WordPress.com



Employee Motivation and the Relationship to Job PerformanceMSM 510February 25, 2019Group 2Lynn GonzalesRobin LarsenMichelle LowtherKenneth SinclairAbstractThis empirical research will study the effects of employee motivation and the relationship to job performance. This study will examine recognition, challenging work advancement and opportunities for employees; the impact of monetary and non-monetary motivation variables, job design, job security, organizational structure and the benefits of using StrengthsFinder.Statement of the ProblemThere are many correlations to why some employees are more motivated than others. This affects job performance.?Understanding what motivates employees plays an important part in job performance.? Empirical research is required to explore whether identified motivation plays an important role in the workplace and, if it does, how it may be cultivated in successful job performance.In order to and understand what drives others to outperform peers and employees that are more motivated and satisfied in their job, it is important to discover strengths. An individual strength is defined as consistent near-perfect performance in an activity. It is the result of the combination of talent, knowledge, and skill. Talents, which are formed early in life and are more or less fixed, are based on recurring patterns of thought, feeling, or behavior that provide positive results. A talent that is developed or enhanced by gaining knowledge and skills now becomes a strength. There is an important link between people’s character strengths and how they perform their jobs. Character strengths are positively related to performance and negatively related to stress. Should companies primarily focus on playing to the strengths of their employees or help them improve on their weaknesses? This question is particularly important given the low workforce engagement and higher expectations from workers about what a great job entails. This research will identify character strengths that lead to motivation in the workplace. A company needs employees working towards its goals for success. Since motivation has a direct effect on performance, a study was done to examine the intrinsic motivational state of the employees working in companies. This study examines the intrinsic motivational state of the employees working in companies from the manufacturing sector in India.It is important to understand what motivates people in higher positions, what factors influence motivation and which rewards influence motivation in order to enhance performance. A research study was done analyzing the effect of rewards on motivation among administrators. The type of reward practices used by organizations plays an important role in motivating employees to perform. A study completed questions whether certain reward practices used by organizations are better than others when comparing the employee results based on total quality management (TQM). Literature ReviewThe Gallup Organization conducted a study of over two million surveys and discussions. This resulted in the finding that there are thirty-four prevalent strengths or themes that encompass the majority of the strengths. The StrengthsFinder Profile is an on-line assessment tool. Through a secure Internet connection, the user is presented 180 statements. For each statement, the user is asked to indicate how he/she relates to or feels about each statement (Buckingham, Marcus and Clifton 2001). Through a better understanding of individual strengths, a person may look for ways to utilize these strengths in how they approach jobs and life. The results of StrengthsFinder can also provide insight on areas where an individual might improve.Motivation of people is not constant. It also varies with age, education, experience, aspirations, background of people, level and stay in the organization. Motivation can be intrinsic or extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation comes from within and is long-lasting (Deci & Ryan 2000). Extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, depends on external factors and is short-lived. It is very important for an organization to know what triggers provide employees’ intrinsic motivation. The managers may then take appropriate action to enhance motivation. Research findings indicate the importance of both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards in determining organizational commitment.MotivationMotivation is the reason a person has for performing in a specific way. What drives an employee to be motivated? In the study Employees’ Satisfaction, Central Element of the Strategy of Competitive Organizations motivation is driven by intrinsic and extrinsic rewards as a result of higher satisfaction. High performance in a job is reinforced with rewards (Ioana, Alexandrina, & Dalina, 2008).Rewards and recognition: Do they affect performance?Do reward systems work? The concept behind a reward system is that if a desired action is rewarded than the chance of the desired action happening repeatedly is high. Reward systems can be individual or team centric. These systems allow employees to feel like they are being treated fairly in comparison to other employees which increases performance. According Daniel Jnoya Ndungu in his study of the effects of rewards and recognition on employee performance in public education completed at Kenyatta University in Kenya, Ndungu found that there is a significant correlation between rewards and recognition to overall performance. This includes intrinsic, extrinsic, financial rewards as well as the environment and the leadership styles encountered. However, it was noted that employees were unhappy with their salaries, benefits and job security which directly affected motivation and job performance. In addition, a teacher’s pay scale is the same as a civil servant pay scale at the University. As teachers feel that civil servants are not equivalent to their positions, the teachers feel they are not truly valued. The management team found that job satisfaction could be improved by giving employees more responsibility and the freedom to complete tasks while making decisions on their own. This allowed the employees to feel that their input was valuable to the University (Ndungu, 2017).Extrinsic or Intrinsic: Which rewards work best?There are two types of rewards: extrinsic or intrinsic. Knowing which one is more effective will require the manager to understand the individual’s personal motivation. Does he/she need something tangible to feel satisfied or does satisfaction come from getting positive feedback or the satisfaction of knowing he/she completed a task well? According to the study, beyond job security and money, driving factors of motivation for government doctors in India Purohit Bhaskar and Tathagata Bandyopadhyay found that intrinsic and extrinsic rewards are both important and organizations should combine both when creating motivational strategies. It is also noted that respect and recognition as well as opportunities for promotion are important factors in motivating employees (Purohit & Bandyopadhyay, 2014).RecognitionEmployees are expected to bring value to a company. In return the employee expects to get value from the company. In today’s business, recognition of employee efforts is a very common way to value employees. Recognition is the public acknowledgment of an employee’s contribution to the organization such as positive feedback, appreciation and encouragement from superiors (Zeb, Saeed & HamidUllah, 2014).In the Kenyatta University study, it was noted that although extrinsic and intrinsic rewards did in fact motivate employees and improved job performance, the most important motivator was the actual work followed by recognition and achievement (Ndungu, 2017). Recognition must be meaningful. If the recognition is not warranted then the satisfaction will not be impacted. At the same time, when recognition is absent it will lead to negative attitudes (Ioana, Alexandrina, & Dalina, 2008). Job DesignIt should be the goal of managers to offer challenging work with responsibilities, recognize individual differences, effectively communicate expectations and be aware of the needs and abilities to create optimal job design in the workplace (Cheng & Lu 2012). When the organization creates a job design or makes changes to an existing design, the goal is to increase meaningfulness and help to make employees feel accountable for outcomes, and provide feedback of the results.Motivation and job performance can be improved by having the employee use a variety of skills in their work. Increased involvement in the completion of the work will raise the satisfaction an employee will have. When employees are aware of the significance of their work, how it adds value to the organization and the extent to which they feel they make a difference, they feel better about the work they do. The more autonomy and inclusion that can be integrated into the job design, the more satisfied they will be. When employees get feedback about their performance and see their impact, it will increase interest in the work they do. When a good job design is implemented, it will improve motivation and job performance.Job SecurityWhen employees are not confident about the ability to remain employed, it affects their performance. In order to improve how secure an employee feels about their employment, training should be offered to all employees with regards to their roles. Not training temporary employees reduces the motivation to invest in company specific skills (Scheel, Rigotti, & Mohr 2014). When uncertainty is reduced and there is opportunity for self-enhancement, it is more likely that employees will identify with the company. When all the employees are treated as equally valuable by the company, they will be more motivated and their job performance will improve (Loi, Chan, & Lam 2014).Organizational structureIt is not probable that all people will have the same goals and motivation and this will inhibit the ability to strive for the same end results. Management must be clear to staff about what they want to achieve and the steps that are required to get there. They must also be engaged with subordinates to keep everyone focused on what is best for the company. This includes having the right people in place to succeed. When management prefers to hire only people that agree with them, the team is unlikely to be successful. When there is not enough diversity of thought and beliefs at the management level, it causes too much of a herd mentality and will diminish the workforce’s motivation to perform well. When management sets aside their personal goals and is motived to hire the best person for the job, the organizational structure is enhanced and will be a good model for the employees. When appropriate training and engagement is properly monitored, they will likely be more able to motivate the employees and improve performance.The ModelThere is a distinction that character strengths at work can increase job satisfaction, energy, engagement, proactive work behavior, performance and creativity. Increasing work pressures to attain quality and time-based achievements can trigger stress and interrupt efficiency and effectiveness of work design models. The recent economic downturn has led to downsizing, lay-offs and has forced individuals to accept more work with minimal resources.The StrengthsFinder results provide insight that is a valuable resource for the employer and employee. The proposed combination of the concepts of strengths and climate may therefore be another step on the path towards the flourishing of individuals and organizations.In competitive businesses, the concept of rewards and employee motivation has become a popular subject to study. Many research studies have been completed to help employers know how intrinsic and extrinsic rewards impact employee motivation. Business success depends significantly on highly motivated employees who are productive and creative. Because monetary and non-monetary variables affect employee motivation, various studies were done to examine specific ways in which they impact motivation. One project studied the effects of fulfillment of three psychological needs on performance by evaluating the impact on demographic variables like age, experience, education and background on the psychological needs of the employees in the manufacturing sector in India. Objectives were examined on the effect of rewards on motivation among administrators’ staff in a University. More specific objectives were to examine the effect of intrinsic reward on motivation, to examine the extrinsic reward on motivation, and to propose the best predictor variable of motivation. A study was conducted to determine whether certain reward practices used by organizations are better than others when comparing the employee results based on Total Quality Management (TQM). The main objective of this study is to determine whether certain reward practices used by organizations are better than others when comparing the employee results based on TQM. The effects of various intrinsic and extrinsic rewards were examined on the three components of commitment, taking the multi-dimensional perspective of commitment into account in UK call centers. Data Description There are several studies related to employee strengths and how it is related to the employees’ levels of positive affect and performance outcomes. One study by the Corporate Leadership Council surveyed 19,000 managers and employees. The results indicated that when companies focus on employee strengths during performance reviews, employee performance rose by up to 36%. When companies focus on weaknesses, the performance decreased by 27% (Hearn, 2018). The results of this study revealed that a strengths-based psychological climate was related to positive affect at work. The research shows that significant positive impacts were obtained in the areas of productivity and engagement when employees manage their physical, mental and emotional energy levels instead of time.?(Appendix A)A few companies were selected from the manufacturing sector depending on their size, product, standing in market and above all their willingness to participate in the survey. The questionnaire developed for the study is based on General Causality Orientation Scale used by Deci and Ryan. Measurement of independent and dependent variables was done to examine the relationship between intrinsic motivators and performance as a measure of overall motivation. Structured questionnaires were used in this study which consisted of three sections. First section of motivation questions was adapted from De Beer incorporates Herzberg’s two-factor theory. The second section was adapted from Nawab et al (2011). It was designed to measure rewards as independent variables comprised of two dimensions which are 1) extrinsic reward and 2) intrinsic reward. The third section comprises items seeking respondent’s information. Each statement in section one and section two were measured on a seven-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1=strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree. The results of a survey used were analyzed through descriptive analyses, ANOVA and MANOVA analysis. Within the scope of research, there are three groups of variables: intrinsic and extrinsic rewards as independent variables, people results as dependent variables, and the market the business operates in according to operation period, size and TQM experience year as control variables. A non-profitability sampling approach was adopted using judgmental sampling, whereby the sampling decision is left to the judgment of the expert in the field to identify representative samples. This approach was used in the call center study to examine the effect of various intrinsic and extrinsic rewards in determining organizational commitment. ResultsFocusing on employee strengths does more than engage workers and enrich their lives. It makes good business sense. Gallup completed a large study of companies that have implemented strength-based management practices. The study examined the effects those interventions had on workgroup performance. It included 49,495 businesses with 1.2 million employees across 22 organizations in seven industries and 45 countries. Gallup focuses on six outcomes: sales, profit, customer engagement, turnover, employee engagement and safety. Seven practices for optimizing strengths initiatives were discovered. The results of this study were workgroups that received a strengths intervention improved on all of these measures by a significant amount compared with controls groups that received less-intensive interventions or none at all. Ninety percent of the workgroups that implemented a strengths intervention of any magnitude saw performance increases at or above the ranges shown below (Rigoni, & Asplund, 2016).10%-19% - increase in sales14%-29% increase in profit3%-7% - increase in customer engagement9%-15% increase in engaged employees6-16 point decrease in turnover (in low-turnover organizations26-72 point decrease in turnover (in high-turnover organizations)22%-59% decrease in safety incidentsIt was concluded that all three intrinsic motivators do not have equal influence on overall motivation of the employees in the manufacturing sector. Competence of employees has negligible influence on their performance (overall motivation). On the other hand, perceived relatedness has strong influence on performance. Autonomy has moderate influence on performance. As the main finding of the research, it has been determined that application level of intrinsic and extrinsic rewards in Turkish manufacturing industry is not high. It has been identified that intrinsic rewards have a significant influence on employee results; however extrinsic rewards do not have a significant influence on employee results in Turkish manufacturing industry. The results of the study support the contentions of exchange theory, and highlight the significance of both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards to develop affective, normative and continuing commitment in call center employees. This research also helps to identify the antecedents that develop each component of commitment. The findings of this research have key messages for practitioners, and contribute to the fields of human resource management, rewards, commitment and exchange theory. The statistical results obtained in this study shows that rewards have a positive impact on motivation. The results of this study suggest that higher level of motivation and the capability to provide better rewards will lead to a greater university performance. ConclusionResearch has shown that having higher levels of specific strengths leads to beneficial outcomes. Regularly using and practicing one’s strengths helps build positive actions. Strengths play an important role in choosing adaptations to coping strategies in the workplace.Motivation is the key to employee job performance. When a company strives to have the best job design for their people they will respond in a positive way. It is important that employees are valued by a company and that their training and socialization efforts include all employees. To succeed it is important for an organization have a structure that emulates the behavior they want and hold their leadership accountable for achieving the goals of the company. When job design, job security, and organizational structure are optimized it improves motivation which in turn gets better job performance from employees. Based on the information noted throughout this paper the theory that rewards and recognition directly affect job performance is confirmed. Each individual is different which requires management to recognize whether or not an employee is extrinsically or intrinsically motivated in order to reward correctly. Management needs to understand meaningful recognition so that he/she is not sabotaging the effort by praising where it is not deserved or missing opportunities to publicly acknowledge when an employee is performing well. Using the reward/recognitions strategy will motivate the employee thereby improving performance and job satisfaction.References Buckingham, M., Clifton, D., Now, Discover Your Strengths, the Free Press, New York, 1. 2001. Retrieved from: , J.-W., & Lu, K.-M. (2012). The role of job design and mechanism in motivating Feedback-seeking behavior in transportation service. The Service Industries Journal, 32(13), 2047-2057Hearn, S., 2018. Why Managers Should Focus on Employee Strengths to Inspire Great Performance. Retrieved from: , R., Alexandrina, D., & Dalina, D. (2008). Employees’ Satisfaction, Central Element of the Strategy of Competitive Organization. Annals of the University of Oradea, Economic Science Series, 17(4), 553–558. Retrieved from , S. (1975). On the folly of rewarding A, while hoping for B. Academy of Management Journal, 18(4), 769-783.Loi, R., Chan, K. W., & Lam, L. W. (2014). Leader-member exchange, and job satisfaction: A social identity perspective. Journal of Occupational & Organizational Psychology, 87, 42-61. Malhotra, N., Budhwar, P., & Prowse, P. (2007). Linking rewards to commitment: an empirical investigation of four UK call centres. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 18(12), 2095–2128. , D. D., & Jacob, W. (2011). Intrinsic Motivators in the Indian Manufacturing Sector: An Empirical Study. IUP Journal of Organizational Behavior, 10(2), 21–39. Retrieved from , D. N. (2017). The effects of rewards and recognition on employee performance in public educational institutions: A case of Kenyatta University, Kenya. Global Journal of Management and Business Research: Administration and Management, 17(1).?zutku, H. (2012). The influence of intrinsic and extrinsic rewards on employee results: An empirical analysis in Turkish manufacturing industry. Business and Economics Research Journal, 3(3), 29-48. Retrieved from , B., & Bandyopadhyay, T. (2014). Beyond job security and money: driving factors of motivation for government doctors in India. Human Resources for Health, 12(1), 1–26. , M. A., & Daud, W. N. W. (2013). Rewards and motivation among administrators of University Sultan Zainal Abidin (Unisza): An empirical study. International Journal of Business and Society, 14(2), 265-286. Retrieved from and Motivation among Adminstrators of Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin: An Empirical Study. Retrieved from: , B., Asplund, J., 2016. Developing Employee’s Strengths Boosts Sales, Profit and Engagement. Retrieved from: , T., Rigotti, T., & Mohr, G. (2014). Training and performance of a diverse workforce. Human Resource Management, 53(5), 749-772.VanWoerkom, M., Meyers, M., 2014. Human Resource Management. Vol. 54, No. 1, Pp. 81-103. My Strengths Count!? Effects of a Strengths-Based Psychological Climate on Positive Affect and Job Performance.? Retrieved from:? Journal of Social Sciences, 7(2), 295–308. Retrieved from , A., Rehman, S. ur, Saeed, G., & HamidUllah. (2014). A Study of the Relationship between Reward and Recognition and employees Job Satisfaction: A Literature Review. Abasyn University Journal of Social Sciences, 7(2), 295–308. Retrieved from AStrengthsFinder Table Relating ThemesImpacting ThemesStriving ThemesThinking Themes-Communication -Empathy -Inclusiveness -Individualization -Relator -Responsibility -Positivity-Command -Competition -Developer –Maximizer -Woo-Achiever -Activator -Adaptability -Belief -Discipline -Focus -Restorative -Self-assurance -Significance-Analytical -Arranger -Connectedness -Context -Deliberative -Fairness -Futuristic -Harmony -Ideation -Input -Intellection -Learner -Strategic ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download