Noel
Hi dips,

We can strive to apply it in the company that we work for. Unfortunately, even in my company, it is difficult to implement such an exercise if there is no budget to set a profile platform for all the members. With a map, how are we to apply this tool effectively.

Also I incline to believe, that all of us needs to go through hell before we can really appreciate heaven and it is the same as motivation. If you are from a company that is complacent in work styles and culture, it is extremely difficult to motivate. And if you get a manager that drives performance, it is the Manager that normally gets the backlash and label as the "task master", the "incompassionate one" and such. In fact, he will be demotivating his staff, because his staff make comparisons and other company colleagues are having it easy in terms of everyday work, pressure and worst of all, appraisal and evaluation.

So in this scenerio, what is motivation?

Love to hear your thoughts in this. :wink:

Be 2 Big for Worry and 2 Noble for Anger

From Malaysia, Johor Bahru
Deepali Singh
10

hi psyched,
thanx.please give ur views too...
hi noel,
that quite true, but right now honestly i dun expect my boss to ask me to do so coz i am quite new to the company.
It depends upon the company as well as the employees also.
In this scenario, the preferance for motivational factors could be,
1. understanding boss.
2. small adjustments in terms of working coditions like providing morning tea and evening snacks or a longer lunch break.
atleast these points can be easily considered by the management and these may decrease the employee dissatisfaction to an extent and eventually management can look for other motivational factors as-
* reducing pressure by decreasing working hours by half or one hour
* tranparent appraisal system etc..
slowly and gradually company , according to its budget can do all these tomotivate its employees...
what do u say for this???
dips

From India, Delhi
Noel
Good Morning Dips,

Motivation is a tricky subject. I have experience a situation where management gave dinner claims to encourage workers to work harder, and it did not work. The dinner claims for overtime after sometime became a right, and they claim "implied practice" from management, when the management had to discontinue the practice due to poor performance and abuse of claims. I nearly had the whole machinery line boycotting overtime when the retract the dinner claims. (i was the production executive at that time)

Lets anaylse. Lets ask ourselves what the following means to us honestly. Increment? I see it as my right for the hard work I put in. Pat on the back? poor subsitute for not giving me a higher increment. Verbal congratulation for job well done? ok a little. a feel good feeling. Then I ask should i get a higher increment? a boss who gets the job done and still maintain professionalism? Definately. Easy boss? no way Firm Boss? definately.

I have to say that I agree with what you said that management has to clear dissatisfaction first but I have to mentioned that one has to be extremely careful on planning motivational strategies. Are we solving the problems with the right tools.

In order for motivation to work, we have to first satisfy basic requirements. Alot of us uses basic requirements as motivational strategies and then complaint it wont work. Fair pay, good working environment, safety and health environment, 5-day week timing, flexi-hours, are basics, because every company has it now, it is a norm. Therefore, it will be ineffective to consider it a good motivational tool. Performance linked compensation, comprehensive appraisal system, acknowledgements, are good motivation tolls. Transparent appraisals, can dissatisfy and de-motivate, but it cannot motivate. As if you have an appraisal systems, it is a norm that it should be transparent. Transparency is what everyone now expects. Workers are getting more educated and what to know that their rights and contributions are protected, recognised and rewarded, and that they are not cheated out of a fair remuneration. I think stratagies like morning and afternoon breaks, longer lunch hour, reduction of work hours are more retention strategies rather than motivational ones. I may not consider leaving the company because i work in 5 day week, official working hours earlier than most company, but I wont be motivated to perform better because of it.

Like what Maslow says we have to be satisfy first before we can move up the heireachy. Same principles. If you are having difficulty feeding the family, will you be motivated with a soft pat on the back and a "Job Well Done, Old Chap"?

Also to motivate, does not mean to pamper. Spare the rod and spoil the child. Many managers make this mistake.

ooops, nearly on my way to writing a book.....better stop :wink:

Whats your opinion?

Be 2 Big 4 Worry & 2 Noble 4 Anger

From Malaysia, Johor Bahru
wshyamalee
dear deepali,
I'am a new member.thanks for the information that you shared. may i know your ideas on how and whether motivation improves the individual's performance & how can measure it.
thanks.
wshyamalee.

From Sri Lanka, Colombo
Deepali Singh
10

Hi noel,
I agree with your point here noel. Exactly an individual works to earn , to make his livelihood better and honestly compensation is one of the biggest motivator. But then, while we work , where we stay for 8 to 10 hours and where we spent our day working, does the money aspect the only thing which can make us satisfy. Well, NO, I feel we need a pat on the back, congratulations for job well done.
I will not prefer working for say 25,000 where nobody acknowledges my performance, infact I'll be happy to work for 20,000 with a boss who appraises me for every good job..
Well I completely agree with these points of yours that we need to form the motivational tools , strategically. and consider the preferances...
Thanks noel for your insights and replies.....
dips

From India, Delhi
Noel
Hi Dips,

Glad we can agree on some of the points. It is important that we realise what is what. Some motivation points may be valid 10-20 years back but it is not applicable now.

We have to understand the culture and situation of the organisation and plan the motivational strategies. It is difficult to use text book because the situation surrounding the reason is different from one case to another.

I agree with you Money is not a motivation factor. It is a BASIC factor. Most of us can be quite happy if we are paid the industrial average or that our salary aligns with the responsibility of our job.

To illustrate and I would love you honest opinion.

Lets say, you are an junior executive and work you bum off, putting in the hours and the scolding and the pressure. Then one day, your immediate superior tells you that you will be taking over the department, period. That it. Would you be satisfied to earning an executive pay, while you hold the responsibility of a department head? All other factors are there, pat on the back, the office, verbal compliments from you immediate superior but no pay increase. If you ask why there is no salary increment, the reason given is that you are still young and have a lot to learn. Would you say the promotion a motivation factor at this point? or did it become a Dissatisfaction factor?

Food for thought. :D

Regards

From Malaysia, Johor Bahru
Deepali Singh
10

Hi noel,
Well, to be honest, Right now my preferances in a job are-
1.Profile
2.Pay
3.Company
These are prioritywise, and in the current scenario of tough competition and unemployement, I think its next to impossible to find all three in one.
So, here initially , I know will be really happy to get promotion and acknowledgements will add to this. So i may compromise pay with profile, but yes down the line may be after 6 months I may ask for an increased pay also.
So , I feel here it depends upon the priorities of a person for the things that would motivate him.
Noel this was an honest answer....
dips

From India, Delhi
Deepali Singh
10

Hey folks, Go thru the post and the case study given at last by noel. drop ur views too.... dips
From India, Delhi
Noel
Hi Dips,

Thanks for the prompt. Beens a hornets' nest for the last few weeks. I did read your reply, and wanted to reply but work got in the way. Sorry :oops:

I use to think like you, and I worked hard and did not mind going to hell just to gain experience and exposure. However, as time goes on, I am of the opinion that companies should not wait for us to ask then only reward us. Why should employees have to we ask for a promotion? Why should they have to ask for an increment? The company if they are serious in wanting to motivate then the company should recognise and reward individuals from the onset.

I would like to share an experience I had. I joined this "HR department" about 1 1/2 years ago and I worked hard, meet all my datelines before time, pro-active in my reports and projects. I was even task to be a Section Head, when the previous section head resigned. (note: it is not recognised as a promotion and there are no adjustment in salary or allowance for Section Head). However, when it was time for a promotion evaluation, I was actually hinted by my Manager, that I was not going to be promotion on the reason, I was TOO NEW to the organisation! and he had to gull to tell me to continue working as I have and sure enough there will be promotion due in the coming years. Despite all my efforts and hardwork, he has with one stroke demotivated me.

It was a totally dismotivated experience and this came from a HR Department.

I am sharing my experience because I felt the dissatisfaction and the de-motivation and What people may not say in front of our face, does not mean that they are not thinking about it. I recognise the effects so I am able to deal with the demotivation. But what about others who are not aware of this?

Just want to share.

Regards

From Malaysia, Johor Bahru
Deepali Singh
10

Hi noel,
Thanks for replying.
Read ur experience.
I think in the starting of our career, we have to compromise on one or the other things and we shall not expect an early promotion or early increments.
What say??
dips

From India, Delhi
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