Abstract
This paper is on topic of teamwork and motivation. The first section of this paper will design an organization, motivation plan that encourages high job satisfaction, low turnover, high productivity and high-quality work. The second section of this paper will discuss two methods to motivate all employees in the organization and these methods will be rated in order of importance. The third section of this paper will propose three ways to motivate the minimum wage service worker and will support the suggestions using a motivation theory. The fourth section of this paper will analyze the importance of individual workers in today’s organizational context. The final section of this paper will re-create and complete the following Individual Work to Teamwork chart using Microsoft Office.
Introduction
The word “motivation” is originated from the Latin word of ‘movere’ that means ‘to move’. Therefore, motivation is the kind of energy, which helps people to advance towards achieving certain goals. Campbell and Pritchard (1976) have defined motivation as “a label for the determinants of the choice to begin effort on a certain task, the choice to expend a certain amount of effort, and the choice to persist in expending effort over a period of time” (p. 63-130). Therefore, the concept of motivation considers the individual’s behaviour that result from interrelated factors where few variables are taken as constants like individual’s abilities, skills and knowledge.
Organization Motivation Plan
As the owner of a Small Manufacturing Company, low turnover, high job satisfaction, high-quality work and high productivity are required for motivating employees and the successful operation of the business. A motivation plan needs to include the basic of job enrichment, job design, alternative work schedules and rewards. Identifying and implementing of a job design constitutes of a process by which managers plan their work arrangements and specified job task that are to be accomplished (Schermerhorn, 2012). Job enrichment is building high-content jobs that involve evaluating and planning duties. With job enrichment managers can create a valued feeling which helps to empower the employees. It builds the factors of achievement, recognition, responsibility and personal growth. By acknowledging the efforts and achievements of employees, rewards are a great way to show appreciation and it is also another means to reinvest in the performing employees. With semi-yearly or quarterly off-site meetings, company outings and retreats can boost the morale and motivation because the organization is willing to take the time for learning and develop fellowship with their employees outside of their workplace. Lastly, by offering alternative work schedules with compressed work weeks, that allow the full-time job to be performed in fewer than the usual five days and flexible working hours, that gives the employees the choice to schedule their daily work hours. This method helps in motivating the employees as it reduces tardiness, absenteeism and turnover within the organization.
Motivation Methods
Increasing motivation in employees at workplace can help in raising morale, improving performance and boosting the company’s productivity. Different types of motivators work for different employees, there are a few common techniques to get employees energized and excited about their jobs. Two of the common techniques used of motivating employees in a company are:
Rewarding: Increasing employee motivation by giving incentives to make employees work towards. The firm can create incentives for individual employees or use to policy of team incentives to motivate the employees as one group. Financial incentives to motivate the employees can include gift cards, cash prizes or restaurant gift certificates. Nonfinancial incentives for motivation can include compressed work weeks, extra vacation days and choice parking spots or office space. Employees can also be rewarded with incentives of profit-sharing program. Through this way, employees can increase their income when they help the firm increase their revenues and profits. This approach promotes teamwork and collective goal-setting simultaneously (Burton, 2012).
Recognize Achievements: All employees are people and all people have their needs. Each of them needs their basic needs of food, water and shelter fulfilled. Beyond these needs employees require the feeling of security in their workplace, these include to be accepted by the work group and belong in it. By celebrating employee achievements with use of star performer or employee-of-the-month awards, the firm can make a big deal with the accomplishments of their employees. Engraved plaques or Print certificates, issuing a press release or posting a notice on the company website are common methods used for recognizing achievements. Employees tend to be the driving force in any company or organization. They help companies to succeed in fulfilling their mission. Nevertheless, employees are motivated better with the extrinsic rewards like benefits and pay because these help them to maintain their basic needs of shelter, food and clothes (Burton, 2012).
Motivating Minimum Wage Workers
The low paychecks and mostly less glamorous jobs leave minimum wage workers to feel unimportant and undervalued. It is not good for the company to allow their minimum wage employees to perform their jobs with neither enthusiasm nor motivation. It is important to take steps for motivating them to improve the company's performance and attitudes (Schreiner, 2014).
Make Them Feel Special
When the minimum wage workers start to feel meaningless cogs in the machine, it is important to note that things are done in a wrong manner. It is important for the business to ensure that their attitudes are adjusted to increase their motivation. Firms need to make their workers feel the same way, emphasizing what makes the business special and reminding them continually that not everyone can be successful in their particular workplace (Schreiner, 2014).
Communicate With Them
When minimum wage employees are unclear what is happening at the workplace, they start feeling unimportant. Holding regular meetings with workers, including the minimum wage employees and sharing news of the latest business developments is beneficial for the business and excellent for motivational purposes. Also, providing previews of the upcoming changes to make employees feel like important insiders who play an important role in the future success of the business (Schreiner, 2014).
Recognize Employee Contributions
Motivational power generated with a trinket of appreciation or thoughtfully presented certificate should not be overstated. Do not assume that your employees are aware that the firm is grateful to their efforts. Instead, it is important to publicly recognize the contributions of employees working on minimum wage on a regular basis. These recognitions can have a substantial effect on the eagerness of employees to accomplish their job duties (Schreiner, 2014).
It is important to make sure your employees always feel that you trust and respect them. If employees start feeling that their employers do not care about their well being and effort, they would start putting less effort in their tasks. This attitude of employees brings expectancy theory into the play that states that, “the amount of work someone puts into a task is determined by what he expects to receive in return” (Schreiner, 2014). Making the minimum wage employees feel trusted and appreciated encourages them to put more effort in their tasks in the future.
Importance of Individual Workers
Most organizations are made up with individuals who are brought together for enabling the organization and helping achieve their mission. Organization structure helps in determining how individuals come together and how they are related to one another. The success an organization achieves depends on every individual working in the organization together in achieving the common goal. If the employees are pulling in alternate or different directions, would have a detrimental effect on the effort placed by organization to achieve their mission. Every manager is responsible for integrating the individual’s activities, ensuring that employees are fully aware of the priorities of institutions and that they work towards them. Managers can achieve such integration through the authority that is delegated to them within the organisational hierarchy (Huckman & Pisano, 2003).
In today's organizational context, individuals are in charge for commencing and managing their career planning. Every individual needs to identify their own abilities, interests, knowledge, skills and values and start seeking out information about their career options to develop career plans and set goals. Managers need to encourage employees for taking responsibility of their own careers, start offering continual assistance through their feedback on the performance of individual and making the information available regarding the organization, about career opportunities and about the job that can be of interest. The organization is responsible to supply information about their policies, plans and mission for providing necessary support for employee training, development and self-assessment. Significant career growth happens when organizational opportunity combines with individual initiative (Huckman & Pisano, 2003).
Individual Work to Teamwork
Conclusion
Companies can motivate their employees to make them do their job in a better way than they would do otherwise. Incentives can be used to help employees perform their job in a better way; these incentives can be monetary or non-monetary. Motivational theories propose ways for encouraging employees to start working harder. Motivation helps managers find ways through which business can encourage their staff to put their best efforts in their job. Well motivated employee care about the business’s success and work better. Motivated workforce can result in improved quality, increased output and higher percentage of staff retention.
References
Schermerhorn, J. R. (2012). Organizational behavior (12th ed.). Danvers, United States: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Campbell, J. P., & Pritchard, R. D. (1976). Motivation theory in industrial and organizational psychology. Chicago, Rand McNally: Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology.
Huckman, R. S., & Pisano, G. P. (2003). The Effect of Organizational Context on Individual Performance. The National Bureau of Economic Research
Schreiner, E. (n.d.). How to Motivate Minimum Wage Workers. Retrieved 25 May 2014 from, http://work.chron.com/motivate-minimum-wage-workers-19421.html
Burton, K. (May, 2012). A Study of Motivation: How to Get Your Employees Moving.
Retrieved 25 May 2014 from,
http://www.indiana.edu/~spea/pubs/undergrad-honors/volumn-6/Burton,%20Kelli%20-%20A%20Study%20of%20Motivation%20-%20How%20to%20Get%20Your%20Employees%20Moving%20-%20Faculty%20Cheryl%20Hughes.pdf
