The Challenge of motivating employees

The Challenge of motivating employees Challenge of motivating employees Organization has been deemed to be the strength of any viable business. The more organized and efficient the different components in the business are, the better it functions. The breaking down of tasks associated with each component in a particular organizational system has now led to the concept of job design or performance charters. Motivation is simply a process which encourages and guides behavior. Robbins and Judge define motivation as, â€Å"the process that accounts for an individuals intensity, direction, and persistence of effort towards attaining a goal†. Motivation therefore, is a goal directed behavior with factors which energize, direct and sustain employee behavior. Laurie J. Mullins (2007) states that, â€Å"the relationship between the organization and its employees is influenced by what motivates them to work, the rewards involved and the fulfillment they derive from it†. Employees today are motivated by various things of which some are considered as a needed entity or as a desired. Worldwide, organizations have focused on theories that motivate employees to be the best they can be and most of these theories of motivation have proved to be true to date. Since motivational theories were formulated in the 1950s, they have been divided into two categories; Content theories Process theories Content theories are said to be, â€Å"what motivates people† further explained as what arouses, energizes, or simply starts behavior, i.e. individual physiological and psychological needs and this focus is on internal needs. Motivation results from an individuals attempts to satisfy these needs. 1. Maslows Hierarchy of needs states that; Adult motives are complex Needs form a hierarchy lower needs to be satisfied before higher order needs People always seek growth because they want to move up the hierarchy of needs Research evidence in the Maslows Hierarchy of need theories has been said to be; Flexible hierarchy of needs Satisfaction of one need level may not decrease its importance and increase importance of the next need level It has also been found that needs vary according to; The size of the organization A persons career stage Geographical location Across cultures By employing Maslows Hierarchy of needs, several managerial implications exist; Physiological needs food and wages Safety needs a working environment that is safe as well as job security Social needs opportunity to interact, teamwork Esteem needs recognition, challenging tasks, status symbols and participation Self-actualization encourages creativity and innovation 2. Herzbergs two factor theory encompasses dual factor motivation-hygiene as it portrays two different factors. Hygiene factors: related to the context of the job Motivational factors: related to the content of the job Research in the 1950 Herzbergs two factor theory asked people to describe situations in which they found their job exceptionally good or bad. Research conclusion; Job satisfaction intrinsic factors. Builds high level of motivation and stimulates superior performance. Dissatisfaction extrinsic factors. Environmental as well as external factors to the job build a zero level of motivation if maintained. Herzbergs two factor theory research evidence also states that the theory fails to; Account for individual differences Link motivation and needs to both satisfaction and performance Consider cultural and professional differences 3. Alderfers ERG theory was developed by Clayton Alderfer and his theory collapses Maslows five categories into three categories: existence needs, relatedness needs and growth needs. ERG theory states that more than one need category may be activated at the same time. Existence needs the desire for physiological and material well-being Relatedness needs desire to satisfy interpersonal relationships Growth needs desire for continued personal growth and development The ERG theory research evidence is encouraging because it offers a more flexible approach to understanding human needs. The comparison of content theories is very interesting to analyze as it gives a more precise breakdown of theories put together. Figure 1 below is a depiction of all three theories put together. Herzberg Maslow Alderfer Higher order Intrinsic Needs Motivation Lower order Extrinsic Needs Motivation Process theories are focused on the cognitive process that influences behavior, i.e. Why an individual behaves in a particular manner and specifically deals with ‘how to motivate. This process illustrates how people choose behaviors to satisfy their needs. Victor Vrooms expectancy theory states that a persons motivation is a multiplicative function of expectancy, instrumentality and valence. Expectancy is the probability assigned by an individual that work effort will be followed by a given level of task accomplishment. -Instrumentality is the probability assigned by an individual that a given level of achieved task performance will lead to various work outcomes. -Valence is defined as the value attached by an individual to various work outcomes. Vrooms expectancy theory has various implications as regards motivation. -Motivation is sharply reduced when expectancy, instrumentality or valence approach zero. -Motivation is high when expectancy and instrumentality are high and valence is strongly positive. The expectancy theory has been seen to have managerial implications where as managers should be seen to act to maximize expectancies, instrumentalities and valence that support various organizational objectives. Research evidence on the expectancy theory has received substantial empirical support though the multiplier effect is subject to some question. It may also be useful to distinguish between extrinsic and intrinsic rewards. The expectancy theory does not specify which rewards will motivate particular groups of employees thereby allowing for cross-cultural differences. Lastly, the Porter Lawler model tries to establish a relationship between the efforts, performance and satisfaction of an individual. The most important variables in this model include effort, performance, rewards and satisfaction. In todays digital age, a large number of employees are well educated to some acceptable standard and for that most demand a reasonable salary as well as worthwhile working conditions. As motivation has conformed to some socially acceptable standards of behavior, it has been assumed to be an individual perspective. Every individual is unique because we have different desires, potential, values, goals and attitudes. The most important aspect that most employees are concerned with is their needs and wants. Todays managers have a challenge or the opportunity to influence the motivation of their employees through the design of their performance charters. Well outlined performance charters help accomplish two important goals: getting the necessary work done in a timely and competent manner, motivating and challenging employees. Both the organization as well as the employee is a beneficiary of a successfully done performance charter. Performance charter is the specification of the contents, methods and the counter relationship of jobs to fulfill organizational requirements. Mostly, employees are motivated when they are lead to accomplishments of which they can proud whilst recognizing what they have done. Warren Blank (2001) states that, â€Å"a motivational environment enables people to feel like winners†. Todays performing managers have the responsibility of designing employee performance charters. If a manager ignores this responsibility, employees will definitely design their own. It wouldnt be a surprise to see that performance charters designed by employees are more likely to be adjusted to their experiences and preferences than to the goals of the organization. It has been said once before that you cannot motivate anyone but you can provide the environment in which they can grow to their full potential. Management by objectives (MBO), â€Å"is a style or system of management that attempts to relate organizational goals to individual performance and development through the involvement of all levels of management†, encompasses time period with feedback as well as goal progression. According to Laurrie J. Mullins, the phrase ‘Management by Objectives (MBO) was first introduced by Peter Drucker in 1954 as a strategy for managing people whilst focusing on teamwork based on their ability to complete individual as well as team goals. MBOs have been seen to be effective as it helps in the alignment of an employees efforts around an organizations collective objectives. The MBO process begins with an organization defining its objectives. This is where the process of strategic planning, goal setting, visioning which generates from its process a set of objectives that the organization should always strive to achieve. The main principal underlining Management by Objectives is mainly to create empowered employees who will have clarity of the roles and responsibility expected from them, and once the objectives set are understood, it helps in the achievement of personal as well as organizational goals. Some advantages of MBO include specifically ‘clarity of goals. With clarity of goals, came the birth of SMART goals concept which Intel Specific various key factors should be present in the set objectives for them to be effective. This is where the word ‘specific is outlined because this simply describes specifically the desired results. Measurable This simply states that the objectives should be clear as to whether the objectives were met. Achievable when objectives are set, it should be seen that they are achievable. Realistic Realistic objectives in its own right is explained as goals or objectives that can be achieved coupled with the tools at an employees disposal to achieve the said objectives. Time based time based simply means a set objective has a time frame attached to it which acts as a guideline. SMART objectives ensure the delivery of greater results because they clearly and specifically address performance goals rather than broad emotions or behaviors. This concept also requires that objectives are created in collaboration with supervisors so as to be aware of their subordinates goals and supportive of their completion as well as ongoing tracking and feedback in the process to reach desired objectives. As noted in Robbins and judge, â€Å"MBO popularity should not be construed to mean that it always works†. This is normally as a result of lack of commitment by management as well as the inability in allocation of rewards based on accomplished objectives. Management by Objectives therefore, can be as a process of determining exactly what an employee is to do on the job, the tasks, duties, responsibilities, decision-making and the level of authority. The challenge being faced by managers now is that of employing the new strategies with all its opportunities in ways which not only meet an organizations needs but also the expectations as well as aspirations of the employees. Dennys Restaurant review Leadership Qualities â€Å"If you can become the leader you ought to be on the inside, you will be able to become the person you want on the outside. People will want to follow you, and when that happens you will be able to tackle anything in this world.† John Maxwell We at Dennys are constantly striving to identify quality minority and women businesses to support the needs of our company. Because we see diversity as an asset, we will attract and develop talent from the full range of the worlds rich cultural base. Dennys Vision mission. Despite having a clearly stated vision and mission, its management failed to publicly communicate the causes of the discrimination incidences they were amassed with as well as the actions Dennys management was taking to counter check the reoccurrence of those incidents. A leader is said to be an individual with suitable knowledge and desirable skills to lead groups to achieve their goals willingly. It is noted in Lasting Leadership that, â€Å"the spirit of the people† is a big part of what management experts mean when they talk about corporate culture. The beliefs and values that guide employee behavior can improve performance by motivating workers toward a common goal and instilling in them a sense of purpose. There are several indicators, which can help us to outline the strength of our leadership. The most important leadership quality that one needs to exhibit in todays world is ‘honesty. A leader should always be honest to his task, his products or services, his people and most importantly to his customers. This quality of leadership should not only exist but also should be seen to exist in by all stakeholders in the organization. John C. Maxwell in an extract of his book by George Wells states that, â€Å"while leaders need to connect publicly with large groups of people, the same thing needs to happen on a one-to-one basis between individuals. Maxwell tells how his staff used to groan when he would say People dont care how much you know until they know how much you care because he quoted the saying so often, but it is true. You develop credibility with people when you connect with them and show that you genuinely want to help them. Everybody wants to be somebody† If you treat every person you meet as if he or she were the most important person in the world, youll communicate that he or she is somebody to you. Of course, the respect needs to be genuine at all times otherwise people will rapidly sense that they are being manipulated otherwise. Dennys Restaurant management should have been able to realize that customer complaints are company failures and these require immediate attention. Ultimately, spending money in hopes of making money is an organizations goal but every dollar paid out to offset various customers who were dissatisfied is a signal that an organization must change in some decisive way. The Vidsoft Triangle Every little thing we do has positive, negative or neutral impact on teams motivation. Vidsoft case is one among the few companies that come across case of team based management problems that are faced by employees. Analysis of Vidsoft Vidsoft technologies was an internet company designing enterprise software and in June 1999, its quarterly revenues grew from $50M to over $250M year ending 2000 while employee base rose from 500 to 2,000. Babatunde graduated from Darden graduate of business administration in may 1998. He moved to California to get a job with Vidsoft technologies as senior technical support engineer. Alex Hsu was employed as technical support engineer and reported directly to babatunde. Even though Hsu was not good at team work, he was hired to bring varied culture as well as experience to vidsoft due to his previous record Babatunde made a public decision of promoting one of his engineers to be manager. Hsu reported some displeasure about his new supervisor Jennah Li as she was deemed to be an inexperienced manager and babatunde was unsure of what decision to make as he was the overall among the two despite having fears about taking sides. Keith Nash as CEO of vidsoft developed a culture that encourages its employees to speak their minds as excellence of employees was followed with promotions. Vidsoft as an organization encouraged teamwork and thus were awarded bonuses for collectively working together. Keith Nash believed in the culture of promoting from within as a motivational tool for employees until after vidsoft went public because this brought a mass influx of talent as well as wages became high. Vidsoft ended up falling back on its employees in terms of hiring due to costs so as to train them to keep up with the pace. Babatunde initially employed a micro-management style of management where he kept a close eye on all his employees in hopes that his team succeeds but this had to change as employee numbers rose. He then changed his style of management by using set objectives for each team to achieve desired goals. As babatundes responsibilities grew, he saw it necessary to change his reporting structure to reduce the number of people reporting to him so to manage more effectively. This led to him promoting one of his engineers ‘Jennah Li to manage one of the product lines. Jennah Li in regards to Hsu was hired for her skills in managing customer relations despite English not being her strength; she was awarded for being the best team player. In vidsofts operational history, White was one of the first employers to run the technical support department and set stringent goals to be met by his fellow employees. He took an active role in ensuring that any team under his command did well to meet his standards. James White made a decision to hire babatunde because of his MBA training and trusted him to an extent of giving him all powers to make various decisions affecting the organization with his guidance. THE SOLUTION Babatunde at this point should be able to realize that workplace conflicts and unresolved differences can be the cause of negative performance of teams or generally employees. Furthermore, existing physical and psychological differences can escalate if conflict remains unaddressed by vidsoft managers as well as team members. From the onset, babatunde was aware that Hsu was not a team player and this should have been a starting point of making things clear to him that for him to succeed, he had to work in collaboration with other team members. It was observed that being a team player for Hsu as observed is a road he hasnt travelled and requires some skill and effort from babatunde. Hsu should be made to realize that teamwork is about assuming positive intent and seeing things from all sides in detail. Everyone has unique gifts and abilities. Recognizing these and appreciating them can be very useful especially in the case of two people with different skills because they can complement each other very powerfully when they work together. Its about acknowledging and accepting differences, and exploring alternative solutions that meet everyones needs and concerns as it is important to everyone, and all sides ‘Hsu and Ali need to be committed to the solution. Both parties should agree that the goal is to fix the problem not to assign blame, hurt, humiliate, or threaten the one another. Babatundes job now is to focus on the issue, present and future, and on solutions available. They should be made aware that the situation must change and identify consequences if it does not. Keith Nash as CEO of Vidsoft should make things clear from the onset of employment that individuals are different at times as regards to each others needs. Sometimes workplace issues are evaded or ignored completely but generally, this is not a useful long term solution as the workplace is never small enough to avoid someone completely. Some guidelines should be put in place to for conflict resolution. Every employee upon being taken under vidsoft should be made aware that; Conflict and grievances are present within the workplace Improved communication within the workplace will avoid conflicts Establish performance expectations and consequences if expectations are not met. Lastly Vidsoft should have a written resolution and agreement regarding behavior within the workplace which should be adhered by both the employer as well as the employee. Babatunde should provide the leadership that enables his teams to productively work together and as much as possible, work with employees individually and encourage them to address the conflict directly with each other.

Compare and Contrast Women in The Yellow Wallpaper and Story of an Hour :: Yellow Wallpaper Story of an Hour

Compare and Contrast Women Characters in The Yellow Wallpaper and Story of an Hour      Ã‚  Ã‚   Women have traditionally been known as the less dominant sex.   Through history women have fought for equal rights and freedom.   They have been stereotyped as being housewives, and bearers and nurturers of the children.   Only recently with the push of the Equal Rights Amendment have women had a strong hold on the workplace alongside men.   Many interesting characters in literature are conceived from the tension women have faced with men.   This tension is derived from men; society, in general; and within a woman herself.   Two interesting short stories, â€Å"The   Yellow Wall-paper and â€Å"The Story of an Hour, â€Å" focus on a woman’s plight near the turn of the 19th century.   This era is especially interesting because it is a time in modern society when women were still treated as second class citizens.   The two main characters in these stories show similarities, but they are also remarkably different in the ways they deal with their problems and life in general.   These two characters will be examined to note the commonalities and differences.   Although the two characters are similar in some ways, it will be shown that the woman in the â€Å"The Story of an Hour† is a stronger character based on the two important criteria of rationality and freedom.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In â€Å"The Yellow Wall-paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the unnamed female protagonist is going through a rough time in her life.   (For now on, this paper will refer to this unnamed character as the â€Å"the narrator in ‘Wall-paper,’† short for â€Å"The Yellow Wall-paper.   The narrator is confined to room to a room with strange wall-paper.   This odd wall-paper seems to symbolize the complexity and confusion in her life.   In â€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin, the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard must also deal with conflict as she must deal with the death of her spouse.   At first there is grief, but then there is the recognition that she will be free.   The institute of marriage ties the two heroines of these two short stories together.   Like typical young women of the late 19th century, they were married, and during the course of their lives, they were expected to stay married.   U nlike today where divorce is commonplace, marriage was a very holy bond and divorce was taboo.   This tight bond of marriage caused tension in these two characters.

Human right issues Essay

India’s earliest settlements are believed to have developed in the culture hearths of the Indus Valley around 2600 B.C.E. and in the Ganges Valley around 1500 B.C.E. These societies were mainly composed of ethnic Dravidians who had an economy based on commerce and agricultural trade. Aryan tribes are believed to have then invaded the area after they migrated into the Indian subcontinent from the northwest. It is thought that they introduced the caste system which is still common in many parts of India today. During the 4th century B.C.E, Alexander the Greatintroduced Greek practices into the region when he expanded across Central Asia. During the 3rd century B.C.E, the Mauryan Empire came into power in India and was most successful under its emperor, Ashoka. Throughout subsequent periods Arab, Turkish and Mongol peoples entered India and in 1526, a Mongol Empire was established there, which later expanded throughout most of northern India. During this time, such landmarks as the Taj Mahal were also constructed. Much of India’s history after the 1500s was then dominated by British influences. The first British colony was in 1619 with English East India Company at Surat. Shortly thereafter, permanent trading stations opened in present-day Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata. British influence then continued to expand from these initial trading stations and by the 1850s, most of India and other countries such as Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh were controlled by Britain. By the late 1800s, India began working toward independence from Britain but it did not come until the 1940s however when Indian citizens began to unite and British Labor Prime Minister Clement Attlee began to push for India’s independence. On August 15, 1947, India officially became a dominion within the Commonwealth and Jawaharlal Nehru was named India’s Prime Minister. India’s first constitution was written shortly thereafter on January 26, 1950 and at that time, it officially became a member of the British Commonwealth. Since gaining its independence, India has undergone significant growth in terms of its population and economy however, there were periods of instability in the country and much of its population today lives extreme poverty. Government of India Today India’s government is a federal republic with two legislative bodies. The legislative bodies consist of the Council of States, also called Rajya Sabha, and the People’s Assembly, which is called the Lok Sabha. India’s executive branch has a chief of state and a head of government. There are also 28 states and seven union territories in India. Economics Land Use in India India’s economy today is a varied mix of small village farming, modern large scale agriculture as well as modern industries. The service sector is also an incredibly large part of India’s economy as many foreign companies such places as call centers located in the country. In addition to the service sector, India’s largest industries are textiles, food processing, steel, cement, mining equipment, petroleum, chemicals and computer software. India’s agricultural products include rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, tea, sugarcane, dairy products and livestock. Geography and Climate of India The geography of India is diverse and can be divided into three main regions. The first is the rugged, mountainous Himalayan region in the northern part of the country, while the second is called the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It is in this region that most of India’s large-scale agriculture takes place. The third geographic region in India is the plateau region in the southern and  central portions of the country. India also has three major river systems which have large deltas that take over a large portion of the land. These are the Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers. India’s climate is also varied but is tropical in the south and mainly temperate in the north. The country also has a pronounced monsoon season from June to September in it southern portion. More Facts about India †¢ India’s people are 80% Hindu, 13% Muslim and 2% Christian. These divisions have historically caused tensions between different religious groups. †¢ Hindi and English are India’s official languages, but there are also 17 regional languages that are considered official. †¢ India has several cities that have undergone place name changes such as Bombay being renamed Mumbai. These changes were mainly done in an effort to return the city names to local dialects, as opposed to British translations.

Commonly Confused Words Consequently and Subsequently

The words  consequently and subsequently both convey the sense of afterward or occurring later — but not in exactly the same way. Definitions Consequently is a conjunctive adverb that means accordingly, therefore, or as a result: Chris  failed the course and consequently  was ineligible to graduate. The adverb  subsequently means then, later, or next (following in time, order, or place): Lori graduated from college and subsequently moved to Springfield. Examples [W]hen someone has the same accent, loves the same indie brand, or also says y’all instead of you, we feel an affinity or bond. Consequently, when we imitate someone, or behave similarly, that person starts to infer that we have things in common or are part of the same tribe.(Jonah Berger, Why It Pays to Be a Copycat. Time, June 22, 2016)[I]ndividuals start to learn about leadership at a very early age—from the way in which their parents interact with them, the expectations their parents hold for them, and the rules that they establish for them.  Subsequently they  learn about leadership from other adult models, including family members, sports coaches, teachers, and TV characters.(Julian Barling,  The Science of Leadership. Oxford University Press, 2014)Staff members develop their own skills, learn to change organizational policies, and subsequently gain a sense of mastery over their own work environment. Consequently, staff members become better motivated, and p roductivity increases.(Donna Hardina et al.,  An Empowering Approach to Managing Social Service Organizations.  Springer, 2007)The use of substances such as caffeine, amphetamines, and sedatives does not customarily involve such a high level of ingestion that physical changes are produced. Other substances, including heroin and alcohol, to a lesser extent, can be used in large enough doses to produce the physical changes and, consequently, may subsequently represent a greater physical risk to the body.(John Walsh, Habituation. Encyclopedia of Obesity, ed. by Kathleen Keller. SAGE, 2008) Usage Notes Using the four-syllable word [subsequently] in place of the two-syllable word [later] is rarely, if ever, a good stylistic choice(Bryan Garner, Garners Modern English  Usage, 4th ed. Oxford University Press, 2016)Consequent and ConsequentialThese adjectives share some common ground in referring to that which follows as a result of something else, as in ...a statement explaining the overbooking policy and the consequent risk to reservation. The consequential shock almost paralysed him.Consequential in this sense is often a legal term, in BNC examples such as indirect or consequential damages, and the consequential costs or losses mentioned in accounting. But it also means important, weighty, in a consequential congressional leader or a country more consequential than Granada, among various examples from CCAE. With its extra syllable, consequential thus seems to have official or portentous overtones. The briefer consequent has a wider variety of uses in economic, scientific and socia l analysis.(Pam Peters, The Cambridge Guide to English Usage. Cambridge University Press, 2004) Practice (a) Atanasoff was put in charge of the project. The detonation was to take place in mid-April 1947. Atanasoff had eight weeks to prepare. He _____ learned through the grapevine that several other scientists had been approached to oversee the project and had refused, thinking that the lead time was too short.(Jane Smiley, The Man Who Invented the Computer. Doubleday, 2010) (b) If a course is taught at too low a level, students are unlikely to feel challenged and, _____, theyre unlikely to feel highly motivated to learn.(Franklin H. Silverman,  Teaching for Tenure and Beyond. Greenwood, 2001) Answers to Practice Exercises:  Consequently and Subsequently (a) Atanasoff was put in charge of the project. The detonation was to take place in mid-April 1947.  Atanasoff  had eight weeks to prepare. He  subsequently  learned through the grapevine that several other scientists had been approached to oversee the project and had refused, thinking that the lead time was too short.(Jane Smiley,  The Man Who Invented the Computer, 2010) (b) If a course is taught at too low a level, students are unlikely to feel challenged and,  consequently, theyre unlikely to feel highly motivated to learn.(Franklin Silverman,  Teaching for Tenure and Beyond, 2001) Glossary of Usage: Index of Commonly Confused Words