The issue of employee motivation has been under research for a sufficient period for developing a variety of topic-specific theories and frameworks. The most famous and presumably the easiest to perceive is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which actually underlies a considerable amount of the other. Simply stated, many experts seek to reconsider Maslow’s theory and/or conclude from it to develop a theoretical base for further investigations. Those may utilize different approaches and regard the topic from different lenses, but their authors actually agree at the key point. Specifically, few to no employees demonstrate sufficient enthusiasm to need no incentives, but those are senseless without intrinsic motivation.
As apparent from the above, the primary task of managers and supervisors lies in finding the balance between the degrees to which workers can encourage themselves and require additional stimulation. In one respect, an individual who does not have any desire for work has a low chance to find a job; furthermore, he or she hardly searches for it. Along with that, even those who do love their work rarely agree to do it with no compensation. Another essential factor is psychological, social, and cultural dissimilarities, for which reason different people may need different motivation. This concept therefore needs a thorough and multi-dimensional exploration that would allow for a maximally broad perspective of the issue.
The primary point to consider is the non-coinciding origin of satisfaction and dissatisfaction, due to which eliminating the factors of the latter does not cause the former automatically. This principle is among the meaningful discoveries of Herzberg (1968). According to him, the most frequent reasons why people are unhappy at work are poor relationships with coworkers and/or bosses, uncomfortable space, weird rules, and improper income. However, an exemplary organization of the workplace does not serve as a universal motivator. The author highlights that people need room for growth and self-actualization to work more effectively.
Herzberg’s conclusions do not mean that work environment, in other words, conditions in which employees find themselves, plays no role in job satisfaction. Relationships with other team members, scheduling, and similar factors should be at an appropriate level, as well as income. Meanwhile, the study by Wargo-Sugleris et al. (2017) shows the following. The respondents who find all of the above appropriate bur have limited opportunities for career promotion, mostly because of their age, are less satisfied. The closer a person is to retirement, the fewer chances he or she consequently has for advancement, which may discourage the elderly from working with dedication.
Other social groups also are likely to lose their motivation, hence need additional on a constant basis. This task is quite challenging, considering the irrelevance of solely financial rewards. Although many firms use approaches of this kind, they can have unwanted side effects such as a lack of loyalty (Frey & Osterloh, 2002). Specifically, an employee who lacks an emotional attachment to the company will leave it immediately in case he or she is proposed a higher salary. This determines the need for developing a morale in staff members, which, in turn, requires awareness of their values, principles, and needs as well as considering those.
All of the above allows assuming that workers need not solely extrinsic motivation such as financial, but intrinsic in parallel, which is derivable from the need for achievement and development. This is the stumbling point of management since people are not identical and consequently require different approaches. Hence, the question for further research is how to motivate dissimilar individuals for similar work, that is, what to take into account and how to use that.
References
Frey, B. S., & Osterloh, M.. (2002). Successful management by motivation balancing intrinsic and extrinsic incentives. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer.
Herzberg, F. (1968). One more time: How do you motivate employees (Vol. 65). Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review.
Wargo‐Sugleris, M., Robbins, W., Lane, C. J., & Phillips, L. R. (2018). Job satisfaction, work environment and successful ageing: Determinants of delaying retirement among acute care nurses. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 74(4), 900-913. Web.