Motivation Theory Scientific Management F W Taylor 1856 1915 Considered money to be the main motivator for workers therefore

re scientifically investigate how jobs are done through work study . Divide up the tasks called division of labour and carefully train workers a smaller number of tasks to complete training them and giving them the right tools for them. Pay the workers piece rates ie earnings relate to productivity. Extreme division of labour Payment by results (piecework) Tight management control Reduction in unit costs Taylors ideas were the start of mass production. Henry Ford was one of the first to use his methods with the production of the Model T Ford. Henry Ford famously said You can have any colour as long as it is black. Problems with Scientific Management Boring and repetitive jobs Lack of skills required leading to loss of skills in the workforce and also power for the workers. Led to low morale amongst the workforce Taylor didnt see workers as people, but rather cogs in a machine and that they need different things from work; money was vitally important to them as many of them virtually lived on the breadline. Hawthorne Experiments Elton Mayo 1880 1949 Elton Mayo was a Sociologist, and he investigated behaviour in the workplace. Much of his research was undertaken in the Western Electric Company at the Hawthorne plant thus the name. Mayo set out to investigate how changing light and working conditions would affect productivity. He undertook a set of scientific investigations he had a control group of workers who worked without the change in conditions and then he had his group on whom he experimented with the changes. After each change productivity rose and despite not having a change in conditions it also rose with his control group. After he change he also talked to those involved. At the end of the experiments he put the conditions back to what they were and found that productivity continued to improve. Thus his results proved that greater communications and improved relations lead to increased productivity and they: o Showed the importance of recognition, belonging and security o That work is a group activity and workers belong to a group o Social needs in the workplace must be recognized o Communication is vital and understanding of the informal needs of the workers Following Mayo and through improved Human Relations facilities such as canteens and other facilities at work including social clubs were introducted. 1

Hierachy of Needs Abraham Maslow 1908 1970 Maslow was a psychologist and hes contribution to motivation and management thinking was through the Hierarchy of Needs He suggests that we all have different needs but some needs are fairly central to us. Higher order = intrinsic
Self Actualistion the ability to fulfil ones potential Self esteem Self respect

Higher order needs

Social Needs - belonging

Lower order = extrinsic pay = food etc

Lower order needs

Safety and Security eg secure job

Physiological food & water, shelter need to earn to survive

Maslow believed that as you began to satisfy one set of needs you would start to have higher needs and satisfying that level of need became your motivator. Those that criticize Maslow would question whether social needs do actually come before self esteem needs. And that those with a drive to achieve their full potential may do so at the expense of being part of a team and therefore achieving any social needs. The principle is an important one though. Frederick Herzberg Two Factor Theory 1923 2000 He came up with the theory that we have motivators and hygiene factors after undertaking an enormous amount of primary research. There are two groups of factors Motivators spur us on. Hygiene factors will reduced job dissatisfaction and might enable us to be satisfied at work but will not spur us on. Motivators include: o Sense of achievement o Recognition o The work itself o Responsibility o Promotion/Advancement Intrinsic rewards coming from the job itself authority given to the individual means they can make decisions and feel a sense of achievement

Hygiene Factors (also called Maintenance Factors) include: o Company policy and administration o Supervision Extrinsic associated with the job o Pay o Relations peers, with supervisors, with subordinates and personal o Working conditions

Motivators are to do with the job and Hygiene factors surround the job. Eg improved working conditions may motivate you when they are improved but they wont continue to do so, but a sense of achievement in your job will spur you on. Herzberg also distinguished between movement and motivation. Movement occurs if we have a short term goal to aim for eg we want to save up for a holiday, movement can also be thought of as short term motivation ie work harder whilst saving. He therefore identified that reward systems would not ensure motivation. Herzberg came up with a policy called job enrichment making the job better, allowing workers to use the skills and abilities and also to plan and make decisions over their work. Job enrichment also included bringing variety into jobs through job rotation and job enlargement. Those that are critical of Herzberg felt it was just a way of making people do more. How important are theories of motivation? o There are people in jobs who are there because they want to earn money that they can then decide who to spend. o If you dont earn much and you get a pay rise this can spur you on o Traditional manufacturing organizations with tall hierarchies and an authoritarian approach to the routine work will also find that more money spurs them on as it is an opportunity to have more fun. o Social factors inside and outside work help us feel comforted and may spur us on o Individuals who have achieved well at university, or have had an opportunity to fulfill their dream may feel naturally well motivated and more money may do little for them. But praise, recognition, the authority to make their own decisions will spur them on. Try and do more reading about these motivation theorists and think about your own experiences.