MOTIVATION

What is Motivation?
Motivation is the answer to the question Why we do what we do?. The motivation theories
try to figure out what the M is in the equation: M motivates P (Motivator motivates the
Person). It is one of most important duty of an entrepreneur to motivate people. (I strongly
belive that motivating people with visionary and shared goals is more favorable than
motivating through tactics, incentives or manipulation through simple carrot and stick
approaches because motivating with vision is natural wheras the former is artificial and
ephemeral).
Motivation vs Satisfaction
Motivation and satisfaction are concepts that are much talked about in an organizational set
up. These are important tools in the hands of management to achieve the goals of an
organization in a better manner. Management of men is at the core of all management
processes. Keeping up the motivational levels of employees high so that they have a good
job satisfaction is an important part of any management strategy. Employee motivation and
job satisfaction are intricately linked though there are differences that need to be highlighted.
What is Motivation?
Motivation refers to any stimulus that controls and guides human behavior. In an
organizational setup, motivation could be anything from incentives, perks, promotion and
even encouragement from the boss on completion of a given task. There was a time when
money was considered to be the most important motivational factor, but today, after a series
of experiments beginning with Hawthorne studies, it is well known that motivation plays a
crucial role in the behavior and performance level of the employees and money is just one of
the myriad motivational factors. Salary, increments, promotions, etc are extrinsic motivation
factors and drive behaviors and even productivity level of employees.
There are also motivational factors that come from within and drive the behavior of
employees. These are called intrinsic motivational factors and include job satisfaction and
enjoyment. Different people have different motives for doing a job. However, for most it is
money, as without a salary they cannot survive and raise their families.
What is Satisfaction?
Satisfaction refers to a feeling that people have when they have completed a job that is
considered difficult. In fact, having done the job well is what brings satisfaction to most
people. The pleasure or joy of doing a job is what is called as job satisfaction. There are very
few who get job satisfaction despite getting a high salary and other perks and incentives.
To understand the concept of job satisfaction, one has to think of times when he gets
happiness playing with a toddler or puppy at home or after having grown beautiful roses in
his garden. These are only examples and people get satisfaction with most of their hobbies
whether it is gardening or cooking. Satisfaction is a feeling that comes from within though
sometimes one has satisfaction when his performance is praised at workplace.
Different people have different reasons for satisfaction but some sort of contentment is
essential to be doing a job for a long time.

What is the difference between Motivation and Satisfaction?

Motivation is what is believed to be behind the behavior or employees. It also regulates the
performance levels.
Satisfaction is joy or pleasure of working and it is the sense of accomplishment after having
done a job in a flawless manner.
Motivation can be extrinsic as well as intrinsic. While salary, promotion, incentives, perks
and rewards are examples of extrinsic motivation, job satisfaction is a type of intrinsic
motivation
People continue with their jobs even when they have no job satisfaction as long as there is
motivation in the form of good salary and perks

A Classification of Motivation Theories

(Content vs. Process)
Motivation theories can be classified broadly into two different perspectives: Content and
Process theories. Content Theories deal with what motivates people and it is concerned
with individual needs and goals. Maslow, Alderfer, Herzberg and McCelland studied
motivation from a content perspective. Process Theories deal with the process of
motivation and is concerned with how motivation occurs. Vroom, Porter & Lawler, Adams
and Locke studied motivation from a process perspective.

1. Content Theories about Motivation

Abraham Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

When motivation theory is being considered the first theory that is being recalled is Maslows
hierarchy of needs which he has introduced in his 1943 article named as A Theory of Human
Motivation. According to this theory, individual strives to seek a higher need when lower needs are
fulfilled. Once a lower-level need is satisfied, it no longer serves as a source of motivation. Needs are
motivators only when they are unsatisfied.

In the first level, physiological needs exist which include the most basic needs for humans
to survive, such as air, water and food.

In the second level, safety needs exist which include personal security, health, well-being
and safety against accidents remain.

In the third level, belonging needs exit. This is where people need to feel a sense of
belonging and acceptance. It is about relationships, families and friendship. Organizations
fulfill this need for people.

In the fourth level, self-esteem needs remain. This is where people looks to be respected
and to have self-respect. Achievement needs, respect of others are in this level.

In the top-level, self-actualization needs exist. This level of need pertains to realising the
persons full potential.

Alderfers ERG Theory

In 1969, Clayton P. Alderfer, simplified Maslows

theory by categorizing hierarchy of needs into three categories:

Physiological and Safety needs are merged in Existence Needs,

Belonging needs is named as Relatedness Needs,

Self-esteem and Self-actualization needs are merged in Growth Needs

Herzbergs Two Factor Theory

Frederick Herzberg, introduced his Two Factor Theory in 1959. He suggested that there are two kinds
of factors affect motivation, and they do it in different ways:
1) Hygiene factors: A series of hygiene factors create dissatisfaction if individuals perceive them as
inadequate or inequitable, yet individuals will not be significantly motivated if these factors are viewed
as adequate or good. Hygiene factors are extrinsic and include factors such as salary or
remuneration, job security and working conditions.
2) Motivators: They are intrinsic factors such as sense of achievement, recognition, responsibility,
and personal growth.
The hygiene factors determine dissatisfaction, and motivators determine satisfaction. Herzberg theory
conforms with satisfaction theories which assert that a satisfied employee tends to work in the same
organization but this satisfaction does not always result in better performance. In other words,
satisfaction does not correlate with productivity.

Herzbergs Two-Factor Theory of Motivation

In 1959, Frederick Herzberg, a behavioural scientist proposed a two-factor theory or the motivatorhygiene theory. According to Herzberg, there are some job factors that result in satisfaction while
there are other job factors that prevent dissatisfaction. According to Herzberg, the opposite of
Satisfaction is No satisfaction and the opposite of Dissatisfaction is No Dissatisfaction.

FIGURE: Herzbergs view of satisfaction and dissatisfaction

Herzberg classified these job factors into two categoriesa. Hygiene factors- Hygiene factors are those job factors which are essential for existence of
motivation at workplace. These do not lead to positive satisfaction for long-term. But if these
factors are absent / if these factors are non-existant at workplace, then they lead to
dissatisfaction. In other words, hygiene factors are those factors which when
adequate/reasonable in a job, pacify the employees and do not make them dissatisfied.
These factors are extrinsic to work. Hygiene factors are also called as dissatisfiers or
maintenance factors as they are required to avoid dissatisfaction. These factors describe
the job environment/scenario. The hygiene factors symbolized the physiological needs which
the individuals wanted and expected to be fulfilled. Hygiene factors include:

Pay - The pay or salary structure should be

appropriate and reasonable. It must be
equal and competitive to those in the same
industry in the same domain.

Company Policies and administrative

policies - The company policies should not
be too rigid. They should be fair and clear. It
should include flexible working hours, dress
code, breaks, vacation, etc.

Fringe benefits - The employees should be

offered health care plans (mediclaim),
benefits for the family members, employee
help programmes, etc.

Physical Working conditions - The working

conditions should be safe, clean and
hygienic. The work equipments should be
updated and well-maintained.

Status - The employees status within the

organization should be familiar and retained.

Interpersonal relations - The relationship of

the employees with his peers, superiors and
subordinates should be appropriate and
acceptable. There should be no conflict or
humiliation element present.

Job Security - The organization must provide

job security to the employees.

b. Motivational factors- According to Herzberg, the hygiene factors cannot be regarded as

motivators. The motivational factors yield positive satisfaction. These factors are inherent to
work. These factors motivate the employees for a superior performance. These factors are
called satisfiers. These are factors involved in performing the job. Employees find these
factors intrinsically rewarding. The motivators symbolized the psychological needs that were
perceived as an additional benefit. Motivational factors include:

Recognition - The employees should be praised and recognized for their

accomplishments by the managers.

Sense of achievement - The employees must have a sense of achievement. This

depends on the job. There must be a fruit of some sort in the job.

Growth and promotional opportunities - There must be growth and advancement

opportunities in an organization to motivate the employees to perform well.

Responsibility - The employees must hold themselves responsible for the work. The
managers should give them ownership of the work. They should minimize control but
retain accountability.

Meaningfulness of the work - The work itself should be meaningful, interesting and
challenging for the employee to perform and to get motivated.

Limitations of Two-Factor Theory

The two factor theory is not free from limitations:
1. The two-factor theory overlooks situational variables.
2. Herzberg assumed a correlation between satisfaction and productivity. But the research
conducted by Herzberg stressed upon satisfaction and ignored productivity.
3. The theorys reliability is uncertain. Analysis has to be made by the raters. The raters may
spoil the findings by analyzing same response in different manner.
4. No comprehensive measure of satisfaction was used. An employee may find his job
acceptable despite the fact that he may hate/object part of his job.
5. The two factor theory is not free from bias as it is based on the natural reaction of employees
when they are enquired the sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction at work. They will
blame dissatisfaction on the external factors such as salary structure, company policies and
peer relationship. Also, the employees will give credit to themselves for the satisfaction factor
at work.

6. The theory ignores blue-collar workers. Despite these limitations, Herzbergs Two-Factor
theory is acceptable broadly.
Implications of Two-Factor Theory
The Two-Factor theory implies that the managers must stress upon guaranteeing the adequacy
of the hygiene factors to avoid employee dissatisfaction. Also, the managers must make sure
that the work is stimulating and rewarding so that the employees are motivated to work and
perform harder and better. This theory emphasize upon job-enrichment so as to motivate the
employees. The job must utilize the employees skills and competencies to the maximum.
Focusing on the motivational factors can improve work-quality.

McClellands Achievement Need Theory

in his 1961 book named as The Achieving Society, David McClelland identified three basic needs
that people develop and acquire from their life experiences .

Needs for achievement: The person who have a high need for achievement seeks
achievement and tries to attain challenging goals. There is a strong need for feedback as to
achievement and progress, and a need for a sense of accomplishment. The person who have
a high achievement need likes to take personal responsibility.

Needs for affiliation: The person who have a high need for affiliation needs harmonious
relationships with people and needs to be accepted by other people. (People-oriented rather
than task-oriented).

Needs for power: The person who have a need for power wants to direct and command
other people. Most managers have a high need for power.

Although these categories of needs are not exlusive, generally individuals develop a dominant bias or
emphasis towards one of the three needs. Entrepreneurs usually have high degree of achivement
needs.
Incentive Theory
Incentive theory suggests that employee will increase her/his effort to obtain a desired reward. This is
based on the general principle of reinforcement. The desired outcome is usually money. This theory
is coherent with the early economic theories where man is supposed to be rational and forecasts are
based on the principle of economic man.

2. Process Theories about Motivation

Expectancy Theory
Expectancy Theory argues that humans act according to their conscious expectations that a particular
behavior will lead to specific desirable goals.
Victor H. Vroom, developed the expectancy theory in 1964, producing a systematic explanatory
theory of workplace motivation. Theory asserts that the motivation to behave in a particular way is
determined by an individuals expectation that behaviour will lead to a particular outcome, multiplied
by the preference or valence that person has for that outcome.
Three components of Expectancy theory are:
1.

Expectancy: E -> P. The belief of the person that her/his effort (E) will result in attainment of
desired performance (P) goals.

2.

Instrumentality: P -> R. The belief of the person that she/he will receive a reward (R) if the
performance (P) expectation is met.

3.

Valence: The value of the reward according to the person. (e.g. Is the reward attractive to the
person?)

The equation suggests that human behaviour is directed by subjective probability.

Goal Theory
Edwin Locke proposed Goal Theory in 1968, which proposes that motivation and performance will be
high if individuals are set specific goals which are challenging, but accepted, and where feedback
is given on performance.
The two most important findings of this theory are:
1.

Setting specific goals (e.g. I want to earn a million before I am 30) generates higher levels
of performance than setting general goals (e.g. I want to earn a lot of money).

2.

The goals that are hard to achieve are linearly and positively connected to performance.
The harder the goal, the more a person will work to reach it.
Adams Equity Theory
Developed by John Stacey Adams in 1963, Equity Theory suggests that if the individual perceives that
the rewards received are equitable, that is, fair or just in comparison with those received by others in
similar positions in or outside the organization, then the individual feels satisfied. Adams asserted that
employees seek to maintain equity between the inputs that they bring to a job and the outcomes that
they receive from it against the perceived inputs and outcomes of others.

Positive motivation

Positive motivation is a response that takes place when an individuals performance is driven
by previous reinforcing behaviours. That is to say, the athlete performs because they have
received rewards for similar actions in the past, and they realise that continuing to perform
as required will result in additional rewards (Ruskin, Proctor & Neeves, 2007).

Positive motivation relies on continual self reinforcement and reinforcement by the coach,
family, friends, spectators and media. These relationships can have a huge effect on how
motivated an athlete is before a competition. If the coaching situation varies and favourable
reinforcement is reduced or not put into practice, then the athletes effort will be affected
accordingly (Ruskin, Proctor & Neeves, 2007). To maintain high levels of positive motivation,
coaches need to continually use positive motivation techniques. The following are a number
of positive techniques a coach can use to motivate their athletes:

Communicate Effectively.

Reward athletes with praise and encouragement.

Dwell on strengths not weaknesses.

Appear organised and in control.

Include certain times for fun and humour.

Develop a relationship of mutual respect between a coach and an athlete.

Know when to take a break and when to give an athlete a day off.

Develop leadership skills.

Supporting the athletes after errors and losses as well as after playing and winning.

Setting fair and consistent rules for inappropriate behaviour.

Developing personal progress charts.

Providing incentives.
Negative motivation

It is characterised by an improvement in performance out of fear of the consequences due

to lack of good performance. For example, a player may work hard on the netball court to
avoid being ridiculed at the end of the game by the coach or team members. Negative
motivation can decrease an athletes self-esteem and self-confidence (Ruskin, Proctor &
Neeves, 2007).

Unfortunately, many coaches attempt to motivate their athletes by the use of fear, threats,
criticism, and intimidation to motivate their athletes. The problem with these methods is that
although they can be effective in the short term, they naturally backfire on a coach in the

long term (Weinberg and Gould, 2007). These are some approaches that coaches have tried
using negative motivation to motivate their athletes:

Intimidation- An athlete is not performing well in training, so the coach tells him "If
you dont start performing, you will be sitting on the bench and wont get any playing
time", in front of the team.

Criticism- An athlete makes an error during the game and the coach responds by
saying "I can't believe how uncoordinated you are. Can you do anything right?"

Criticism with Sarcasm- An athlete makes a mistake during a game and the coach
says, "Are you even trying out there? A 6 year old could do better than you?

Physical Abuse- A coach is unhappy with how his team is training so he says, "If
you guys dont want to train properly you can do 10 more laps around the field".

Guilt- A coach isn't happy with his teams performance. He believes that the team
gave up when they fell behind in the game and says, "YOU should all be ashamed of
yourselves, you not only let yourselves down but the whole school and community".

(Weinberg and Gould, 2007).

In relation to the above coaching approaches, negative motivation causes an athlete to think
about what they dont want to happen. For example:

An athlete who trains hard to avoid their coach yelling at them in front of everyone.

A player who concentrates more during skill work because dropped balls means
extra push-ups or sit-ups as punishments.

A player giving a greater defensive effort because they may get benched if an opposition
player scores over them.

The Effects of an Organizational

Structure on Employee Motivation
Organizational structure can make or break a business. Senior management and
upward reporting must provide a strong base for employees so they are
sufficiently motivated. When there are cracks in this structure, or a lack of
forward thinking, businesses run the risk of losing their best employees due to
lack of motivation in the company.

Confidence

When a business or company has a strong, consistent organizational

structure, employees feel secure in their jobs. If your organization
has a history of hiring from within, promoting effective employees
and longevity, this inspires current employees and allows them to

relax their fears of job loss or mismanagement, and devote

themselves to their position. In an article for AllBusiness.com, Peter
Christensen notes Abraham Maslow's theories that all human
behavior is ruled by each individual's satisfaction with the five levels
of human needs. Second on this list is safety and security. It is safe
to postulate that people who have confidence in their management
structure will respond positively to their organization.

Shared Goals

When your business has a transparent organizational structure, you

have a conduit to share corporate goals and plans with your
employees. When you share these goals and align them with your
employee's personal goals, you can move teams forward in a
productive manner. Once your organization's management creates a
new budget and business plan for the following year, share the
pertinent details with mid-level management and task them to
create corresponding plans with their team members. Each
employee's professional development goal should run parallel with
the corporate goals. When business goals are met, employees
should be notified so they can gauge their own progress against that
of the company.

Accountability

Effective corporate organizations have clear reporting lines. This

means if an employee has an idea, challenge, issue or problem, he
knows exactly who to talk to. When companies do not have a strong
organizational structure, opportunities and complaints can both be
lost. The best companies have strong communication channels built
into their organizational structure. The result is employees who
know they have both the opportunity to share ideas as well as the
chance to discuss problems. This also creates a culture where
management and employees are accountable for success and error.
The more accountable your employees are, the more likely they are
to work toward success.

Organizational Structure for Increasing

Motivation
All organizations have an organizational structure, or a hierarchy that explains
the relationship between management and employees. The best way to
understand a company's organizational structure is to look at an organizational
chart, a graphic that depicts the hierarchy by placing managing departments or
people above their subordinates. There are many ways in which a small business
can organize its structure, but some lend themselves to motivation more than
others.
Centralized vs. Decentralized
Organizational structures can be categorized into centralized or decentralized.
Centralized structures are those in which the upper-levels of management make
almost all of the decisions and hold most of the power. Managers control what
happens in other departments, and departments must run all decisions by
managers. In decentralized structures, a number of departments in the
organization have decision-making power, and some may be able to operate with
a large degree of independence. Because employees in decentralized structures
can benefit from their own decisions and take credit for their successes, they
may be more motivated to be innovative and efficient.
Functional Structure
According to Mind Tools, a functional structure is one in which each department
performs a separate function and is run by its own manager. Departments
operate autonomously, and employees report to their department manager.
Employees do not communicate across department lines. One of the largest
benefits of this structure is focus. Each manager is in charge of just one function
of the company, and each employee concerns herself with only one task in
achieving that function. In functional structures, clarity and focus may motivate
employees to work more efficiently because there are fewer distractions and less
confusion about roles.
Simple Structure
Most small businesses are arranged in a simple structure because there are not
many employees and usually just one or a few managers, who are the owners. In
a simple structure, employees usually work together in a team environment and
report to one person, the owner or manager. In this structure, the major source
of motivation is the manager or owner, who must encourage workers by praising
good work and exposing bad. Being a motivational boss may be challenging for
these owners, who must add this job duty to a long list of other responsibilities
as the sole manager. However, employees may also motivate one another by
encouraging each other as they work together as part of a team.
Divisional Structure

In a divisional structure, branches are organized by regions. Usually, each

regional branch has its own manager, who must then make reports to the
corporate management team or CEO. According to Mind Tools, divisional
structures allow companies to localize results. For this reason, local issues also
play a large part in the motivation of employees who work in these structures.
Employees may be motivated by drives to be the best branch in the company or
best business in the region.