motivation

The underlying concept of motivation is driving force within individuals by which they attempt to achieve some goal to fulfil some need or expectation (Mullins, 2007). The content theory which I feel is relevant and is going to be explained is Maslow; this theory has outlined different stages ,with different levels of hierarchy, these needs begin from the simplest needs such has physiological, safety, social, esteem and self-actualisation, each of the five forms of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has its purpose, for example the physiological side provides good wages and salary with suitable working conditions, also Maslow outlined safety has another level, when an employee knows he has job security at work and works in a safe surrounding  then they are less likely to job search, Maslow also pointed out social this is an important level of the hierarchy, this basically points out workers are more likely to feel comfortable when they are working in teams and have social events to relate with other workers .

 Another level of the hierarchy that motivates workers according to Maslow is the esteem of a worker, when an employee is being encouraged by managers, director’s etc also producing positive feedback in any way possible when the chance arises, and open opportunities for promotion. And finally the last part of the hierarchy is self-actualisation which to some or most workers considered very important to them, for the very reason that the workers goal is achieved, after the challenge is presented

This theory in content is relevant to me because each individual works for different reasons, i.e. some people work for the money ,some people work because they love their desired jobs, and Maslow presents different levels of hierarchy to present  this, so this theory is not just relevant to me but to the general work environment .

  Deciding to go to university, came from an inner desire to think and achieve, the course picked human resources management come from the situation of the credit crunch and the major job losses since 2008 right through to date. Applying for a job was to be hard but after acquiring a job at a property agency and was told at the interview that I seem like a people person, and repeatedly hearing that statement thrown at me I decided, that I’m better off in that type of field, which fits into the social part of the hierarchy. However not to ignore the physiological part, plays a role in coming to university to acquire a better salary in the near future. However self –actualisation also fits in, it motivates me to work hard to overcome a challenge and face a new obstacle or challenge.

The situations I have been greatly de-motivated at work is when my two store managers consistently looked down on the sales assistants, and rarely provided positive feedback, which was seen to de-motivate me and my work colleagues and the working conditions were not up to the basic standards , however this contrast’s from Maslow’s theory of motivation, and has the complete opposite effect from the esteem part of the theory, not providing positive feedback or no feedback at all made it easier to de-motivate me during busy, and complex days at work , also this went against Herzberg theory of motivation of working in good working conditions to encourage staff and make us feel comfortable   , Me being in the manager’s position, I would do 1 or 2 things differently   such as influencing my staff with positive feedback which goes hand in hand with Maslow’s theory, also try and bond with my staff. To enhance a greater level of understanding and communication.

To come to a brief conclusion kreitner et al (2007) suggest that motivation within various work places is a tool to fulfil a goal however, the points outlined above show how the different stages of, Maslow’s theory play major parts in day to day work activity however what it fails to outline that people have different needs some people neglect minor needs for greater ones, also the theory is said to lack scientific back up. In all motivation is important in an organisation as it brings about high recruitment and employee retention, also it enhances creativity and productivity, ultimately leading to generation of revenue.

Bibliography

Mullins (2004) management and organisational behaviour.  (8^th edition).