Theories of Employee

Motivation
 Motivation theories
•Maslow – hierarchy of needs.
•Alderfer – ERG theory: Existence needs, relatedness
needs and growth needs.
•McClelland – Need for achievement, affiliation and power.
•Herzberg – Two factor theory.
•Skinner's reinforcement theory.
•Vroom's expectancy theory.
•Adams' equity theory.
•Locke's goal-setting theory.
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is
a motivational theory in
psychology comprising a five-
tier model of human needs,
often depicted as hierarchical
levels within a pyramid.
Needs lower down in the
hierarchy must be satisfied
before individuals can attend
to needs higher up. From the
bottom of the hierarchy
upwards, the needs are:
physiological, safety, love and
belonging, esteem, and self-
actualization.
Alderfer’s ERG theory suggests that there are three groups of core needs: existence (E), 
relatedness (R), and growth (G)—hence the acronym ERG. These groups align with Maslow’s levels
of physiological needs, social needs, and self-actualization needs, respectively.
Existence needs concern our basic material requirements for living. These include
what Maslow categorized as physiological needs (such as air, food, water, and
shelter) and safety-related needs (such as health, secure employment, and
property).
Relatedness needs have to do with the importance of maintaining interpersonal
relationships. These needs are based in social interactions with others and align
with Maslow’s levels of love/belonging-related needs (such as friendship, family,
and sexual intimacy) and esteem-related needs (gaining the respect of others).
Finally, growth needs describe our intrinsic desire for personal development.
These needs align with the other portion of Maslow’s esteem-related needs (self-
esteem, self-confidence, and achievement) and self-actualization needs (such as
morality, creativity, problem-solving, and discovery).
McClelland's Human Motivation Theory states that every person has one of three
main driving motivators: the needs for achievement, affiliation, or power. These
motivators are not inherent; we develop them through our culture and life
experiences.
Need For Achievement
The need for achievement as the name itself suggests is the urge to achieve something in what you
do. If you are a lawyer it is the need to win cases and be recognized, if you are a painter it is the need
to paint a famous painting. It is the need that drives a person to work and even struggle for the
objective that he wants to achieve. People who possess high achievement needs are people who
always work to excel by particularly avoiding low reward low-risk situations and difficult to achieve
high-risk situations.
Need For Power
The need for power is the desire within a person to hold control and authority over another person
and influence and change their decision in accordance with his own needs or desires. The need to
enhance their self-esteem and reputation drives these people and they desire their views and ideas
to be accepted and implemented over the views and ideas over others.
Need For Affiliation
The need for affiliation is the urge of a person to have interpersonal and social relationships with
others or a particular set of people. They seek to work in groups by creating friendly and lasting
relationships and has the urge to be liked by others. They tend to like collaborating with others
to competing with them and usually avoids high-risk situations and uncertainty
Herzberg’s Motivation Theory
 ASSIGNMENT:
September 18, 2020
READ and ANSWER ( To be submitted on Monday September 21,
2020•Skinner's reinforcement theory. Give some implications of
Reinforcement Theory
•Vroom's expectancy theory. Expectancy theory predicts that
employees in an organization will be motivated when they believe
that……..
•Adams' equity theory. John Stacey Adams' equity theory helps
explain why pay and conditions alone do not determine motivation.
Why?
•Locke's goal-setting theory. What is Locke's goal setting theory?
Reinforcement theory of motivation was proposed by BF Skinner and his associates.
It states that individual’s behaviour is a function of its consequences. It is based on
“law of effect”, i.e, individual’s behaviour with positive consequences tends to be
repeated, but individual’s behaviour with negative consequences tends not to be
repeated.
Reinforcement theory of motivation overlooks the internal state of individual, i.e., the
inner feelings and drives of individuals are ignored by Skinner. This theory focuses
totally on what happens to an individual when he takes some action. Thus, according to
Skinner, the external environment of the organization must be designed effectively and
positively so as to motivate the employee. This theory is a strong tool for analyzing
controlling mechanism for individual’s behaviour. However, it does not focus on the
causes of individual’s
Implications behaviour.
of Reinforcement Theory
Reinforcement theory explains in detail how an individual learns behaviour. Managers who are making
attempt to motivate the employees must ensure that they do not reward all employees simultaneously.
They must tell the employees what they are not doing correct. They must tell the employees how they
can achieve positive reinforcement.
Vroom's expectancy theory
...assumes that behavior results from conscious choices among alternatives whose
purpose it is to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. Together with Edward Lawler
and Lyman Porter, Victor Vroom suggested that the relationship between people's
behavior at work and their goals was not as simple as was first imagined by other
scientists. Vroom realized that an employee's performance is based on individuals
factors such as personality, skills, knowledge, experience and abilities.

The theory suggests that although individuals may have different sets of goals, they
can be motivated if they believe that:
There is a positive correlation between efforts and performance,
Favorable performance will result in a desirable reward,
The reward will satisfy an important need,
The desire to satisfy the need is strong enough to make the effort worthwhile.
Stacey Adams equity theory
John Stacey Adams' equity theory helps explain why pay and conditions alone do not
determine motivation. It also explains why giving one person a promotion or pay-rise can
have a demotivating effect on others.

When people feel fairly or advantageously treated they are more likely to be motivated; when
they feel unfairly treated they are highly prone to feelings of disaffection and demotivation.

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. The
belief in equity theory is that people value fair treatment which causes them to be motivated
to keep the fairness maintained within the relationships of their co-workers and the
organization.

Words like efforts and rewards, or work and pay, are an over-simplification - hence the use of
the terms inputs and outputs. Inputs are logically what we give or put into our work. Outputs
are everything we take out in return.
 Goal-setting theory
Goal setting involves the development of an action plan designed to motivate and guide a person or
group toward a goal. Goal setting can be guided by goal-setting criteria such as SMART criteria.
Goal setting is a major component of personal-development and management literature. Wikipedia
Locke's research showed that the more difficult and specific a goal is, the harder people tend to work
to achieve it.
For example, telling someone to "try hard" or "do your best" is less effective than saying "try to get
more than 80 percent correct," or "concentrate on beating your best time." Likewise, having a goal
that's too easy is not motivating. Hard goals are more motivating than easy ones, because it feels
more of an accomplishment to achieve something you've worked hard for.
Locke and Latham's Five Principles
According to Locke and Latham, there are five goal setting principles that can improve our chances of
success:
Clarity.
Challenge.
Commitment.
Feedback.
Task complexity.
1. Setting Clear Goals
When your goals are clear, you know what you're trying to achieve. You can also measure results
accurately, and you know which behaviors to reward. This is why SMART is such a useful mnemonic.

However, when a goal is vague – or when you express it as a general instruction like "take initiative" – it
isn't easy to measure, and it isn't motivating. You may not even know you've achieved it!
How to Set Clear Goals
Personal Goal Team Goal Setting

Write Setting
your goal down and be as detailed as possible.
Use SMART, and consider putting your goal into the
form of a personal mission statement for added
clarity.
Think about how you'll measure your success toward
this goal. What specific metrics will you use?
Once you've set your goal, examine how it makes you
feel. Are you excited? Does the challenge motivate
you? If you don't feel strongly about the goal, you
might need to clarify it or change it entirely.
Set clear goals that use specific and
measurable standards. For example,
"reduce job turnover by 15 percent."
Write down the metrics that you'll use
to measure your team members'
success. Be as specific as possible, and
make sure that everyone on your team
understands how you'll measure
success.
 2. Setting Challenging Goals
People are often motivated by challenging goals, however it's important not to set a goal that is so
challenging it can't be achieved.
How to Set Challenging Goals
Personal Goal Setting Team Goal Setting
Look at your goal. Is it challenging enough to
spark your interest? Use the Inverted-U model to find the best
Develop self-discipline , so that you have the balance between pressure and performance
persistence to work through problems. when you set goals.
Identify ways that you can reward yourself when Think about how you'll reward team members
you make progress. Incremental rewards for when they achieve challenging goals.
reaching specific milestones will motivate you to If possible, create some friendly competition
work through challenging tasks. between team members or departments.
Before taking on a major goal, research it Competition can encourage people to work
thoroughly. This will help you be realistic. harder.
3. Securing Team Commitment
To be effective, your team must understand and agree to the goals – team members are more likely to "buy into" a
goal if they have been involved in setting it.

This doesn't mean that you have to negotiate every goal with your team members and secure their approval.
They're likely to commit to it as long as they believe that the goal is achievable, it is consistent with the
company's ambitions, and the person assigning it is credible.

How to Secure Commitment to Goals

Personal Goal Setting
Stay committed by using visualization techniques to
imagine
how your life will look once you've achieved your
goal.
Create a treasure map to remind yourself why you
should
work hard.
Visual representations of your goal can help you stay
committed, even when the going gets tough.
Team Goal Setting
Allow team members to set their own goals.
This will increase their sense of commitment
and empowerment.
Use Management by Objectives to ensure that
your team's goals align with the organization's
goals.
Use Amabile and Kramer's Progress Theory
to enhance your team's motivation and
commitment with small wins.
4. Gaining Feedback
In addition to selecting the right goals, you should also listen to feedback, so that you can gauge how well you and
your team are progressing.
Feedback gives you the opportunity to clarify people's expectations and adjust the difficulty of their goals.
Keep in mind that feedback doesn't have to come from other people. You can check how well you're doing by
simply measuring your own progress.

How to Give Feedback on Goals

Personal Goal Setting Team Goal Setting

Schedule time once a week to analyze your progress and
accomplishments. Look at what has and hasn't worked,
and make adjustments along the way.
Learn how to ask for feedback on your progress from
others.
Use technology to track and measure your progress. Apps
like Lift are a good place to start.
Measure progress by breaking difficult or large goals
down into smaller chunks, and seek feedback when you
reach each milestone.
Learn how to give your team members
feedback that's objective, useful and
positive.
Create a timetable to schedule regular
feedback for your team.
Use the Stop – Keep Doing – Start model
for quick feedback sessions.
5. Considering Task Complexity
Take special care to ensure that work doesn't become too overwhelming when goals or assignments are highly
complex.

People who work in complicated and demanding roles can often push themselves too hard, if they don't take
account of the complexity of the task.
How to Set Complex and Challenging Goals

Personal Goal Setting Team Goal Setting

Give yourself plenty of time to accomplish complex
goals. Set deadlines that apply an appropriate amount of
pressure, while still being achievable.
If you start to feel stressed about meeting your goals,
they might be too complex or unrealistic. Reassess both
of these areas and modify your goals if necessary.
Break large, complex goals down into smaller sub-goals.
This will stop you feeling overwhelmed, and it will make
it easier to stay motivated.
Your team members might need additional
training before they work toward their
goal. Give everyone a training needs
assessment to identify any knowledge or
skills gaps.
If you notice that any team members are
overwhelmed, consider putting them into a
coaching or mentoring relationship with
a more experienced colleague.
Key Points
Goal setting is something that many of us recognize as a vital part of achieving
success.

By understanding goal-setting theory, you can apply Locke and Latham's principles
to your goals. Their research confirms the usefulness of SMART goal setting, and
their theory continues to influence the way that we measure performance today.

To use this tool, set clear, challenging goals and commit yourself to achieving them.
Be sure to provide feedback to others on their performance towards achieving their
goals, and reflect on your own progress as well. Also, consider the complexity of the
task, and break your goals down into smaller chunks, where appropriate.

If you follow these simple rules, your goal setting will be much more successful, and
your overall performance will improve.
September 23,2020
Reward systems that include a combination of cash and non-monetary
rewards as well as social awards (e.g. recognition and praise) have the
greatest impact on employee performance. Pay cash bonuses in a lump
sum to maximize their effect as money only motivates when it is a
significant amount.
 Types of Employee Recognition and Rewards
Recognition and rewards will vary from organization to organization, and how you appreciate
employees will depend on your unique company needs. Your team could be motivated by a
company-sponsored outing, a thoughtful email, or a gift card to their favorite store. It’s up to you
to understand how to most meaningfully appreciate your team members and with what rewards.
Types of
1. Bonuses Recognition
There are many types of bonuses, ranging from small to large.

Small bonuses, sometimes called spot bonuses because they’re given “on the spot,” are small monetary rewards
given frequently by one colleague to another in recognition of a valuable contribution. Although small bonuses can
be given by managers to their direct reports, they can also be given by other colleagues, and even from a direct report
to a manager. Small bonuses provide several unique benefits. Like spot bonuses, staff recognition in the form of
bonuses can be given in the very moment that a valuable contribution is made by an employee. Employee recognition
given in the moment has the greatest potential for impact, because the action is rewarded almost immediately, when
it’s top-of-mind. Because these bonuses are small by nature, everyone can give them out often, providing multiple
positive instances of employee recognition without dramatically altering an employee's compensation.
Their on-the-spot nature dictates that spot bonuses are given at an irregular cadence, in contrast to annual and
quarterly bonuses.
2. Written praise
Writing thank-you notes can not only show appreciation, but is tangible proof of an
employee’s contributions. Written praise is a flexible method of recognition and notes
of praise are almost universally appreciated, whether written or sent as electronic
communication.

3. Verbal praise
Verbal praise is perhaps the oldest, and longest-standing form of peer-to-peer
recognition in the workplace. Verbal praise is given by colleagues, generally in an ad-
hoc fashion, in recognition of a staff member's valuable contribution.

Although nearly always informal in nature, verbal praise is occasionally solicited as

part of a formal staff recognition program.
 When should recognition be given?
We’ll cover the characteristics of effective recognition in a later section, but here’s a sneak peek of one
of the main components—timeliness. It’s important to recognize employees at key moments, whether
that’s right after a project has been completed, on their work anniversary, or even their birthday.
Events
Employee’s first day
Should you recognize employees before they even start working? We think yes. Besides, we think the
stressful process of interviewing, negotiating, and making it through first days or weeks definitely
deserves some kudos! The benefits here are twofold: new employees feel welcomed into the fold right
away, and existing employees are able to break the ice immediately.

Birthdays
Birthdays are a special occasion for a majority of people. If you’re in a 9-5 job,
chances are employees will be spending a good amount of that special day in the
office. While everyone has different preferences around the level of attention
they’d like to receive, it’s not a bad idea to show them that they are recognized
and valued.
Employee Appreciation Day
Employee Appreciation Day is a semi-formal holiday founded by Bob Nelson, a
founding board member of Recognition Professional International. Over the past 20
years, other companies have embraced the unofficial holiday, paying homage to their
employees on the first Friday of March.

As a low-key “holiday,” Employee Appreciation Day is a great opportunity to

recognize employees without the pressure of annual or quarterly reviews. Celebrate
Employee Appreciation Day with small company-funded events like barbecues,
office parties, or with fun decorations!
 Milestones
Work anniversaries
Work anniversaries are one of the most common uses of modern employee recognition,
but they're often poorly executed. We consider work anniversaries an epiphany
moment, and they should be treated as such. Reaching a work anniversary is a key
milestone when employees often reflect on their past, contemplate their future, and
assess their well-being at their workplace. So receiving a simple gift card or plaque can
feel impersonal, leaving an employee disillusioned about the work they put into the
company.

A work anniversary should represent another year of a job well done, and should be
meaningfully recognized. It’s a great opportunity to thank the employee for the specific
impact they've made over the past 12 months and over the course of their career. But
don't just say, "You've made a big impact this year." Explain exactly what the impact
was, why it matters, and how crucial their work is to the team, the organization, and the
people it serves.
Project completion
It’s always a weight off the shoulders when a project is completed, launched, or published, so this is also
a great time to recognize all the work that went into the process. Be sure to recognize team members in a
timely manner––recognition has much more impact in the moment than when it’s delayed.

Year end
A year end or annual bonus is financial compensation given to employees in addition to their base pay.
Annual bonuses are given once per year, usually at the end of the fourth business quarter. They can be
given for a multitude of reasons, but are usually based on goals, either the performance of the
organization, the individual, or both. Depending on the organization or industry, annual bonuses are
sometimes expected as part of an employee’s total compensation package.

Quarterly review
Quarterly bonuses are similar to annual bonuses, but are metered out more frequently, on a per business
quarter basis. Quarterly bonuses are most commonly given as part of a heavily performance-based
compensation model. Sales organizations or teams are common users of the quarterly bonus structure.

https://bonus.ly/employee-recognition-guide/types-of-employee-recognition
How To Motivate Your Employees Through Rewards
Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=ZVBevshWePY

September 25, 2020,

Synchronous
Discussion of the assignment given last
September 25, 2020
How To Motivate Your Employees Through Rewards

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVBevshWePY

OCTOBER 02, 2020

 Communications in Organizations
Organizational Communication
Organizational communication is one of the essential prerequisites for building a
successful business. Its impact on employee engagement, collaboration, workplace trust
and employee experience makes it an important part of every workplace strategy.
Organizational communication includes formal and informal communication throughout
an organization, including communication among employees and employee-manager
communication.
4 main types of organizational communication
1. Formal communication
Being formal, clear and specific is a great way to ensure a proper flow of information in
the workplace. With formal communication, everyone is informed about and aligned with
the business goals.

This type of communication is also required to meet legal requirements. For example,
work arrangements as well as safety rules and guidelines have to be communicated to
the employees in a formal way (emails, printed documents).
2. Informal communication
As you might have guessed, this type of communication is the opposite of
formal communication. It is also known as "grapevine communication". In
essence, it includes dialogues, chats, phone conversations as well as the
"water cooler talks" that usually take place near the coffee maker that don't
rely on any formalities.

One of the top advantages of informal communication is the fact that it is a

faster way of sharing information in the workplace. It also helps share and
develop new ideas to improve products as well as internal or external
processes. You would be surprise to know how many innovation ideas started
with a chat next to the coffee machine!
3. Horizontal communication
This type of organizational communication occur amongst teams, groups or
individuals who are at the same hierarchical level. Horizontal communication
plays an important role in breaking down silos and improving cross-
departmental collaboration in the workplace. It plays a critical role in aligning
tech, marketing and sales teams and making sure that everyone is on the
same page.
4. Vertical communication
The most common form of communication within structured organizations follows an
up-and-down vertical pattern. It includes communication between business leaders,
team leaders and employees. This type of communication is essential in the
workplace. Without vertical communication, it wouldn't be
possible to share guidelines, feedback, or ideas.

No matter what type of communication we are talking about, communication in the

workplace is a vital management component to any organization.

Some of the main purposes of organizational communication is to update employees

on new policies, crisis communication, ensuring safety throughout the organization,
managing change management, digital transformation, mergers and acquisitions as
well as giving and receiving feedback from employees.
 15 Goals of Effective Organizational Communication
Effective organizational communication impacts organizational success in many
ways. Some of them include:

1. Creating a positive employee experience, increasing employee morale,

satisfaction and engagement.
2. Helping employees understand terms and conditions of their employment and

driving their commitment and loyalty.

3. Encouraging employees’ share of voice which significantly improves
employees' satisfaction with their employer.
4. Helping to decrease the chances for misunderstandings
and spread of misinformation in the workplace.
5. Improving cross-departmental communication and
collaboration among employees.
6. Helping employees align with the company’s mission, vision and core
values.
7. Driving a higher employees engagement by keeping employees informed
at all times.
8. Making it easy for employees to find important and relevant information
whenever they need it.
9. Streamlining the flow of information within the organization.
10. Improving employee productivity by eliminating waste of time spent on
information search and communication on irrelevant topics.
11. Improving processes and procedures and ultimately creating greater
efficiencies and cost reductions.
12. Building better relationships between employees and their managers.
13. Improving trust in the workplace.
14. Making communication more fun.
15. Improving communication with non-wired, remote and
deskless employees.
9 Steps to Create a Successful Organizational Communication Strategy

Watch: https://blog.smarp.com/organizational-communication-9-steps-to-
create-a-successful-strategy
GOOD LUCK TO UPCOMING
MIDTERM EXAM
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2020