Ultimately the importance of this cannot be expressed enough for any manager creating a competitive and motivated workforce has to be one of the most important factors in securing competitive advantage. I feel though that this is an area which is continuously overlooked in my industry and a manager which can secure those deliverables will be successful and revered.

DESK RESEARCH.
To obtain a valid and reliable understanding of this topic I knew the only way was to liaise directly with the very people who earned their living in the diversity of the construction project environment. Gaining access to these individuals and having an open and candid response was not going to be an easy fete. Knowingly from my own experience there is a lot of suspicion from the workforce and management alike with regards to voicing opinions derogatively or otherwise about organisations operating within the industry. The culmination of those concerns were realised in 2009 when 44 companies were directly implicated in the Consulting Association Blacklist. The list itself was orchestrated and run by Ian Kerr from a small office in Droitwich organisations would pay a small submission fee and receive information on construction workers who were deemed to be troublemakers or militant for raising health and safety concerns. The result been that those individuals would not be able to secure employment from any of the organisations who had colluded against them. The details of all of the above were subject to investigation by the B.B.C. documentary makers Panorama (2013) Mon 10th Jun 20.30.
This sent shock waves through the industry at the time, the disbelief at what was thought to be rumour and conjecture was true. For this reason when selecting individuals to interview and rolling out questionnaires I would have to use extreme tact and ensure complete anonymity.
Considering the sensitivity of the above my strategy of research was going to be a very testing experience. As I planned to contact previous employers and try to secure interviews with contracts managers and project managers who all operate within heavy industry. My intention being to access their particular stance on motivational theories within in their sector and if they were not aware of those theories to what extent they were exercised. The two theorists models being Maslows Hierarchy Of Needs and Herzbergs Two Factor Theory. Initially I would present them with diagrams on the two models as shown below-

Fig 1 MASLOWS HIERARCHY OF NEEDS *source www.saybrook.edu

Fig 2 HERZBERGS TWO FACTOR THEORY *source www.web-books.com
Once individuals had the time to peruse and digest the information I would ask them questions upon the theories and from it draw a consensus on which to base my questionnaire which was to be given to the workforce. The interviews were recorded on a Dictaphone app on an I-pad, after each interview was complete I began meticulously interpreting key comments and points which I believed to be most relevant to form an educated understanding of their feelings on the subject. I must make it clear at this point that the comments made are the thoughts and beliefs of the individuals interviewed and not necessarily the stance of the organisations they represent. My interpretive analysis concluded-
‘ The two theorist models presented were not actively engaged within their organisations.
‘ The majority of hygiene factors are secured through health and safety law and national agreements although there is no conscious practical implementation.
‘ Certain aspects of health and safety and litigation have resulted in diminishing responsibility for different aspects of employee work (which should result in more training but is not always the case).
‘ Were possible the retention of employees is made. Although due to the nature of the industry and changing labour requirements individuals may not always be told of transfers to other projects or continuity until the last minute.
‘ The managers in charge of large projects on a day to day basis were only concerned with the motivation of their direct project team, performance of the workforce was down to line managers/supervisors.
‘ Performance of the workforce is a relevant aspect for the management but due to workload and other project factors it is often overlooked.
‘ Monetary incentives in the form of bonuses are the main form of motivation. These are however for collective safety records or reaching project milestones so cannot be directly achieved by individual employees.
‘ Productivity is mainly achieved through increased ‘tool time’ in essence a strict clocking on and off policy. Also bell to bell working for tea breaks and dinner breaks. Logistics for tools and equipment and amenities close to the job also play a vital role in cutting down idle time.
‘ Remuneration within the oil and gas industry is very healthy in comparison to many other sectors of industry.
Having carried out my interviews there appeared to be a distinct misunderstanding of the definition of the word motivation as the responses which were returned concerned productivity. It is also interesting to note that those individuals who were interviewed all came from an engineering education background as opposed to a managerial one. This seems to be the natural progression within construction. Obviously any project cannot achieve its objectives without active productivity but translating that into a strategy of motivation would seem to be something which has not been greatly pursued. The problem being that project objectives results in the termination of employment for many workers. It would be difficult to see how that would motivate anyone especially in the current economic climate.
The results of my interviews did however give me a solid platform on which to base my questionnaire. I now had a clear picture as to the lengths at which implementation of motivational theory were been used in the construction environment. Most of the hygiene factors illustrated by Herzberg, F, (1959) are now fulfilled by the Health & Safety at Work Act (1974) which has seen huge transformations in the industry workplace. Also were possible individuals were offered continuity of employment depending on labour needs which albeit could be relatively ad hoc.
The big question was even if management were to satisfy the content of motivational theory models how was it going to impact motivation and would the workforce even to be receptive to it. The key to the answer to this question is unlikely to be satisfied by a questionnaire the only way to fully ascertain its credibility would be to implement such theories to the letter as far as reasonably practicable. Then as benchmark cross reference against other similar projects to see if there has been a significant increase in cost or time. However my research would give us an insight into the minds of the workforce and hope to draw valid conclusions of their feelings regarding the aforementioned theories.
Motivation in the construction environment can also be influenced by many other factors things which go beyond monetary gain and psychological needs. The numerous other elements which can have huge ramifications to the motivation of an individual have been identified in a study by Borcherding & Garner (1981) Workforce motivation and productivity on large jobs, Journal of the construction division, 443-453, here are some of their findings-

‘The empirical works of Borcherding and Garner (1981) have contributed to the understanding of
factors constraining worker performance that would cause dissatisfaction among construction
workers. These factors include material availability, tool availability, redoing work, crew interfacing,
overcrowded areas, inspection delays, craft turner, craft absenteeism, foreman changes and
incompetence of foremen. Borcherding and Garner (1981) indicate that satisfiers or motivators
common to construction projects are good craft relationship, good orientation program, good safety
program, work itself, overtime, pay, recognition, goals defined, open house and project tours,
projects well-planned and suggestions solicited.’
*source www.lsgi.polyu.edu.hk

The interesting point to note about the findings of Borcherding and Garner (1981) that the key motivational factors were intrinsic in their nature. Dissatisfaction arose from individuals not been able to complete their tasks competently effectively and efficiently. This points to a cultural shift in the dynamics of approach to motivational theory especially were collective monetary bonuses are concerned. These incentives do nothing to address or fulfil the intrinsic needs of employees yet it appears to be the most frequently used method of motivation within the U.K. project environment. Below is a simplistic diagram of how this translates into real world situations and illustrates the point well-

*source www.p2pfoundation.net

Questionnaire.
Having analysed the results of my interviews and then further reading into motivation theory in general it began to open up a lot more questions than answers. I felt that a lot more work needed to be done in this area of business and that a holistic approach to employee motivation was a genuine and plausible way of creating a happy motivated and productive workforce. However I did not want to digress from my intended course of action which was that of the original two theorist models. So I began to construct my questionnaire which was to be issued to the employees of the project managers I had interviewed. In total I issued 150 questionnaires a 127 of those were returned of which I took a random sample of 100 on which to obtain my results. The questionnaire can be located in Appendix 2.
Results of questionnaire.
First and foremost of the sample which were questioned all 100 were white British males. I understand that this may not be seen as a true demographic of the population of the U.K. but it would be fair to say that it is a valid demographic of the construction work force and that of the sample which was took. Which was predominantly industrial northern Britain. Also I do not believe that gender or ethnicity would have affected the results this is because of the culture and group dynamics of shared beliefs within these environments. Illustrated below are some of the crucial findings which reflect the feelings of the sample workforce and possible conflict of opinions with that of management
‘ 87% of the sample did not feel they had job security.

‘ 68% said they would take a drop in pay for job continuity.

‘ Of those 63% said that a sense of belonging would increase their output.

‘ 76% of the sample said they did not have a good working relation with their supervisors and of that total 69% said it directly affected their productivity.

‘ And only 33% said that milestone bonuses incentivised them.

On a more positive note though it would seem that basic hygiene factors such as welfare facilities and cleanliness of the work environment are more than acceptable. 91% of the workforce said that they thought welfare was acceptable and 88% said that the work environment was fit for purpose. Although more worryingly only 58% thought that there work environment was safe. Another interesting point is that only 24% said that personal development was important to them. This would indicate that the majority are content with the work which they do and their chosen career path dis-satisfiers seem to come from external factors. Located in Appendix 3 is chart showing a summary of my findings, the results are shown are those which employees gave a positive response to.

CONCLUSION.
The results of my research have uncovered some interesting observations into the culture of motivation within the construction industry. First and foremost it would appear that organisations fulfil many of the basic welfare hygiene factors or certainly to the extent that the workforce is content with. The implementation of these facilities I believe to be a culmination of legislation attitudes and basic moral judgement. My findings demonstrate that management and labour alike expect an acceptable level of cleanliness and sanitation within not only messing facilities but also at the workface. This obviously is a large satisfier within the two factor theory but in the 21st century employees should not feel that those basic human rights are something which need to be fought for.
More interestingly it would seem that the majority of individuals are content with their trade specific status. Only a small percentage felt that climbing the ladder or personal growth was an important factor within their career or one which motivated them. I do not think this is an indication of a non-aspirational workforce more that the majority who earn their living in construction are content as they are, and that their trade status satisfies their self-actualisation. This I must add is not by design but very fortunate for organisations hiring construction workers.
Remuneration also plays a huge part of motivation within construction and I feel the economics of this are linked with many varying factors. Firstly the relationship is with job security, if an individual does not know whether they will be employed next week or not, obtaining as much capital as possible in the short term becomes a priority. This is because money directly delivers other physiological security needs in effect provides you with food and shelter. Which leads us onto the point that the majority above all else felt that job security was an important motivating factor within in their lives. So much so that they would be willing to take a cut in pay for continuity of employment. This factor seemed to be the single most concern for employees in construction but it is difficult to say that these statistics would have been the same during the boom only a few years previous.
Secondly the importance of remuneration for employees is the external economic environment. The cost of living in the U.K. has rocketed over the last few years and individuals need more money to sustain lifestyles which seemed easily fulfilled only a few years ago. This is also at a time when interest rates are at a historic all time low meaning at some point in the future more financial hardship will be endured by homeowners.
The problem being for employers of course that remuneration will only satisfy a worker for so long which may indicate why organisations insist on a continual turnover of labour and not redressing the culture of the environment.
From my results the most concerning piece of data which directly affected motivation and productivity which was also identified by Borcherding & Garner (1981) was that of relationships with supervision. Again there appears to be many contributing factors that directly implicate those relations.
Primarily the project environment is a task culture which gives very little room for manoeuvre in respect to employee creativity or freedom of expression. Ultimately individuals carry out work and tasks as per project scope they have very little influence or decision making with regards to course of action. This in itself as we see from Maslow to be de-motivating or creating low self-esteem. This could also explain some of the apathy with regards individuals wishing to progress further within their industry.
Supervisors are usually also often hired for technical ability and experience which on the surface would make perfect business sense. As was seen with some project managers however having a strong engineering background makes you technically adept but it does not mean that you have the knowledge to deal with people or teams.
Finally the external environment plays a huge role in the motivation of the work force. Relatively speaking from a construction standpoint there are only a handful of contractors currently in the U.K. that can undertake major construction projects. Usually when these projects are been awarded the big industry leaders come together and form alliances as we see currently on the Crossrail project in London. This is the largest construction project in Europe and has seen Bam, Ferrovial and Kier come together as a project consortium.
The problem this presents is simple if your competitors are not prepared to change then there is no reason you have to. This is how business has been orchestrated within major projects for many years. This doesn’t mean to say that the formula does not produce results or that it is a caveat but the question business should be asking themselves is are we getting the best out of our people. The only way to find the answer to that will take the bravery of an organisation to create and implement successful change.

RECOMMENDATIONS.
From my research it is clear that currently a level of acceptable performance does exist within major construction projects. Albeit this is achieved through very basic transactional leadership styles and archaic bonus incentives. I do believe however improvements can most certainly be made without trying to change the world, but it may certainly mean a change in culture.
My primary recommendation would be to incentivise and motivate employees through a continuity of work program directly targeting the issue of job security. I believe that giving individuals a sense of belonging and attachment to the organisation would generally increase productivity and diminish despondency and dis-engagement with project objectives. This as we have already discussed is not particularly easy to deliver due to the nature of the industry. However through effective communication at an organisational level I believe a conscious effort could be made to achieve those results. The most important aspect for the organisation though is to ensure that those efforts are communicated through to the shop floor that employees know that their services and skills are needed and that there is a conscious effort of retention.
Secondly and probably as important would be hiring the right supervisors and line managers. It is a key element of delivering successful projects. It would seem that for far too long supervisors have been employed based primarily on the strength of that’s what it says on their C.V. We have seen from my research how poor relations with supervision result massively in despondency. I can categorically say that been articulate and hiring strong transformational leaders will result in greater productivity and more effective motivated workforce. This may mean investment in training and educating current employees but most importantly those individuals must buy into the mantra and understand exactly what is required from them otherwise it will surely fail in its objectives.
I would abolish all collective bonus schemes I do not believe they work as individuals do not feel they have any kind of direct control over them or that they themselves can satisfy or achieve their objectives. I would implement bonuses on the strength of individual performance. This could take the form of refraining from absenteeism good timekeeping and safe working free from injury. I believe this would be far more effective than the status quo and would give employees specific measurable goals that they can achieve themselves and enhance their remuneration giving them a feeling of control and satisfaction in obtaining their bonus.
A final note would be that to ensure that all of these objectives can be met and the delivery of effective projects can be achieved, project managers must have the relevant resources at their disposal. A small investment in the short term could result in greater returns in the long term.
REFERENCES.
Bam, Ferrovial, Kier (B.F.K) Crossrail
British Broadcasting Corporation, Panorama
www.hansengeorge.blogspot.com
Kerr, I, The Consulting Association
www.lsgi.polyu.edu.hk
www.nationaltechcenter.org
www.onlinejobsapplication.com
www.p2pfoundation.net
www.saybrook.edu
www.web-books.com
www.teng3618.blogspot.co.uk

BIBLOGRAPHY.
Borcherding, J & Garner, D, Workforce motivation and productivity on large jobs, 1981
Herzberg, F, The Motivation to work, 1959
Maslow, A, Motivation & Personality, 1954
Zikmund, W, Exploring marketing research, 1997

APPENDICIES.
OVERVIEW OF THE RESEARCH PROCESS.
Appendix 1.
‘ Contributing factors to the process of research project selection.
The main reason for the choice of research project was primarily of personal interest. Also it was an obvious choice for me as hoping to move into project management myself and within the construction industry I believed that the results I achieved would be hugely beneficial moving forward. During the research process it also became apparent that although there was a lot of literature on motivational theory in general, industry specific studies were not so abundant especially construction. Coming from a construction background myself it gave me greater access to those individuals I wished to interview and also to those who I wished to dispense my questionnaire.
The existing literature on motivation was primarily written in the last century and most notably of the two theorists used for the project. These two models are widely regarded as the most acceptable forms of motivation techniques within business and management. Having read and considered other theories the most prominent being that of ‘attachment theory’ I felt that its practicalities were more suited to clinical psychology than that of the motivation of employees.
‘ Critical review of existing information on selected topic.
The proposal itself was the result of working on numerous major projects within the U.K. and then being introduced to motivational theory. It was clear to myself that there appeared to be a distinct absence of these techniques being utilised in construction projects. The lack of literature on the subject also gave positive reinforcement to my beliefs.
‘ Production of research project proposal which includes an appropriate plan and procedures for carrying out the research.
The plan was to understand the approach and attitudes of management and then cross reference those results against the feelings of the workforce to achieve a consensus of opinions.
The interviews of project managers involved myself contacting previous employers from numerous industrial backgrounds and securing there time to carry out my research. Initially I was going to ask those individuals to distribute the questionnaire to their employees but after some consideration I pursued other means. I thought personally it would generate too much suspicion coming from management and may result in biased answers. So at my request the interviewees produced the questionnaires to designated safety representatives who distributed and collected the documentation.
The questions produced to the interviewees were those based around the two identified theorist models to understand the level of implementation at organisational level. The questionnaire was directly based on the results of interpretive analysis from the interviews and also the culmination of the two motivational theories.
‘ Matched personal resources to the research project needs.
As this research project was carried out externally from my day to day work the most precious resource on which I fell short of was time. The amount of work involved to be able to satisfy myself that I was to achieve a reliable and valid response in the allotted time was too great. The culmination of this has resulted in me having to take leave from work to finish the project and meet the deadline.
‘ Carried out the proposed research in accordance with the agreed procedures.
For the interviews I relied heavily on previous employers. Having worked in the contracting industry myself and moving from job to job you are able to build a large network of contacts. Had it not been for my previous work experiences and industry knowledge I think it would have been difficult to obtained access to many of those individuals.
For the issuing of the questionnaires designated safety representatives for the workforce administered the documentation and collected it during their weekly ‘tool box talks’. This is simply a weekly communication from company health and safety advisors to the workforce about internal or external safety issues. Initially I had asked if the questionnaires could be handed out with the weekly wage slips but I was concerned that the workforce would assume it had been administered by management and that I would not simply obtain the returns I had hoped for.
‘ Recorded and collated relevant data.
The interviews were recorded on an I-Pad after I had downloaded a Dictaphone app which were then transferred onto my I-Pod so I could listen to them take notes and categorise the information at the same time. The questionnaire was then constructed on my laptop as a result of those interviews on a word document and then printed for distribution.
‘ Identification of theorists models including critical analysis.
I was introduced to Herzberg and Maslow through the course of my studies as I have previously stated. The critical analysis was the result of my own experiences within the construction environment and the clear lack of knowledge or implementation of those specific theories. Also having read more specific works primarily in psychology gave me a far greater understanding of how motivation is part of all our lives.
‘ Evaluation techniques used to evaluate your findings.
The interviews which were recorded enabled me to cross reference answers and seek out relationships and patterns which formed the consensus on which to base my questionnaire. The questionnaire itself took a sample of 100 employees which were given closed questions. The answers then gave a respective percentage depending on their answer. Most of the answers received returned a majority one way or another giving a solid platform on which to base my judgements.
‘ Interpreted and analysed the results in terms of the original research specification.
All of the data and information which I collected for the research project was interpreted and analysed exactly how I proposed. There was no deviation from the specification.
‘ Arrived at your conclusions.
The conclusions which I came to were the culmination of the results from my questionnaire and interviews. But also how those findings correlated with the two theorist models and the extent to which I thought the identified factors could be implemented to satisfy the workforce to a greater extent. But also were there was lack of implementation and resulting in dis-satisfied and de-motivating factors.
‘ Justified the recommendations you made.
The recommendations I made were the result of my findings which I felt directly hindered the motivation of the workforce within the construction industry which related to the two theorist models. I accept that after wider reading there were a lot more factors at play than the ones identified by Maslow and Herzberg. However I tried to address the big questions the factors which play a huge part in the motivation of employees within that industry. Also I felt that my recommendations from a business perspective would be relatively easy to implement without the need for huge organisational change. This I felt needed to be a key attribute due to the reasons already discussed, resistance to change within the industry and generally not having the need to with respect to competitors.
‘ Decided on the format and media to present the outcomes.
For a report of this nature taking into account the audience the only way to present your findings visually would be that of Microsoft word and Excel. However if this was to be demonstrated to an audience as a presentation and a motivational speech then I would have used a greater amount of bars, graphs and charts using Excel and summarising the key messages as bullet points using Microsoft Power Point.
Appendix 2.
*NOTE-THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONNAIRE IS PURELY FOR RESEARCH PURPOSES AND IS BEEN CARRIED OUT BY AN INDEPENDENT ORGANISATION EXTERNAL TO YOUR EMPLOYER. ALL INFORMATION DIVULGED WILL BE DEALT WITH IN THE STRICTEST OF CONFIDENCE.

* DELETE AS REQUIRED *
1) ARE YOU MALE/FEMALE
2) AGE (OPTIONAL)
3) ETHNICITY (OPTIONAL)
4) IN YOUR OPINION ARE YOUR WELFARE FACILITIES ADEQUATE YES/NO
5) DO YOU FEEL THE ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH YOU WORK IS SAFE YES/NO
6) IS YOUR WORK ENVIRONMENT ADEQUATE WITH REGARDS TO SANITATION YES/NO
7) ARE YOU ADEQUATELY REMUNERATED FOR YOUR LABOUR YES/NO
8) DO YOU FEEL YOU HAVE JOB SECURITY YES/NO
9) IS REMUNERATION MORE IMPORTANT THAN JOB SECURITY YES/NO
10) IS PERSONAL GROWTH OR PROMOTION IMPORTANT TO YOU YES/NO
11) WOULD YOU ACCEPT A DROP IN PAY FOR JOB SECURITY YES/NO
12) IF YES, WOULD THAT LOYALTY INCREASE YOUR PRODUCTIVITY YES/NO
13) DO YOU HAVE GOOD RELATIONS WITH YOUR SUPERVISION YES/NO
14) IF NO, DOES THAT REFLECT IN YOUR PRODUCTIVITY YES/NO
15) DO MILESTONE BONUSES INCENTIVISE YOU TO PRODUCE YES/NO
16) DO YOU FEEL YOU ARE ABLE TO HELP DELIVER PROJECT MILESTONES YES/NO