Hierarchy of Needs Theory was created Abraham Maslow. It advocates for the fulfillment of Employee needs in terms of the lowest to the highest need. In the Hierarchy of Needs Theory, Maslow states that individuals are motivated by their needs. It is said to be the most known and probably the most used by management (Shaub, 5). His five levels of motivation are physical, social, esteem and self-actualization. As long as these needs are satisfied, Maslow says that workers will have fulfillment at work. He goes to further say that only when the lower level of need is fully met, then the worker will have motivation to and work harder in order to fulfill the next need. The lowest need in the hierarchy of needs is physiological needs such as hunger and thirst. The next in line is safety needs such as security and protection. It is followed by social needs such as sense of belonging and love. Social needs are followed by esteem needs like recognition and self-esteem.
Finally, the top most in the hierarchy is self-actualization (Gamel, 2009). First, the lowest of the needs must be fulfilled. Since employees respond positively when their needs are satisfied and hence are motivated to work harder so that the other needs are satisfied, the pay must be good. This will ensure that their physiological needs are satisfied. The employees also need to be assured that there is enough food and drinks in the office in case any worker gets hungry. This will motivate them to be present at work and work harder. The next thing that needs to be done is too ensure there is security in the work place. This will take care of their safety needs. Then each worker must be motivated in person to show my care and enable them have a sense of belonging. Management also needs to ensure that each worker is comfortable at home, for example, that there is peace by asking each worker about his or her family. In case a worker performs well, he or she must be personally recognized and even given awards for job well done. This will take care of their self-esteem needs. Self-actualization is achieved only by the person. This is when the person recognizes that he has achieved all he wanted. Management can help here by always encouraging each employee to work hard and become the best in everything that they want to do. The recommendation concerning the use of this theory in the motivation of employees is that for the management that wants to use it, they should ensure that they start fulfilling the lowest need in the hierarchy. It is the best theory for any management to use. This will increase employee engagement since they will be encouraged to work harder to fulfill their needs.
The next theory which will be discussed in this paper is the Expectancy Theory by Victor Vroom. According to Vroom, people are motivated when they expect that their efforts will succeed and result in particular suitable outcome (Shaub 15). A management therefore that is using this kind of theory must therefore give its workers very many opportunities to succeed and reward their successes. This is because the theory states that there is a link between rewards and successes.
However, as management cannot subscribe to this theory of management. Rewards will make people lazier and reluctant to work. Therefore, to use it as a tool of management would cause great error and judgment on the side of management. This theory is rather weak. Rewards cannot be used to impose positive behavior in individuals. Rather, it will make them to always be expectant even if they do not engage positively in the profitability of the business. According to Vroom, what an employee needs is a gift so that he or she can perform. There is great disagreement with this line of thinking because what employees need is not gifts or rewards (Shaub, 20). Rather, they want their needs fulfilled and live comfortably. Not some once in a lifetime rewards that will only last for a short while. According to Vroom’s Theory positive reinforcement is the way to go. It uses theory similar to the Piguvian practice of positive reinforcement. The recommendation is therefore to use Maslow’s Theory and avoid the use of Expectancy Theory. Maslow’s is better.
References
Hamel, G (December 16th 2009), Management’s Dirty Little Secret, Wall Street Journal
Shaub, K. (2005). Adding value with management. Basingstoke [England: Palgrave Macmillan in association with The Open University Business School.
