Motivating employees
Why motivation matters
- Motivation is the drive to work hard. A motivated workforce gives:
- higher productivity, lower absenteeism, lower labour turnover.
- Theories: Taylor (money/piece rate), Maslow (a hierarchy of needs), Herzberg (hygiene factors vs motivators).
Practice
A benefit of a well-motivated workforce is:
Motivated workers produce more, take fewer days off and are less likely to leave.
Financial methods
- wage/time rate (per hour), piece rate (per item), salary (fixed yearly), commission (per sale), bonus, profit sharing, fringe benefits.
Practice
Paying a worker for each item they make is called:
Piece rate pays per item made; commission is pay based on sales.
Non-financial methods
- job rotation (switch tasks), job enlargement (more tasks), job enrichment (more responsibility), autonomy, teamworking, training & promotion.
Practice
Job enrichment means giving workers:
Job enrichment adds challenge and responsibility — a non-financial motivator.
You've got it
Key idea
- motivation raises productivity and lowers absenteeism/turnover
- theories: Taylor (money), Maslow (hierarchy), Herzberg (hygiene vs motivators)
- financial (piece rate, bonus) vs non-financial (job enrichment, teamworking)