International Journal of Service Science, Management, Engineering, and Technology

Volume 11 • Issue 1 • January-March 2020

Impact and Role of Motivation Theories in

Continuous Improvement Environments
A Reflection of Literature
Brian J. Galli, Department of Engineering, Hofstra University, Hempstead, USA
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9392-244X

ABSTRACT

A large number of the well-performing organizations in the world are believed to have better
environments that produce highly motivated employees to attain their goals. As noted in the
various literatures reviewed in this study, improved working conditions in companies, such as Dell
Technologies and Apple Inc., are responsible for the overall organizational success within the highly
contested market. When employees are motivated, they also work towards improving the conditions
within the workplaces, so the relationship between the two is mutual. In addition, pay satisfaction,
job design, and internal communication of an organization contributes to its workforce motivation,
which results in improved productivity for the entire organization. On the other hand, highly motivated
employees encourage organizational managers to offer better payment to their organizations, to attain
satisfactory job design, and to improve internal communication. Even though this study utilized few
articles in the literature review, its findings significantly contribute to the modern literature. However,
future studies should consider using more materials and multiple variables to improve the quality
and reliability of the outcomes.

Keywords
Continuous Improvement, Design, Environment, Job Satisfaction, Motivation, Self-Actualization

1. INTRODUCTION

Top organizational executives, human resource management, and other stakeholders within the
contemporary business setting that focus on the competitive advantage of an organization have
struggled with developing and identifying leadership talent that can improve the business environment.
Recently, relevant research studies and theories have aimed to determine the combination of human
drives and attitudes, which are needed to enhance an organization’s performance within the highly
contested modern markets. From the past empirical study, Dries et al. (2014) argue that the model
involving a total of four quadrants, including learning agility, analytical skills, emergence leadership,
and drive, fails to take into account the degree to which individual members of an organization are
motivated to improve the organization’s working environment and performance within the market.

DOI: 10.4018/IJSSMET.2020010101

Copyright © 2020, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.


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As per the argument by Porter et al. (2016), to attain improved performance of the individuals in
an organization, as well as to achieving enhanced business environments, a combination of motivation
and potential must be accomplished and retained. A motive is believed to be a central aspect that fuels
leadership development while improving the organizational productivity. In most cases, leadership,
especially within the contemporary business environments, faces severe challenges that require
specialized skills to prevent them. Therefore, highly motivated organizational leaders play a crucial
role in ensuring that all risks are mitigated without adverse effects from the internal and external
business forces (Galli, 2018b).
Motivation within an organization can be viewed from different perspectives, which illustrate
how it is generally used to improve the organizational performance. Taking the case of motivation
to lead, the model is believed to have been conceptualized as a different construct with self-efficacy,
personality, personal value, and previous experience as the significant antecedents. Other scholars view
the same characteristics as the considerable determinants of personal level motivation with different
work settings. About organizational leadership, it has been noted that its formation and development
in an organization is usually a process through which individual characteristics interact with the aspect
of work environments. In that case, the level of own employees’ motivation depends partly on his/her
level of assessment on nature. It also depends somewhat on the desirability of attained better work
outcome through hard work and determination. From this point, it is clear that personal motivation
among the individual members of an organization plays a crucial role in determining the overall
working environment and performance of an organization in the market. Though only individual
characteristics have been examined in the past studies, there is a great need to test the correlation
between different motivational and situational variables. This will better determine the best decisions
to take in organizational leadership responsibility regarding work environments, especially in the
contemporary business setting.
With the continuous improvement of market environments, the projects succeed or fail to rely
on its efficiency entirely. As a project manager, the critical task is to inspire your team’s potential.
There are three types of motivation theories: Hedonic or Pleasure Motivational Theories, Cognitive
or Need-to-Know Motivational Theories, and Growth or Actualization Motivational Theories. This
paper is based on Growth or Actualization Motivational Theories, which include Maslow’s hierarchy
of human needs and Alderfer’s ERG theory, using hypothesis and research, to discover the impact
and role of motivation theories.

1.1. Background to Motivation Theories

Motivation theories mean looking for an explanation of the things that push our desires into
actions. In fact, there are numerous motivational theories, but all of them are trying to illustrate the
motivational concept from different angles. When it comes to management, motivation theories are
more meaningful. An excellent manager should understand two tasks; one is motivating your team
members, and the other is motivating yourself until your project is finished (Morgenroth et al., 2015;
Agrawal & Sharma, 2014). Motivation must be one of the most important lessons on to become a
successful manager. Various motivational theories have some significant impacts to ensure continuous
improvement in the organizational working environments and performance of the workforce.
Hedonic or Pleasure Motivational Theory is defined as an approach through which the pleasure
and pain receptors of an individual are influenced by their desire to eliminate some threats and to
attain personal goals (Kringelbach & Berridge, 2015). The theory holds that in typical situations,
people will tend to operate in a way to avoid pain and to attain certain levels of pleasure. From past
studies, scholars have associated this theory with organizational environmental improvements. For
instance, some recent studies apply the method to explain the motivational level of the employees
under both an authoritarian leadership and a participatory approach (Badsi et al., 2017; Kringelbach
& Berridge, 2015). However, where the theory has been widely used in some past studies, there

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has been no significant focus towards investigating how the theoretical assumptions relate to some
situational factors that define the overall performance of an organization.
Similarly, Cognitive Motivational, and Growth or Actualization Motivational Theories have
been applied less in the past studies, which creates a research gap that needs to be covered. Where
the cognitive theory explains how their levels of informational manipulations motivate people, less
focus has been on determining how such information manipulation relates to environmental factors
(Elloumi et al., 2017; Ellingson et al., 2014). Growth or Actualization Motivational Theory, like the
rest of the motivational theories, explains how individuals are motivated. It holds that individuals
will be highly motivated to undertake a specific task and to achieve better results that will satisfy
their highest needs (Kamath & Ashok, 2015). For this particular study, the theory of actualization is
applied to determine how various aspects of motivation impact organizational environments.

1.1.1. Problem Statement

A significant challenge that most organizations are facing the contemporary business setting is
identifying development candidates, as well as the best organizational leadership strategies that
motivate members to attain the overall organizational goals. While human resource practices may vary
from one leadership style to another, the factors that drive individual employees are more significant.
A number of previous studies, as noted earlier in this study, have restricted their investigation on the
motivational antecedents to personal differences of individuals, such as self-efficacy, personality traits,
and past experiences, providing a suggestion that the overall organizational performance depends on
the level of individual motivation (Galli, 2018a; Felfel et al., 2017; Lee et al., 2015). In that case, there
has been less focus on investigating how various motivational theoretical assumptions determine the
situational environment improvement, thus impacting the manner in which organizations performance.
This study looks into the actual factors of motivation that affect the changes in internal or external
business, which addresses the research gap that has existed from previous studies.

1.1.2. Aims and Objectives

This study aims to investigate the impacts and role of actualization motivational theory on continuous
improvement environments. The goals are as follows:

• To examine the effects of the motivational approach to the organization working conditions;
• To determine the relationship between the motivational theory and the pay satisfaction;
• To determine the role plaid by the motivational theory in shaping organizational job design;
• To determine the impact of the theory on organizational internal communication.

1.2. Study Hypothesis

Motivation theories are critical to ensure a project’s success because it sets a feasible desire and drive
for people to achieve it. Besides, motivation theories refer to people’s natural demands and mental
demands to make management plans. Thus, it can inspire people’s interests and motive powers, which
would not result in people’s antipathy or negative emotion.

2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND LITERATURE REVIEW

In this paper, the researcher consulted available literature that includes the relationship between
motivational theoretical assumptions and the present situation of continuous improvement
environments. After that, the researcher takes a series of methods, including analysis and case study.
The reason why this paper chose literature review that related to the topic is to try to understand the
researchers’ core opinions. Then, these opinions will be compared to the writer’s and will conclude
the final results. On the other hand, the researcher also chose case study as a research methodology

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because it is a good way to observe every possible element, such as the background, development,
current conditions and environmental interactions of one or more individuals, groups, communities,
businesses or institutions. Finally, the researcher will record and analyze stages of patterns in relation
to internal and external influences.

2.1. Literature Review

There are a number of past texts that explain the concept of motivational theories and their
impacts in the organizational environments. This chapter of the study, therefore, reviews some of
these past studies to determine their ultimate impacts on the overall organizational performance
and continuous improvement environments through which an organization competes with other
players within the market.

2.1.1. Motivation
Several literature studies have been published that define and explain motivation from the
organizational perspective. According to Mafini and Dlodlo (2014), motivation is the essential factor
for any institution or organization that determines its overall success. The authors, in a study they
conducted to investigative that impacts of motivation within an organization, concluded that motivation
is one of the factors that define the way an organization exists and operates within the market, as well
as its overall performance. It places equal efforts with money, men, morale, and machine. As per the
argument by Mafini and Dlodlo (2014), due to the fact that the overall performance of an organization
depends on the capability and skills of the highly motivated and satisfied employees, investigating the
actual factors that motivate individual members of an organization is needed within the contemporary
organizational management. This argument is consistent with the statement by Bolden (2016) in his
study on organizational management, which indicates that the factors that motivate employees within
an organization play a crucial role in defining its final growth and productivity.
Besides, Bolden (2016) argues that motivation can influence the effectiveness of organizational
managers, and it is used as part of the managerial effectiveness parameters. The author believes that
motivation in an organization can create the required energy and control the behaviors of individuals,
which is inconsistent with many motivational theories. The author further argues that the proper
understanding of the actual factors that motivate individual employees enables organizational managers
to create the right strategies and policies to foster business environmental improvement and overall
organizational productivity (Gera et al., 2017).
The term motivation has been defined differently by theorists and scholars. According to
Abeysekera and Dawson (2015), motivation is the actual internal drive responsible for guiding people’s
behaviors and actions towards achieving a particular goal. It is also defined as the happenings that
prompt individuals to act in a specific manner or develop a particular form of behaviors. As per the
argument by Bolden (2016), the actual key to understanding what motivates employees within an
organization depends on understanding the meaning of motivation. This, in return, helps in creating
environments through which an organization thrives. The authors note that such an understanding is
derived from some theories as illustrated below.

2.1.2. Motivational Theory

Some motivational theories have been discussed in past studies with different texts that indicate
how their assumptions shape people’s understanding of the factors that motivate them to perform
various tasks.

2.1.3. Actualization Motivational Theory

According to Lee et al. (2015), self-actualization represents a specific concept that is derived from
the theory of humanistic psychology. Additionally, it is derived from another method that was created
by Abraham Maslow, which was known as a psychological hierarchy of human needs. According to

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the explanation provided by Maslow, self-actualization tends to represent individual growth towards
satisfaction of the highest needs, especially those that have more meaning in human life. Based
on Maslow theory of human needs, the need to attain self-actualization motivates individuals to
work extra hard within the organization, which results in positive impacts that improve the overall
organizational environments.
According to the study by Lee et al. (2015), Maslow’s hierarchy reflects a pattern of growth that
is linear, which is depicted in a direct pyramid order of ascension. The authors further argue that
Maslow persisted in explaining that individuals who are self-actualizing are comfortable and can
undertake specific tasks to resolve dichotomies, such as the one depicted in the ultimate contrary of
determinism and free-will. The study by Lee et al. (2015) further notes that most individuals who
qualify as self-actualizers are highly innovative and psychologically robust, as they are always ready
to undertake any operation to attain their needs.
According to Healy (2016), it is always crucial to understand that various modern challenges
based on modernization and globalization illustrate the need for organizations to combine and integrate
multiple theoretical models, to change regularly, and to use their workforce as most significant
resources that enable them to perform better within the highly contested global market. Under the
current level of global competition, no organization can rely on a single model or a unique style of
leadership. The author notes that there is always a need for management to adopt different methods
of decentralization and centralization, as well as various forms of guidance to capitalize on resources,
including human resources, to achieve intended outcomes. Even though many past studies are
indicating that self-actualization is incompatible with other motivational theories, Wang et al. (2017)
argue that self-actualization is highly compatible with the method of self-transcendent. Additionally,
their compatibility is highly useful in determining the overall improvement of organizational
environments. The theory explains the motivation of individual employees in an organization.

2.2. Self-Actualization and Continuous Improvement Environments

Maslow explained that self-actualized individuals are always creative in the way that they resolve
various dichotomies, peak past experiences, and knowledge to integrate it with the current knowledge
while addressing challenges. This is affirmed by Kamath and Ashok (2015), which indicates that to
satisfy their self-actualization needs, such individuals usually work tirelessly to achieve them. As per
the authors’ argument, such individuals tend to be creative when carrying out their tasks because they
typically want to outshine others to gain an elevated social class. In a different study, Boeree (2006)
affirms this argument by noting that creativity is the essential trait of self-actualized individuals, and
it usually is perceived to exist within a dialectical relationship. The author further notes that most of
the dichotomies are regarded as highly irresolvable, but they are resolved through creativity.
Williams et al. (1977) used the concept of creativity to test the relationship between self-
actualization and organizational performance. Based on their findings, they noted that organizational
performance depends on the ability of the individual members to identify various internal and external
risks, as well as how they resolve them to ensure better productivity. Williams et al. (1977) note that
creative employees, or even managers within an organization, tend to make informed and applicable
decisions when facing specific issues. In their findings, the authors noted that while self-actualization
promotes creativity, it also improves the productivity of individual employees within an organization,
which is something that reflects the entire organizational performance (Kaoud, 2017).
In another study by Wang et al. (2017), self-actualized members of an organization contribute
significantly to the formation of an organizational culture based on innovation and creativity. Change,
as per the explanation by Wang et al. (2017), is responsible for enabling an organization to increase
its competitive advantage within the market and to improve its business environments internally.
Starting from the infrastructural design and development to the creation of the communication
networks, innovation culture takes part in ensuring the improved result. Wang et al. (2017), Lee
(2016), and Williams et al. (1977), in their respective studies on self-actualization and continuously

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improved environments, agree with the fact that self-actualized individuals usually are responsible for
the overall innovation within an organization. As a result, they contribute to improving the business
environment of that particular organization.
From the literature reviewed in this chapter, all of the texts reviewed note that as a motivational
theory, self-actualization helps organizations to understand what improves their business environments.
Thus, organizations will capitalize on them to attain better outcomes. The results (themes and statistical
methods used) of the literature review are outlined in Tables 1 and 2.

2.3. Case Study

Besides the literature review, the research depends on the case studies to determine the relationship
between the motivational theoretical concepts and the continuous improvement environments. Most
of the cases in this study are based on some of the giant multinational organizations that are operating
in different industries within the global market.
As noted in a report by Vozza (2017), some of the giant multinational organizations, such as
Apple, Google, Dell, and Netflix, have been proved to be about 40% more productive than the average
firms. One may believe that such magnificent productivity is from these companies attracting more
talented employees than others, but the opposite is true. Vozza (2017) indicates that a study conducted
by Bain & Company firm found that some of these companies have almost 16% talented employees,

Table 1. Results by identified category

Category Number of Articles (Frequency) Articles (per Author)

Mafini and Dlodlo (2014)
Bolden (2016)
Impact of the theory on working
5 Lee, Back, and Chan (2015)
condition
Wang et al. (2017)
Vozza (2017)
Kamath and Ashok (2015)
Impact of the theory on pay Vozza (2017)
4
satisfaction Georgellis, et al. (2017)
Joshi, Saxena, and Tarkas (2015)
Impacts of motivational theory on Kamath and Ashok (2015)
2
organizational job design Healy (2016)
Impact of motivational theory
Wang et al. (2017)
on organizational internal 2
Malhotra & Ackfeldt (2016)
communication

Table 2. Results by statistical analysis method

Analysis Method Number of Articles Articles (per Author)

Kamath and Ashok (2015)
Healy (2016)
Georgellis, et al. (2017)
7
Regression Joshi, Saxena, and Tarkas (2015)
(70% of the total number)
Mafini and Dlodlo (2014)
Bolden (2016)
Lee, Back, and Chan (2015)
Wang et al. (2017)
3
ANOVA Malhotra & Ackfeldt (2016)
(30% of the total number)
Vozza (2017)

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while the average is usually 15%. The study further noted that both groups of the organizations started
with the same mix of employees in their workforces. However, through effective motivational and
management approaches, the highest performing companies have improved employee productivity,
whether talented or not, to become stars like the 16% they started. The only thing that makes a
difference, in the end, is what the organizations do with their high performers and average performers.
In its report, Bain & Company firm clarifies that executives, derived from some companies
operating within the 12 industry sectors globally, confirmed that three components of capital impact
the overall organizational productivity. These three components are energy, time and talent. It is
through these components that the top four companies on the list managed to attain and retain a 40%
lead in productivity over the average companies (Vozza, 2017). Such productivity then increases their
profitability up to 50% higher than the industry averages. The study further notes that these companies
get more of their work done by Thursday morning at 10 a.m. and can reduce 30 times more outputs
than other companies with the same number of employees.
If this is the case of the four mentioned organizations, then what can be done to attain such
increased productivity at an average cost and number of employees? As per the argument by Vozza
(2017), most of the ordinary companies use unintentional egalitarianism method, which involves
spreading the innate talents to undertake all roles within the organization. However, companies like
Apple and Google have come up with a more effective method: the intentionally non-egalitarian. The
technique involves a critical selection of business-critical roles that are responsible for the success
of the organization, and more than 95 of them have A-level performing employees. Allocating the
most significant job positions or roles to highly talented employees ensure that even if the other
functions are not playing well, the company remains at a safer position regarding risks and threats
that might affect its performance. Such strategic grouping of employees and allocating responsibilities
by individual productivity is part of human resource management practices that create a better, and
more improved, business environment for an organization.
An excellent example of applying this method is explained in the case of Apple during the
production of iOS 10. According to a report by Nazim and Sims (2017), Apple used 600 of its most
exceptional engineers in under two years to develop the iOS 10, which is contrary to the 10,000
Microsoft engineers who took five years to retract Vista and extend rebut ultimately. According to
the authors, the only difference between these two companies was the way that teams were selected.
Apple recognized that improving the product was of greater necessity, so the best engineers were
recruited and given the necessary resources to complete the project within the shortest time possible.
Microsoft used its regular recruiting and job allocation systems; all roles were distributed regardless
of measuring the capability of the individual workers. The all-star team of Apple was chosen for the
project where sufficient rewards were applied to team performance. Such an approach by Apple can
be explained through self-actualization general view because self-actualized individuals are creative
and highly determined. Their motivation comes from what they gain as rewards. For instance, attaining
a higher recognition within an organization and getting better benefits are some of the highest-level
needs as per the Maslow’s theory. In that case, by recognizing the 600 engineers as all-stars and
rewarding them appropriately, Apple motivated the team to deliver a high-quality project at an
alarming rate (Nabi et al., 2015).
The other approach used by these four companies to attain higher productivity is through the
inspiration of leaders. As per the argument by Shenhar (2015), when employees are fully engaged,
they tend to be 44% more productive than those in their comfort zone through satisfaction. On the
other hand, the employees who feel highly inspired tend to be productive nearly 125% more than the
satisfied ones. In that case, the author argues that companies that motivate their employees beyond
the limit tend to perform better within the market than those that concentrate on satisfying them.
According to Mankins, a partner of Bain & Company, Dell Technologies identified the difference
between average teams and inspired ones. Without wasting time, they applied the strategy to improve
its productivity. As per the report by Vozza (2017), the sale team that was led by highly inspiring

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leaders proved to be 6% more productive than the less inspiring leaders. If the 6% productivity
accounts for $1 billion annually, one can calculate how less productive and uninspiring leadership
can cost an organization in some years.
The case study on Apple, Google, and other great players like Dell Technologies, illustrates that
if managements apply the right motivational theories, then their employees will be more productive.
This will improve the overall organizational performance within the market. By using the right talent
management approaches, Apple managed to create an environment through which its engineers worked
productively to offer a high-end product within the shortest time possible.

3. FINDINGS

The data in this study was collected using literature review and case studies, which illustrated the
relationship between motivational theory and the continuously improved environments. It is through
such improved environments that organizations better their overall productivity. From the list of the
literature reviews and the case study on four of the most productive companies, this chapter evaluates
and discusses the results summarized from all of the sources.

3.1. Effects of Motivational Theory on the Organization Working Conditions

A number of the reviewed articles mention the effects of an employee’s motivation on the overall
organizational performance, while a large number of them connect the assumptions of self-actualization
motivational theory with improved working conditions for the employees. Within the contemporary
business world, organizations are thriving based on their ability to attract the right workforces, to use
the right structures and infrastructures, and to establish more working conditions for the employees to
give their best regarding productivity. As noted by Mafini and Dlodlo (2014), employees’ motivation
is the initial step towards improving working conditions. Working conditions, which are defined by
factors such as security measures, the safety of the employees, and environmental conservation, require
inspirations of the leaders and funds to create and maintain. The study by Bolden (2016) explains
this well by indicating that when employees are highly motivated, they tend to be more productive,
thus contributing to the high profitability of the company work in.
Such profits are then used in improving the working conditions for the employees to contribute
to the overall organizational productivity increasingly. The improved security and safety measures
are part of working conditions within an organization. Lee et al. (2015) note that implementing the
right structures and systems for an employee’s safety in the workplace increases productivity. Wang
et al. (2017) also mentioned a similar issue. They note that the top-ranked organizations regarding
employee safety tend to be more productive because their employees are highly motivated and inspired
to give their best to the workforce. This is well illustrated in the findings of the case study discussed
in the previous chapter. As shown in the case of Apple iOS 10 projects, the 600 engineers managed
to complete the work within two years because the working conditions were kept favorable (Vozza,
2017). Apple made sure that the team members were well-rewarded and that they enjoyed high-end
facilities while developing the iOS. Unlike Microsoft, where the team was composed of numerous
members, Apple made sure that the most talented employees were incorporated within the group
to avoid over-clouding, which could have resulted in delayed decision-making and a scarcity of
resources. From these results, it is clear that by improving the employees’ working conditions, such
as their security and safety, it is easy to motivate employees to work towards attaining the overall
organizational goals. In that case, there is a clear correlation between the motivational theoretical
assumptions, such as self-actualization and the continuously improved working conditions.

3.2. Effects of Motivational Theory on Employees’ Pay Satisfaction

The data collected from the literature reviewed and case study proves the importance of better is
rewarding the employees to motivate them to work harder. As noted by Kamath and Ashok (2015),

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better pay for the employees appeals to their self-actualization in the manner that they use such
payments to elevate themselves within the society. Being the highest human needs within the Maslow’s
hierarchy pyramid, self-actualization needs also play a crucial role in motivating human beings to
work tirelessly towards attaining better results.
Employees’ pay satisfaction is part of the human resource management practices that motivate
employees to work. In that case, when it is satisfied, the level of employees’ productivity always
increases. As indicated in the findings from the case study of Apple’s iOS 10 production team and
the Microsoft team, the effect of pay satisfaction is clearly illustrated (Vozza, 2017). While one team
was composed of almost half the number of the other, it happened to complete its work in less than
half the time spent by a bigger team. Microsoft’s team of ten thousand engineers took more than five
years to finish designing and producing their project. Meanwhile, it only took two years for Apple’s
team of about 6000 engineers to finish a project of the same nature and magnitude. As noted by
Georgellis, et al. (2017), individual employees tend to be inspired and motivated by the outcomes
of their efforts. Such outcomes can be their gain concerning career development and benefits like
payments. Georgellis et al. (2017) also point out that the outcomes may be the social class gained by
the individual as a result of completing a certain task. Therefore, the argument explains why Apple’s
team of engineers performed better than Microsoft’s team. Apple’s team was given the right recognition
and compensations to lead better lifestyles and to shine over others within the organization. Apple
also managed to create more favorable working conditions regarding safety and security for the team,
as well as allocating the right resources to work without any difficulties. Apple is recognized as the
leading innovative company in the world (Joshi et al., 2015). In that case, such innovation helped the
management to inspire its team by creating the right working conditions to face the challenges with
courage and determination.

3.3. The Impacts of Motivational Theory in Shaping Organizational Job Design

Many people believe that the most significant employee motivator is payment and benefits, but they do
not know how wrong they have been. Some texts in this study have proved that the job design adopted by
a certain organization determines the overall employee motivation towards attaining the organizational
and personal goals (Kamath and Ashok, 2015; Healy, 2016). As per the explanation by Kamath and
Ashok (2015), the way a job is designed has a significant impact on the employees’ psychological
job satisfaction and motivation, worker turnover, and commitment to an organization. Healy (2016)
indicates in his study that based on the scientific management approach; an organization tends to be
more psychologically satisfied and motivated to effectively fulfill tasks when an organization provides
the right work equipment to handle working conditions.
Proper time management also appeals to the psychological needs of the employees, thus reflecting
their overall motivation and productivity. As noted under the self-actualization theory, self-actualized
workers are more conscious of time management, job allocation, and designs (Healy, 2016). They
prefer working in well-designed workplaces, rather than those without any effective structures. Apple
is known to employ the right management principles to design the jobs for their employees. Such an
effort might have been responsible for the improved performance of its team during the designing
and development of iOS 10 product.

3.4. The Impact of the Motivational Theory of

Organizational Internal Communication
Some of the articles reviewed clearly illustrate how motivational theories, such as self-actualization,
correlate with the organizational internal communication as part of improved environments. Internal
communication involves the channels and features of communication used by internal stakeholders
of an organization, including employees and managers, as well as other members of the organization
(Wang et al., 2017). Wang et al. (2017) note that well-established communication systems within
an organization determine how the employees and other organization members communicate. As

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noted in the case study, Apple created better and more sufficient systems through which its team
members could communicate and share ideas. Thus, Apple ensured creativity and innovation
during the project. Such improved communication motivates and inspires individuals to be more
productive. There must be free and sufficient communication, as managers should allow better
sharing of ideas, suggestions, and opinions. In turn, this reflects the overall performance of the
organization at large (Malhotra & Ackfeldt, 2016).

4. CONCLUSION

4.1. Conclusion
The study has proved that motivational theories play a crucial role in ensuring continuously improved
environments. Every organization requires the right environments to grow and to become market
leaders in their industries of operating. From the literature reviewed and the findings discussed within
the study, it has been clearly indicated that self-actualization assumption explains why individuals
perceived to be self-actualized are more creative and tend to perform better than others. As an effort
of attaining their higher psychological needs, they undertake their tasks with more determination and
motivation to attain better results, which will give them a higher status within the society to attain
their personal goals.
Concerning the effects of the organizational working conditions, highly motivated employees will
work under safe and improved conduction, thus making the two factors correlate well in ensuring the
overall organization performance. Apple is known to create working environments where employees
are motivated to be more innovative. Such situations, therefore, reflect the total organizational
production. Concerning the findings based on the relationship between the employees’ motivation
and pay satisfaction, the study has proved a positive relation path. Employees who are satisfied with
their salary will tend to be more motivated and inspired to achieve both organizational and personal
goals. The study has also proved that motivational theories relate to the job design and the internal
communication within an organization. With the right communication networks and job designs,
employees tend to be more motivated to attain their personal development goal, as well as improving
the productivity of the organization.

4.2. Originality/Contribution
Even though many past studies were based on the relationship between self-actualization motivational
theory and improved environments, little attention was paid in determining how exactly such motivation
can be improved. The literature reviewed involved a limited number of past studies conducted on the
topic, thus providing less reliable answers to the research questions. With an additional case study
analysis, this study looked into addressing such a research gap to provide better answers on improving
employees’ motivation with better environments, such as working conditions, pay satisfaction, job
design and internal communication systems.
The study acts as one of its kind within the modern literature that has focused on determining
how self-actualization motivation relates to the working conditions. The improved working conditions
within an organization have been proven to motivate individual employees, especially those qualified
to be self-actualized. Similarly, the study has determined that by job design, internal communication
impact the same employee motivation, and pay satisfaction. The ability of the research to measure
the mutual relationship between the independent and depend on variables makes its contribution to
the current literature more significant.
Where few articles have been reviewed in this study, the findings are not sufficient in addressing
the research question more comprehensively and appropriately. In the future, studies of the same nature
should involve a large number of articles within their literature reviews and more variables. They
should also study the strength of the correlation between the variables using the right correlation values

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to determine the level of impact that each independent variable has on the dependent variable. Such
an approach will ensure better results and will avoid any form of research challenges or limitations.
Additionally, such an effort will increase the contribution of the study to modern literature regarding
employees’ motivation and organizational environments improvements.

4.3. Limitations
There are some research limitations that make the study and results limited. Firstly, there were a
limited number of samples from which the key factors were studied. A limited sample size opens the
door to bias and validity behind the findings and conclusions, but a larger sample would alleviate this
limitation. Secondly, the relationship between the variables was only studied in a project environment
setting. This makes it difficult to claim that the findings can be applicable to other settings, such as
supply chain management, operations management, or strategic management. Thus, the conclusions
and analyses are so specific that this limitation can infringe on deploying this study in other industries
or managerial settings.

4.4. Future Research

Any future research should seek to understand these variables under different circumstances. Firstly,
researchers could try viewing these factors in other managerial and businesses situations to see how
these variables relate. One can discover how well these variables function in these other settings, but
also how such setting impact the variables. Secondly, it would be important for research to be done from
any other strategic, organizational, or cultural viewpoint to further explore these variables. As a result,
researchers can find how others perceive this relationship. This will help to gain a deeper knowledge
of how cultural backgrounds, tactics, human resources, and operations affect their relationship.

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Brian J. Galli works as an Assistant Professor of Industrial Engineering & Engineering Management in the Fred
DeMatteis School of Engineering & Applied Science at Hofstra University. He also currently serves as the Graduate
Director for the Engineering Management Master degree program in the school. He has previously served as
faculty at other academic institutions, including: Long Island University, New York Institute of Technology (NYIT),
American Public University (APUS), SUNY Binghamton, and SUNY Stony Brook. Prior to joining academia,
he worked in industry for over 12 years in which he applied industrial engineering, project management and
continuous improvement in a wide variety of arenas, including healthcare, manufacturing, transactional, and service
environments. He also provides project management support and training in the areas of process improvement,
project management, and analytics.

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