Motivational Theories Workers Need example essay topic

Leadership and Motivation 1. Introduction and Definition 2. Leadership Types a. Natural born leader b.

Developed leader 3. Leadership Models a. Traditional b. Non-traditional 4. Leadership Traits a. Make people feel important b.

Promote your vision c. Treat others as you want to be treated d. Take responsibility for your actions 5. Motivational Theories a.

Classical Theory and Scientific Management b. Behavior theory. Contemporary Motivational Theories INTRODUCTION Effective leadership is the process of motivating others to meet specific objectives. We will look at a few areas of leadership and motivation. LEADERSHIP TYPES Few business leaders get to be highly recognized names in the world at large or even the broadest business communities like the team of William Hewlett and David Packard.

In 1938 they pooled $538 to found their namesake Hewlett-Packard in a rented garage. Hewlett focused his energy on leading the technology side of the now $31 billion high tech leader. Packard wrestled with managing the day to day operation and died at the age of 83. Many believe that David Packard's chief legacy may be his management style. His employees awarded him a M.B.W.A. Degree -- -'Master By Walking Around' for the legwork expanded in his belief that upper management should remain close to workers.

The 'HP way' also strives to maintain a small company atmosphere even as the work force expanded to 100,000. Employees were allowed freedom, and Internal competition was encouraged, while working toward a shared objective. Packard's commitment to employees was also legendary. In 1990 he came out of semi-retirement to help manage a sweeping corporate overhaul that successfully averted the job losses that subsequently hit many other Hightech companies. David Packard was truly a leader to admired. A good leader he was.

This prompts the question 'What is a good leader?' LEADERSHIP MODELS There are many good leaders to choose from. You have military leaders, politicians, CEO's, coaches, athletes, teachers, the list is endless. You may ask what do all people from different walks of life have in common? First lets define what a leader is, a leader is getting things accomplished by acting through others or getting people to perform to their maximum potential. LEADERSHIP TRAITS Now let's identify some common traits of a leader. Leaders are people who set the example and have the courage to take the initiative to dominate the situation.

They are decisive, bold, tactful, and communicate very well. They maintain enthusiasm, commitment, devotion and are knowledgeable of their duties. MOTIVATIONAL THEORIES Workers need more than job satisfaction and morale. They also need motivation. Motivational theories can be classified into three main categories: classical theories and scientific management; behavior theory; and contemporary motivational theories.

CLASSICAL THEORIES Classical theory and scientific management is when money becomes the primary motivational factor. A many the name of Frederick Taylor wrote a book called The Principles of Scientific Management (1911). In it, he proposed a way for both companies and workers to benefit from this widely accepted view of life in the work place. BEHAVIOR THEORIES The Behavior Theory or Hawthorne effect as it became widely known, came as a result of a study in 1925. A group of Harvard researchers began a study at the Hawthorne Works of Western Electric. They wanted to know what would happen to the workers output if they changed the physical environment.

It appeared that by increasing lighting levels, productivity improved and increasing pay did not. After more research it seemed that the workers produced more according to the attention they received. CONTEMPORARY THEORIES After the Hawthorne studies, more attention was placed on the importance of improving human relation skills. This resulted in more contemporary motivational theories.

Theories X and Y came as a result of behavioral scientist's Douglas McGregor's conclusion that managers viewpoints of how to use a firms human resources were radically different. He concluded that Theory Managers believed people were naturally lazy and uncooperative and must be punished or rewarded to be made productive. Theory Y managers believe that people are naturally energetic, growth-oriented, self-motivated, and interested in being productive. Then you have the hierarchy of human needs model. Psychologist Abraham Maslow proposed a theory of motivation describing five levels of human needs and arguing that basic needs must be fulfilled before people work to satisfy higher-level needs. The down-side is that it provides few guidelines for action in the work place.

Another psychologist, Frederick Herzberg concluded that hygiene factors, such as working conditions, and motivation factors, such as recognition for a job well done made the difference in job satisfaction and dissatisfaction. Important to note was the research was limited to accountants and engineers and this theory works only in some professional settings. Another contemporary theory is the Expectancy theory, which suggests that people are motivated to work toward what they want only if believe the have a reasonable chance at getting it. One example is a worker may ask themselves, 'If I work harder, will I get a pay raise?'. If the answer is no, he won't work harder, if the answer is yes, he will work harder. The Equity theory is based on people evaluating their treatment by employers relative to the treatment of others.

An example is one employee finds out that another employee is receiving the same compensation plan as he or she is. The employee may feel equitably treated. However, if the employee finds out the package is different and the other employee is receiving more, inequity results. To restore fairness, individuals may do things such as ask for raises, reduce their efforts, or complain. And finally, there's the Reinforcement theory, where rewards or punishment is used as a means of encouragement or discouragement. When a company pays for each piece produced or uses promotions, praise, or pay increases, this is a reward.

If an employee is constantly late or absent a lot a company may dock that individual. This is a punishment designed to change their behavior.

Bibliography

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3. Ebert, Ronald J., and Griffin, Ricky W. 'Business Essentials'. 2nd ed. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1998.