Ecomjj Essay, Research Paper

Motivation businessImportant points to note are that not all of these factors are logical and the grouping israrely made with the motivation of workers in mind. It follows that some jobs are thereforeunnecessarily demotivating. As a consequence, the quality of working life is degraded andproduction is diminished. It should be possible to regroup and rearrange the tasks to makejobs better. Researchers on industrial motivation suggest that motivating jobs require theexercise of a variety of skills, producing a meaningful es. The job characteristicsapproach was pioneered by Hackman and Oldham who suggests that the job characteristics whichmotivate are: 1. variety of work 2. working on an identifiable product( task identity) 3. working on a task that has impact on others ( task significance ) 4. autonomy 5. feedback onhow the work is progressing The links between the characteristics of jobs and motivation areimportant, and an understanding of these links provides a basis for designing jobs that areboth satisfying and motivating.. Because the limiting factors impose different constraints,different types of job enrichment are needed. The three main types are job rotation, jobenlargement and autonomous working groups. Job rotation is probable the most rudimentarytype of job redesign. At its simplest it involves bringing together four or monotonous, andusually unskilled jobs.A working schedule is drawn up in which each employee spends alimited period on each job before moving onto another. The simplicity of job rotation is itsmain advantage, little retooling or restructuring is necessary. The main disadvantages arethe very limited amount of change which is achieved and that job rotation schemes mayproduce bickeringJob enlargement involves widening the job to bring in additional skills andallows employees to complete a whole job, or a much larger part of a job, so that work nolonger consists of short-cycle operations whose contribution to the final product seemsindistinct and remote. In this way, a sense of achievement and the pride of the craftsmancan be used as motivational forces. The main disadvantages of job enlargement are the likelyabandonment of traditional equipment such as the conveyor belt system. JobAutonomous workinggroups carry job enrichment to its logical conclusion. Not only is the job enlarged toinclude a wider range of operative skills but it is also enlarged by giving employeesresponsibility for basic management activities, such as deciding upon the methods of workand the scheduling and planning of work. In many situations this can be achieved byindividuals. The realities of commercial and manufacturing life mean that the unit of workbecomes a small work group of about six employees whoBy designing jx e2Motivation plays an important part in both an individual’s and a company’s performance. Evena very well trained and very able employee will not perform well unless motivated.We canlook motivation as the set of process that arouse, direct and maintain human behaviour,toward attaining a goal. Normally there are three key elements in motivation: effort,organisational goals and needs. There are a number of theory of motivation applied in ourworkplace. Hierarchy of needs theory is the most well known theo1. physiological- includehanger, thirst, shelter, sex and bodily needs. 2. safety- include security and protectionfrom physical and emotional harm. 3. social- include affection, belongingness, acceptanceand friendship. 4. esteem- include internal esteem and ego factors, external esteem factors. 5. self-actualisation+- include growth, achieving one’s potential and self-fulfillment. Aseach of these needs becomes substantially satisfied, the next becomes dominant. Anotherwidely accepted explanation of motivation is expectancy theory. The expectancy theory argues

that the strength of a tendency to act in a certain way depends on the strength of anexpectation that the act will be followed by a given outcome and on the attractiveness ofthat outcome to the employee. It includes variable or relationships: 1. attractiveness 2. performance-reward linkage 3. effort- performance linkage _ The relationship between motivation and performance can be expressed by the formula: Performance = ability + motivation + trainingThe formula is not mathematically correct but it demonstrates two major points. First ifmotivation is zero, performance will be zero. Secondly, motivation on its own is not enough,it must be accompanied by ability and training. Higher motivation does not always result ina direct increase in productivity because. in many jobs, productivity is limited by otherpeople or the pace of machines. For example, higher motivation amongst production lineworkers will not result in higher productivity because the s ore, motivation is importanteven in those jobs paced by external events. Psychologists have established quite strongrelationships between job satisfaction and lateness, absenteeism and quitting a job. Itwould seem that if jobs do not satisfy people’s motives employees will tend to withdraw fromtheir jobs whenever the slightest excuse arises. In most organizations, the consequences ofsuch withdrawal of work, such as lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover, has a directimpact on profitability. Most managers are concerned with increasing the motivation ofemployees but often wonder what actions they can undertake to achieve their aims. Inpractice, managers may influence motivation in five main ways: ensuring that the environmentis motivating; selecting highly motivated employees; training; appraisal;and remuneration.A major aspect of designing a motivating organisation is job design and job redisign so thatjobs are likely to interest and inspire employees.. In essence, job design arises from thefact that people do not perform the same set of tasks in any organisation. The tasobs inthose ways an organisation can encourage their employees to become motivated by their jobDoes job redesign really make a difference in an organisation’s performance? The evidencestrongly suggests that such programs can improve the quality of working life and ultimatelycontribute to the company’s bottom line. It can also improve productivity by as much as 16per cent and can also bring about increases in job satisfaction According to a recent surveyof Fortune 500 firms, those that use innovative human resource practices and programs suchas work redesign consistently outperformed less progrseveral additional benefits may accruefrom well conceived job redesign efforts. First, increasing job variety allows theorganisation to develop a more widely skilled and flexible work force. Second, the use ofvertical loading can provide managers with more time to engage in planning and organisingfor the future. Third, the cost of coordination may be lowered through a reduced need forsupervisors and inspectors. We would point out, however, that even though job redesign isoften a useful strategy for improving employee satisfaction and productivity, it is notapplicable for all jobs or situations. Some jobs do not easily lend themselves to meaningfuljob redesign and not all workers want their jobs enlarged or enriched. Many individualswould prefer to become proficient doing what someone else might consider a boring, routinetask. They may not react well to job redesign. Finally, job redesign is not a one-shotprogram. It is an ongoing effort. Whenever a job is changed, it will be new and interestingfor a while. Over time, however, the newness wears off and employees may again become boredwith the routine. At that point more changes may have to be made. You cannot assume that onejob redesign effort will improve employee behavour indefinitely.

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