The term motivation in an organisational setting is rather simple. A manager is said to motivate his subordinates when the organisational goals are realized and the subordinate’s goals are achieved. The term motivation which also is referred to as inspiration or encouragement goes beyond a manager seeing that the work is performed rather it also includes satisfying the individual’s needs through rewards or incentives.
There are many motivational theories such as carrot and stick theory wherein the carrot is incentives and the stick is fear, fear in the form of fear of loss of job or fear of demotion or fear of a transfer; Maslows theory of needs who said that lower level needs have to satisfied before the higher level needs can emerge and once a need has been satisfied it no longer serves as a motivator; or Herzberg’s two factor theory. Of them the theory which intrigues me is Herzberg’s two factor theory. This theory is very much relevant in today’s world. According to Herzberg, two factors exist at the work place. One is the Hygiene or maintenance factor, while the other is the motivators or satisfiers. The maintenance factors include the company policy, relation with superiors, peers, subordinates, work conditions, salary, personal life, status, security and supervision. The satisfiers were achievement, recognition, work itself, responsibility, advancement and growth.
Herzberg’s theory claimed that if the maintenance factors were present, no motivation would take place, but if absent then dissatisfaction would occur. Similarly he said that if the satisfiers were present then motivation would occur and if absent then neither satisfaction nor dissatisfaction would occur.
It is true that if the maintenance factors are absent then dissatisfaction will occur. How many times have we been in a bad mood or have had an off day because we ended up in a fight with our subordinates, colleagues or superiors. Similarly if we feel vulnerable of our jobs then we will once again be on tenterhooks and be dissatisfied. Poor work conditions, very strict supervision, poor pay packets, problems at home carried to work, low status jobs and rigid and inhumane company policies also cause dissatisfaction to employees.
In today’s competitive world the satisfiers or content factors are of prime importance. This is because each of us wishes to achieve and grow and advance in the organisation. Growth in any setting leads to motivation to do better. A person whose job is mundane and stagnated will have no motivation to do better.
Recognition and responsibility also add to the job satisfaction. An individual who puts in a lot of work will desire some form of recognition for his work. It may not be only money. Today money is not and will never be the sole motivator, although it is required. A simple ‘well done’ or putting up his/her name on the staff notice board as employee of the week can motivate a person to a large extent. Some companies even go to the extent of giving their employees a complete paid holiday abroad. These measures not only are motivators but also add up to being loyal to the company in the future. If the company is in turmoil and employees are quitting, then these employees who were given recognition in the past will stand up and support the company. They thus serve as ambassadors of the company.
In the same vein responsibility plays an equal part in motivation. An apprentice once said that the supervisor of his department took ill all of a sudden and the onus of running the department fell on the shoulders of him. Not one to take a back seat he grabbed the opportunity and performed extremely well even being ready to work overtime. Seeing his efforts and enthusiasm, the management quickly placed him in the regular staff category. This is the satisfaction of the highest level since he was not only given responsibility to do some work but was also recognized and rewarded for his efforts. At other instances there are those who shy away from responsibility, resulting in not getting the recognition and then feeling a sense of frustration and dissatisfaction. In our day to day life we find many such cases that do not do anything noteworthy and then cry foul when another is promoted or given recognition for his performance.
And finally work itself can be a motivator. A job which is interesting, creative, and novel will stimulate growth. The growth ladder for a job which is creative such as a copywriter, architect or engineer, or even a writer has no end. In contrast jobs which are dull and boring only result in the employee becoming dissatisfied, disgruntled and resigning.
