Motivating staff in times of crisis
Abstract
The economic crisis threatens the business not only with financial problems and loss of its market position but also with the loss of skilled personnel. At the same time the competent staff is viewed as an effective instrument of overcoming the crisis. One of the major challenges for the management of the company during the crisis is the retention of key employees. However, the education management and leadership focus mainly on the production management, marketing, finances, without enough attention paid to the improvement of the process of staff motivation. It results in inefficient system of management within the organization reducing its economic performance. The article considers the features of education management and leadership focusing on the issues related to the staff motivation in time of crisis, principles and methods of material and non-material motivation, justifies its importance for the business entities.
Key words: education leadership, management, crisis, enterprise, motivation, staff, psychological and social systems of motivation, tangible and intangible methods of stimulation.
Introduction
Economic growth of any socio-economic system is provided by intensive or extensive factors. One of the intensive factors that have reserves is employment potential. As you know, in the fierce market competition, the availability of highly skilled professionals is the key factor of the success of the organization. But as practice shows, the staff with the appropriate level of education, qualifications and experience does not guarantee effective implementation of the objectives of the organization, if employees are not motivated to work.
The motivation system is the main connecting link between the organizational goals and objectives of employees. In general, motivation is a set of driving forces that motivate a person to perform some actions. The drivers usually are human needs and preferences. There is rather insufficient attention paid to this problem within the system of education management. More people should know the principles of education management in order to diversify risks.
The problem statement The problem of motivation of the personnel within the enterprise is crucial, as it provides the solution of the problems invoked by crisis. The ability to probide sufficient management education is an prerequisite of the overall economic growth. The forms and methods of work incentives, which would contribute to its high effectiveness and competitiveness should be considered. The establishment of effective, adaptive to new requirements, mechanism of labor motivation of the staff within the organization is an important issue. The solution should be stated within this research proposal.
The purpose of this research proposal is to analyze the theoretical approaches applied to the problems related to the system of staff motivation within the enterprise. The solving mechanisms aimed at improving the labour management in context of the crisis sould be proposed.
Research questions:
1. To formulate the historical periodization on the basis of motivation theories, identify the role and place of motivation as the management tool influencing the staff performance at different stages of development of the organization.
2. To study the modern trends of labour motivation within the organizations.
3. To propose and approbate the instruments of labour motivation, taking into account the life cycle of the organization.
4. To develop the system of introducing the technology of motivation in the management system staff and evaluate its effectiveness using indicators such as staff satisfaction and motivation of the work.
5. To identify whether the currently applied system of education management is effective to deal with the major problems of the staff motivation.
Literature review indicates the lack of theoretical base relating to the problem of staff motivation in times of crisis. There is the need for further research and new interpretation of the mechanisms of staff motivation within the enterprise. The study of the concept of personnel motivation was conducted in a number of works by researchers such as F. Taylor, G. Emerson, A. Fayol (scientific selection of shots and improving the system of economic incentives); E. Mayo (socio-the economic rationale of various methods of personnel management); D. Macclelland, S. Alderfer, Maslow, Herzberg F. (substantive theory of motivation); D. Adams and V. Vroom, L. porter (procedural theories of motivation); W. Ouchi, P. Drucker (modern humanistic concept of human resources management). At the same time we derived important data from the works of Lerner K., Bowie F., Sachenko L. These authors consider the topic focusing on the ways of improving educational management systems.
Methodology: In process of the research proposal the general scientific methods such as methodology, analysis, synthesis, graphics were applied. In order to make specific calculations we used method Delphi, method of average indexes etc.
Results
The appropriate choice of methods providing the effective management of the organization isthe main task of the manager. It is important to understand that management techniques have different effects on production and the employee. The development of production based on objective economic laws and is therefore sufficiently clear and definite. The main difficulties arise in the coordination process and people management, which carry out and regulate the production process. People is the basis of any business. It is nessecary to understand whether they are motivated and engaged to forecast the economic result of each enterprise (the level of profits). The main aspect of influencing the staff performance is the motivation. There are some approach to the motivation.
Modern practice of motivation allows to distinguish the following types of incentives: depending on impact – tangible and intangible; on the form of compensation – monetary and non-monetary; in the direction of action – direct and indirect; the results of labour quality of labour, productivity, intensity of labour; in terms of action – short-, medium -, and long-term incentives. Operating principles of stimulus, motivation to work, which usually based on old, non-market factors do not ensure commitment of employees to achieving the best results. It may be explained by the personal concern to make this contribution by employee.
The wages are considered to be the most influential instrument based on the financial interest. It reflects the cost of labor and the price of the service provided by the employee. Function of the salaries are reflected in forms and systems of wages. At the same time the need for greater use of other forms of wages directly depends on the qualitative and quantitative results of work fulfilled by individual employees.
In general the motivation may be defined as:
- the total motives of behavior and activity;- system of internal and external factors- the urge to be active;- the use of motives;- motive, reason;- the process of stimulating the actions of any incentive
The main factors of motivation of personnel of an enterprise include: high earnings;working conditions, structuring work, social contacts; sustainable relationships;the desire to achieve goals; creativity; self-cultivation; interesting work filled with meaning and value; the confidence in their future in the enterprise; relationship to strategic incentives and motivation in the enterprise.
Consideration of the results of applying different methods of motivation in the organizations invoked the questions concerning the fact that the same methods of motivation in different organizations may operate in different ways, and vice versa, similar methods can give different results. From the point of view of the concept of life cycle, organization is an developing system that faces with different problems requiring different solutions. This approach explains why the same system of incentives work differently in different organizations. For organizations at different stages of the life cycle the appropriate approaches to the development of the motivation system are required, taking into account the peculiarities of business development stage.
Labour efficiency is measured by the intensity, quality and productivity. They characterize the quantitative and qualitative indicators of activity of the employee and enterprise. Currently, the typical trend is the reduction of the level of efficiency and effectiveness of employees, which should be associated with systemic mistakes in the formation of strategy of staff motivation.
The modification of economic system in terms of crises determines the new approaches to understanding of influence of factors on the staff performance. The level of performance and intensity labour is affected by: instability of legislation; deformed system of governmental control; inadequacy of the mechanism of staff motivation. The experience of developed countries shows the positive impact of the enhanced system of motivation on the overall economic performance.
The creation of the mechanism aimed at stimulating the productivity should be based on the current trends and measurement of individual performance. There is the discrepancy between the costs of labour and the monetary evaluation within many enterprises.
Enhanced system of motivation management is aimed to provide the solution to the problem such as the measurement of labor cost of the employee and assessment of his performance. The first problem may be solved by comparing actual expenditures and theircorresponding value in cash. The second problem is more complex, since there is no unique solution for the measurement of work performance. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the existing tariff system (the introduction of new tariff schedules, developed by government agencies subject to the concerns of the collectives and owners businesses); the introduction of modern mechanisms of payment for labour and bonus payments to people employed in material and non-material spheres of production; the subsequent improvement of the structure of wage fees due to the introduction of new components, in particular, variable rates for workers and variable salaries for professionals; revision of structure and functions of motivation in modern conditions; strengthening of state control over conditions and arrangements for the payment of labor in the factories.
It is important to emphasize that the mentioned changes will not be efficient without the betterment of the quality of education for managers and leaders. In context of social-oriented manufacturing it is important to pay additional attention to the system of staff motivation and management of labour within the enterprise.
Conclusions
As the result of this research the following conclusions should be made. Plant forms and systems of remuneration partially solve the problem of motivation within the organization. However thus insufficiently take into account the individual concept of the employment of workers and their motives. To assess the motives of the labor of individual employees the strategic motivational factors should be introduced. In this regard, the proposed factors focuseon the strategic component of motivation system, relevant to current incentives of the enterprise; the attitudes to strategic incentives and motives for enterprise. The enhanced staff motivation system purports to increase the efficiency of the personnel within the enterprise. The economic crisis threatens the financial enterprise not only with the problems and weakening of market position, but also with the loss of qualified professionals. The questions of the research were answered and new system of the staff motivation was introduced.
References
Bowie, D. (2014). The managerial practices. Brooklyn: Education management.
Davidson, L. (2015). More than payment London: LPP.
Lerner, K. (2015). The system of motivation for business entity. London: LPP.
