Extreme Motivation Essay

What do employees want and wherefore do they want it? In todays business world, companies argon employing a plethora of motivational techniques, in enounce to increase their profits. homophile resourcefulnesss departments use a merit based motivational program, an forward motion that focuses on the esteem of the employee, or a combination of both. The merit based, pay-for-performance program, employed by rascal Welch, uses coin to motivate high performance, whereas the early(a) approach focuses more(prenominal)(prenominal) on helping an employee sense better about his or her self, which provide lead to higher(prenominal) performance. Neither mode is set nor wrong, it depends on the transcription.The organization take to make sure it is meeting the needs of its employees. Maslows pecking order of needs suggests people must satisfy five groups of needs in order-physiological, security, be wideingness, esteem, and self-actualization. Concerning Maslows scheme in term s of pay-for-performance, it potful be analyze under all(prenominal) of these five areas. The physiological need is the lowest in the hierarchy, and is generally the easiest to fulfill. This physiological level is the necessities and is usually entry level of pay, which is adapted to motivate a browseer to pursue the desired position.Once a person attains the physiological level, security is the next need in line. earnest is having the retrieveing of job security. Pay raises and pension plans are money motivators, then keeping the employee motivate in achieving company quotas and goals in the long term. tender processes describe belongingness needs in Maslows hierarchy. A company that provides an validatory pecuniary reward through a social gathering satisfies this need. A social gathering helps co-workers develop personal and business dealinghips with each other. wonderment can be divided into two subcategories, self-respect and respect gained from peers. pecuniary forms of company provided benefits such as larger come toices, job titles and raises could suit this category. The closely difficult level of the hierarchy to reach is self-actualization. According to Management with Exercises in Management, it can be argued these needs must be met entirely from deep down the various(prenominal) (Griffin, 2008, p. 439). Even though self-actualization comforts with the individual, a manager can levy an environment where one can realize his or her own voltage.With the pay-for-performance motivator plan, one can achieve self-actualization by reaching their goals and receiving a look reward for the performance in the form of money. Money is not the alto gravelher motivating factor, as displayed by a company named Seagate (Griffin, 2008, p. 463). With respect to Seagates motivational strategies, one must satisfy five groups of needs in order, physiological, security, belongingness, esteem, and self-actualization. The company decided their circumsta nce was dire enough for drastic measures. Seagate direct 200 managers to a weeklong adventure fly the coop in refreshing Zealand.Providing food, water, and air at the adventure den, fulfills the managers physiological needs. In the racing t implores, the employees see how to depend and trust each other, thus gaining each others security and fulfilling the security need. Belongingness is an essential aspect in a career. An individual spends more than forty hours a week with their work family. It is very weighty that one book a good rapport with their co-workers, in order to achieve self-actualization. In the adventure retreat, the ending task is the race itself.For each leg of the adventure race, you must rely on your teammates and co-workers to complete the race together. The fight of all the employees fulfills the esteem area. Everyone is equal, honest, and encourages building the esteem of all participants. Self-actualization is the last level and most challenging to ach ieve. At the end of the retreat, participants leave with a new self-awareness and feel they were able to open up to their colleagues. This retreat gives everyone an important role on a team and creates dependence upon each other in order to complete tasks.This team building experience gives individuals the potential for growth and creates an open environment. Every organization has different ideas concerning motivation Jack Welch is more of a pay-for-performance man (Griffin, 2008, p. 463). When it comes to motivational guess, Jack Welsh, former chief executive officer of General Electric, thinks that financial rewards are the most important. Jack Welch said it best, when he said, No company, large or small, can succeed over the long run without energized employees who believe in the mission and understand how to achieve it (Gallo, 2008).Mr.Welch firmly believes money is the most important factor in motivating employees in reaching their goals. Two different motivational theories discussed in Management with Exercises in Management correlate the incentive process of the workplace (Griffin, 2008). The expectancy theory is the first theory that relates to Welchs money incentives. The expectancy theory depends on two thingshow much we want something and how likely we think we are to get it (Griffin, 2008, p. 442). The expectancy theory states that if an incentive is there for an employee, the employee must also feel they have a chance to earn it.For instance, if a company offers a monthly bonus of $1000. 00 to an employee to reach a certain goal, the employee must feel they have a chance to reach that goal as well. If the employee does not feel they can reach the goal, even though the bonus is monetary, they pass on not attempt to reach the goal. Jack Welch also utilizes the reinforcement theory in his approach. The reinforcement theory contends, when positive behaviors are rewarded, they are more likely to be repeated (Griffin, 2008, p. 448). Mr. Welch has a reputation of rewarding his employees with cold, gravid cash.By rewarding high performing employees with money, Welch demonstrates he rewards behavior benefitting the company. These monetary rewards are going to motivate the other employees to perform at a high level as well. Motivation seems to have pros and cons when it comes to an organization or firm. Seagate, a Silicon Valley firm, explains why retreats are motivating to workers. Seagates tactics are a combination of a merciful relations and a human resource approach to motivation. The human relations approach emphasizes the importance of social processes in the workplace.Employees want to feel useful and important, have strong social needs, and these needs are more important than money when it comes to motivation (Griffin, 2008, p. 436). Managers give workers the feeling of importance by standing them some magnate and control over their daily operations. For example, a manager will allow a team or an individual to provide input on a decision, although the manager already knew the result. This method satisfies basic social needs, therefore, results in higher motivation, which helps individuals reach self-actualization.Another motivational approach one whitethorn use would be a human resource approach. The human resource approach takes the concepts of needs and motivation to another level. The human relationists believe the delusion of contribution and participation enhances motivation. The human resource view adds that the contributions themselves are of import to both individuals and organizations (Griffin, 2008, p. 437). People are able and want to contribute. Management needs to make full use of the available human resources by promoting participation and team building.Carla Cavanagh (2010) believes a human resources approach is a great office to train middle managers, and one could even argue it could extend to the rest of the employees. Cavanagh believes there should be a mutual trust between employees, they should be appreciated, conversed with, involved with decisions and their growth stimulated. When this much attention is shown to an employee, they become empowered and motivated to perform at a high level (Cavanagh, 2010). Seagates employees are motivated because, each year, selected managers participate in a weeklong retreat in New Zealand.During the event, they learn important characteristics of a strong civilisation that endorses trust, accountability, and healthy competition. In addition, they work on skills for adventure racing. When they return to work, the managers turn in what they learned to their division (Griffin 2008, pp. 463-464). This environment places individuals in a position that they must ask teammates for help in order to complete tasks. The ability to ask for help eliminates major roadblocks within a team or organization.When an employee can ask for help, they open up to other employees. They begin to fill a social need and therefore, a level of trust. The employees also allow themselves to cause input from another team member or management. When members of teams or work groups give and accept ideas, they can collaborate and solve many issues. This in turn gives the employees a feeling of contribution and provides the organization with resolutions to problems. Everyday companies are looking for new ways to motivate their employees to perform at higher levels more efficiently.There are so many different theories and approaches to motivation, which forces companies to research several different avenues before finally arriving with a solution. Jack Welch and his pay-for-performance method can work in one environment, but a human resource method may work best in a different environment. The success of a motivational strategy essentially depends on the organizations culture, and its leaders. As long as an organization can work off Maslows hierarchy as a template, they are on the right path to motivating employees, improving performance, and increasing profits.