Employee Motivation - Essay Example

? Employee motivation affiliation Employee motivation Employee motivation plays a significant role in the process of production. A reliable human resource depends on the way the organisations treats and reward them. According to Donna (2007) apart from rewards the human resource needs to be in a comfortable position to carry out daily company operations. The organisations strategies should include the motivation factor. An organisation may apply a change or strategy which may affect the overall performance of the employees. It is of great importance that any change to be implemented in a company, should be agreed and supported by the members of staff (Aidan, 2008). However, in the event of a major organisational or operational change in an organisation, the administration or management should inform the staffs in advance which gives makes the employees feel more indulged and appreciated part of the organisation. Different organisations have different ways of motivating their labour force. Most frequently, rewards are given depending on the factors of operation and results. Many employees think of motivation as monetary reward. According to Jan-christoph & Koen (2005), monetary motivation does not provide the required concentration among the human resources. Taking all matters into consideration, employee motivation should be a strategy used by companies to increase the levels of production and operations. Any form of a major change in an organisation should be a cause to worry. This is because the reaction of the employees is unpredictable (Schermerhorn, James & Richard, 2004). A good number of employees do not feel comfortable when embracing change especially when it is an operational change. They perceive it to be a new internship procedure in a familiar environment. However, change in an organisation is an important factor to consider. The change is not the crucial factor of concern, but how employee will embrace the change in the organisation. In modern day business environment change is important as much as human resource is. As much implementing change is vital in an organisation the tools of operation in these case employees need to be considered (Bruno & Margit, 2002). With a proper approach it is easy to effect change in organisations. Effective discussions with the head of HR can lead to the best solution when employees are concerned. Additionally, training should be provided to familiarise the staffs on the new operation methods. If the employees will be required to do more complicate duties and their operation level increase, the organisation must consider a proper and efficient reward system. In words of Sharlyn (2005) with an efficient training and reward system implementing change in companies should not be a difficult step as far as human resource is concerned. It is an obvious assumption that productivity levels go hand in hand with employee motivation levels. The organisation’s productivity level can be maximised if motivation levels among employees are also maximised (Aidan, 2008). Future operations structure should consider employees need. These needs include social needs, financial needs, psychological needs, safety needs, esteem needs and self actualisation. The satisfaction of these needs will lead to definite employee motivation. If the organisation is dedicated to fulfil these needs the employees will feel obligated to dedicate to flourish the productivity of the organisation. Self actualisation means the ability of an employee to reach his full potential by working and increase his abilities (Cable & Parsons, 2001). The operation structure should be in way it puts the employee full potential in activities. Additionally, the operations should not undermine the capabilities of the employee. An employee working in full potential is likely to be dedicated to his work more than employee who does not exploit his full potential. Safety need require assurance of good health and treatment in case of accident during operations (Geoff & Jan, 2000). Fulfilment of safety needs gives employ less concern about their health conditions. Tools of operations should also be checked regularly to avoid accidents. Operations structure should give employees the social needs they desire. This means love and acceptance throughout the organisation. With a comfortable working environment, levels of labour input will significantly increase. Esteem needs is a person’s desire for respect, recognition and prestige. Feldman (2003) says that a successful employee should be rewarded and recognised for his efforts. A boost of esteem in employees gives them the morale to perform more effectively in the organisation. In the United Kingdom, operations structures should be flexible enough to give and provide the human resource with the needs they require to operate effectively. As a graduate trainee, the change announcement can impact positively and slightly negatively. When an organisation closes down some of its plants, the question of job security comes up (Jan & Johannes, 2009). The more plants and branches an organisation has the more it will be in need of labour force. As a trainee, some have ambitions of dedicating themselves in working for the organisation but with the closure of some of its plants does not give one the pleasure to hold that thought. When a graduate is incorporated in an organisation, he seeks to achieve the best in the process of self actualisation. Garriel (2001) argues that the change in the organisation shuts down some options of diversifying activities. On a positive note, the change implemented in the organisation could mean a shift of operations to the larger business. As a trainee in the larger business, there is the feeling that there would be more obligations and duties to be done. This will in turn give trainees the chance to establish and grow their talents and capabilities (Coyle & Purcell, 2004). With more labour duties to be carries out, the working conditions of employees in the larger business will be centralised to more specific obligations. The motivation levels among trainees will increase since they feel that their full potential is being utilised to the fullest. Additionally, a centralised working position gives individuals the chance to specialise in their area of expertise. With the announcement of change been received negatively, it is the obligation of the administration to change the perception among the employees. Firstly, there should be a proper way in which the process of change will be addressed to the staffs. The management should interact effectively with employees and explain to them why there was a need to change. Robert & Bernard (2005) suggest that the management should then explain what advantages the change will have in the organisations as well as their welfare. If need be, the forecast of results after implementing the change should be provided as proof of success. Additionally, proper training should be conducted among employees to enable them to feel comfortable when carrying out the new procedures. If the change affects the level of input of the employees, then a reward system should be put in place. The reward system should be able to cover the needs and the willingness of staff to adjust to new change (Donna, 2007). In Malaysia, the structure of the reward system needs to be changed. This is because it is a new location of operation and the organisation is on its early stages of operation (Feldman, 2003). For a new plant, the organisation needs well established employees from their region of employment. This is because they need to know the market preferences and how to motivate fellow employees. In Malaysia, the most rampant problems in organisations are the issue of employee retention. According to the Ministry of Trade International (2005) the levels of employee retention Malaysia need to be addressed quickly. This is due to the increasing heights of satisfaction wants among the staff. When coming up with an efficient reward system for Malaysian working force an organisation should research widely as to why there is a problem of staff retention. The reward system should also consider the living conditions of its staff and the cost of improving their living conditions. Apart from monetary reward, the organisation should consider rewards like medical covers and promotions. This will increase motivation to work and their obligation to the organisation (Ministry of Trade International, 2005). In order to retain employees in the larger business and all the plants, the organisation only needs a proper and efficient reward system. Additionally, the employee needs and the operational abilities of theses employees should be considered. A proper reward system should include pledges which must be fulfilled upon completion of tasks (William, Robert & Jack, 2011). Employees needs have the largest determination factor of employee retention. Compensation is also a major factor of retention of employees. This means that staffs should be given as much as their contribution in the firm. It would be demoralising if an employee receives less than he deserves. It this occurs it would be likely for a particular employee to look for employment alternatives. Retention of employees needs a proper job security assurance (Donna, 2007). To achieve this, the organisation should be able to diversify the capabilities of its staff by training them on alternative operating fields (Coyle & Purcell, 2004). This will ensure that the reliability of staff members will increase. If an employee feels that his services are not wanted in a firm, he will seek alternatives so as to secure his income. Apart from the above, working conditions and environment also plays major role employee retention. An employee should be comfortable in his place of work. This is made possible by mutual respect among employees, recognition of success and the safety conditions of the firm. With employees being the most treasured assets in an organisation, they should be treated with utmost consideration and rewarded appropriately. According to Aidan (2008) this will ensure employee motivation which will in turn impact positively in production and operations. It will also increase the possibilities of employee retention. References Aidan, L., 2008. Employee Reward Structures. London: Spiramus Press Ltd. Bruno, S., & Margit, O., 2002. Successful Management by Motivation: Balancing Intrinsic and Extrinsic Incentives. London: Springer Cable, D., & Parsons, K., 2001. Socialisation tactics and person-organisation fit. Personnel Psychology, 54, 1-22. 17. Coyle-Shapiro, M., Kessler, I., & Purcell, J., 2004. Exploring organizationally directed citizenship behaviour: Reciprocity or ‘It’s my job’? Journal of Management Studies. Vol. 41 No.1 pp.85-106. Donna, H., 2007. An Empowering Approach to Managing Social Service Organizations. London: Springer Publishing Company. Feldman, C., 2003. The antecedents and consequences of early career indecision among young adults. Human Resource Management Review, Volume 13, Issue 3, pp.499–531.  Gavriel, S., 2001. Handbook of Industrial Engineering: Technology and Operations Management. New York: Wiley-IEEE. Geoff, W., & Jan, D., 2000. Reward Management: A Critical Text. London: London: Routledge Jan, A., & Johannes, A., 2009. Enterprise Governance and Enterprise Engineering. London: Springer. Jan-Christoph, K., & Koen W., 2005. Great Expectations- Investigating the connection between incentives for CSR activities and the actual results at Becker. Munich: GRIN Verlag. Ministry of International Trade., 2005. The Exports and Imports of Foreign Countries: By Country 2004. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Ministry of International Trade. Roberta, S., Bernard, W., 2005. Operations management: quality and competitiveness in a global environment. New York: John Wiley. Schermerhorn, J., James, H., & Richard, O., 2004. Core Concepts of Organizational Behavior. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Sharlyn, J., 2005. Motivating Employees. Washington: American Society for Training and Development. William, M., Robert, J., & Jack, R., 2011. Business. Boston: Cengage Learning. Read More