A-level Business AQA

Unit 6: Human resources

Motivation and engagement in theory

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DEFINITION:

MOTIVATION: The desire to achieve a result.

 15% of workers = Highly motivated

 25% of workers = Coasting
 8% of workers = Completely demotivated.

 45% say they would be more motivated doing a job they loved
 28% say they would be more productive with a better boss.

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F.W. TAYLOR AND SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT:

TAYLOR’S THEORY:

 Management should decide exactly how every task should be completed.

 Then devise the tools needed to enable the worker to achieve the task efficiently.
 People only work for one reason: money.
 Management should devise a system to maximise efficiency.
 This would generate enough profit to pay the workers high wages.
 Manager could best motivate their staff by offering an incentive or a threat.

TAYLORS METHODS:

 Observe workers at work, recording and timing what they do, when they do it, and how long they take.
 Identify the most efficient workers and see how they achieve greater efficiency.
 Break the task down into small parts that can be done quickly and repeatedly.
 Devise equipment specifically to speed up tasks.
 Set out exactly how the work should be done in future.
 Devise a pay scheme to reward those who complete or beat tough output targets
 But penalises those who cannot achieve the productivity.
 PIECE RATE.

PRACTICAL OUTCOMES - NOT – PSYCHOLOGY

 Measurement
 Monitoring
 Control

MASLOW AND THE HIERARCHY OF NEEDS:

 POTENTIAL PROBLEMS:

 Do all Humans have the same set of

needs?

 Do different people have different

levels of need?

 Can anyone’s needs ever be fully

satisfied?

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HERBERG’S TWO FACTOR THEORY:

HERZBERG’S THEORY:

 Stems from research into factors affecting job satisfaction

 Employees were asked for what gave them good feelings about their job and why.
 FIVE FACTORS THAT STOOD OUT:
o Achievement
o Recognition of Achievement
o Work itself
o Responsibility
o Advancement
 Each factor related to the job itself → not status or pay.
 These factors are called the motivators.
HERZBERG’S TWO FACTOR THEORY:

MAJOR DISSATISFIERS:

 Company policy and administration

 Supervision
 Salary
 Interpersonal relations
 Working condition.

COMMON THEME = These factors surround the job rather than the job itself.

 These factors are called hygiene factors.

IN SUMMARY:

 Motivators have the power to create positive job satisfaction, but little downward potential.
 Hygiene factors will cause job dissatisfaction unless they are provided for: but do not motivate.

MOVEMENT: When somebody does

something.

MOTIVATION: When somebody WANTS to

do something.

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THE USE OF NON-FINANCIAL METHODS OF MOTIVATING EMPLOYEES:

 A complete unit of work.

 Direct feedback.
 Direct communication.
THE VALUE OF THEORIES IN MOTIVATION:

Main points: Unless the job itself was interesting, there was no way to make the working life satisfying.

 Volvo and Toyota rethought their factory layouts.

 Workers were grouped into teams, focusing on significant parts of the manufacturing process.

BENEFITS OF HERZBERG:

 You can predict disasters

 Successful way of running a business.

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WORKBOOK A, REVISION QUESTIONS:

Q1. Which features of the organisation of a McDonald’s could be described as Taylorite? (3)

Fries are cooked at 175 degrees for exactly three mins – buzzer tells employees to take them out.
There is a series of dedicated purpose-built machines for producing milkshakes, toasting buns, etc.
Every measure is exact and repetitive.

Q2. Explain the meaning of the term ‘economic man’. (3)

Economic man refers to someone who is only motivated by money and status. Therefore, a manager
could best motivate their staff by offering them an incentive or a threat in economic terms.

Q3. Explain how workers in a bakery may be affected by a change from salary to piece rate. (3)

Those workers that are able to meet or beat the production targets will benefit from this system
because it will reward them financially for doing so. Those workers who cannot meet these targets
will find they get penalised for not being able to do so and will lose out financially: no work, no pay.
This is likely to cause demotivation.

Q4. Which two levels of Maslow’s hierarchy could be called the lower-order needs? (2)

 Esteem
 Self-actualisation
Q5. Describe in your own words why Maslow organised the needs into a hierarchy. (3)

Maslow believed that everyone had the same needs, that can be organised into a hierarchy. He
believed that at the base were the most important physical needs with the ongoing need to build
new skills at the top. He stated that this need can never be satisfied therefore it is at the top of
the hierarchy.

Q6. State three business implications of Maslow’s work on human needs. (3)

 Pay levels and working conditions

 Job security, a clear job role.
 Team working, good communications.

Q7. Herzberg believes pay does not motivate, but it is important. Why? (4)

Herzberg believes that pay is important because it is in the hygiene factor. It is important to prevent
an employee from having job dissatisfaction however does not motivate on its own. Many employees
are not motivated to do a job but they receive good pay. That prevents them from not being satisfied.

Q8. How do motivators differ from hygiene factors? (3)

Motivators are the factors that make someone feel positive about their job. Hygiene factors are those
that if not prevented can make someone feel negative about their job – however these alone do not
motivate staff.

Q9. What is job enrichment? How is it achieved? (3)

Job enrichment is where a job is added to / adjusted to make it more interesting and motivating for
the employee. Examples include adding extra tasks or increasing skill variety.

Q10. If staff absenteeism is increasing, it is likely to be because….. (1)

D – Division of labour is too high.

Q11. Herzberg’s ‘hygiene factors’ relate best to…. (1)

A – Taylor’s focus on the ‘one best way’.

Q12. Maslow’s idea of ‘self-actualisation’ means…. (1)

B – Finding just what you are capable of.

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B. DATA RESPONSE:

Q1. Analyse the working lives of the shift workers at the bakery using Herzberg’s two-factor theory. (9)

Herzberg’s two-factor theory refers to factors that motivate staff and factors that don’t motivate staff
but can be kept on top of in order to prevent job dissatisfaction.
 The shift workers at the bakery experience tedious, repetitive tasks that are done in a discomforting
environment. This means that workers are enduring an uninteresting and demotivating job because
division of labour is too high. This leads to workers not being able to work on a complete unit of work
and therefore becoming demotivated due to lack of job enrichment. I support this chain of reasoning
with the following evidence. ‘The machinery breakdowns provided the only, welcome, relief from the
tedium and discomfort of Tania’s shift’. She also states that ‘£52 for 8 hours on a Friday night…’ Therefore
this evidence suggests that the managers are only interested in protecting the hygiene factors and haven’t
considered the motivating factors of the employee’s working lives.

The managers on the shift are clearly concerned for production and monitor the moves of the staff
carefully. This means that the staff are timed and monitored because the managers need to ensure that
the staff are meeting the targets and requirements. This could lead to staff becoming pressured and over
stressed, therefore causing a number of staff absences and a fall in quality in the products. I support this
chain of reasoning with the following evidence. ‘Another was called Turkey because he strutted around but
if anything went wrong got into a flap’. Therefore this evidence shows that the managers do not motivate
their staff and expect the highest production – therefore putting pressure on the staff to ‘produce or perish’.

Q2. How might a managerial follower of Taylor’s methods improve productivity at the factory? (5)

A managerial follower of Taylor’s methods might improve productivity at the factory by purchasing
better and more efficient machinery. This should improve the production from an equipment point of
view. Another way they may improve productivity is by moving the employee’s salaries to piece rate.
That way the workers will want to get more done in order that they can be rewarded financially. It will
also provide a threat to those who do not work hard enough. The manager may also monitor closely all
employees and time their actions. Therefore, they will get a better idea of their productivity and will be
able to improve it.