Motivation and Motivational Theories:
Motivation is one of the important concepts in the field of human resource management. Motivation is an internal feeling or force which encourages and directs the human behavior towards a particular direction. In the case of organizations and human resource management, the motivation is the driving force which encourages the employees to give their best performance. Different researchers have worked to identify the different sources of motivation and have given importance to improve the overall motivational level of the employees and other personnel in the organization (Rothwell, Hohne, & King, 2012). Several motivations theories have been identified by the researchers. Some researchers have linked the motivation with the extrinsic factors and some have linked it with intrinsic factors. At the same time some researchers have associated the motivation with financial rewards and some have linked it with the non financial rewards. Another classification of motivation results in categorizing the motivational theories into three categories, namely; needs related motivational theories, cognitive motivational theories, and reinforcement motivational theories also known as operant conditioning motivational theories. Some famous motivational theories are as follow (Werner & DeSimone, 2011):
- Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
- Herzberg’s two factor theory
- ERG theory by Alderfer
- Expectancy theory
- Equity theory
- Learned needs theory by McClelland
- Goal setting theory
Training and Human Resource Development:
The training and Human Resource Development (HRD) are important elements or factors of the overall Human Resource strategy of any organization. Several organizations have made it essential for the employees to undergo different training and human resource development programs. This in turn results in motivating and encouraging the employees in order to improve the employee performance which in turn improves the growth and profitability of the organization. At the same time the training and development activities allow the organizations to increase the internal capabilities and skills (Bartlett, 2001).
Relationship between Motivational Theories and Training and Human Resource Development:
The motivational theories can also be directly related with the training and human resource development activities. Many researchers have showed the impact of the training and development activities on the overall level of satisfaction and motivation of employees (Jacobs & Park, 2009). However, it is also important to motivate and encourage the employees to participate in the training and development activities and programs. The level of motivation of the employees can directly impact the willingness of the employees to participate in the training and development activities and also influence the ability of the employees to learn new things and skills and apply them in the daily job routine and activities. Hence, it is highly important to motivate and encourage the employees to take part and attend the different training and development programs. This motivation can also be regulated either financial rewards or non financial rewards (Gibson, 2004). For instance, there can be a case when a particular employee is inclined towards a training and development program in order to improve the skills and competencies in order to achieve self actualization and self recognition. On the other hand there can be a employee who is motivated to attend any training and development program because of the fact that it will result in improving the changes of promotion or pay raise. Hence, the human resource managers can apply different motivational theories to the training and human resource development activities in order to encourage and motivate more employees to participate productively in such activities (Garavan, 2010).
Applications and Examples of Motivational Theories Applied to Training and HRD:
Several researchers and human resource analysts have analyzed and showed the relationship of the motivational theories with the training and development programs. For instance Tai (2006) showed that the motivation is the most important factor in improving the overall training performance of employees.
According to my personal experience, motivational theories can be effective and efficient when applied to training and development activities. I have witnessed this during my job with a leading healthcare organization. The management of the healthcare organization provided different incentives and motivational factors for encouraging the staff to participate in the training and development activities and provided the top performer during the training and development session with bonus along with displaying the name of the person on the notice board.
References
Bartlett, K. R. (2001). The relationship between training and organizational commitment: A study in the health care field. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 12(4), 335-352.
Garavan, T. N. (2010). Human Resource Development: Theory and Practice. Journal of European Industrial Training, 34(6), 579-581.
Gibson, S. K. (2004). Social learning (cognitive) theory and implications for human resource development. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 6(2), 193-210.
Jacobs, R. L., & Park, Y. (2009). A proposed conceptual framework of workplace learning: Implications for theory development and research in human resource development. Human Resource Development Review, 8(2), 133-150.
Rothwell, W. J., Hohne, C. K., & King, S. B. (2012). Human performance improvement. New York: Routledge.
Tai, W.T. (2006). Effects of training framing, general self-efficacy and training motivation on trainees’ training effectiveness. Personnel Review, 35(1), 51-65.
Werner, J. M., & DeSimone, R. L. (2011). Human resource development. Ohio: South-Western Pub.
