Motivation in management
According to a well-known writer, Frederic Herzberg ("One more time: How do you motivate employees", Harvard Business review, no 5/1987), there are two main categories of motivational factors described in the commonly accepted motivation theories.
The first one is referring to contextual factors established in the organizational environment, like salary, work conditions, and strategies also included in Maslow's theory.
The second category is describing the importance of motivational factors, which are reflecting the real level of work's value. In this category we can include threats and opportunities, competences, professional achievements, all forming a complex hieratical system. Herzberg considers that the motivational factors can lead to higher productivity rates achieving tempting performances.
On the other hand, Michael Porter and Henry Mintzberg are convinced that motivation is only a secondary link in the chain represented by management. According to them, both motivation and market evolution are evolving in a linked relationship. This is called the Contingency Theory.
Motivation is influenced by the following factors:
- Elementary physiologic needs, like the necessity for food, shelter, clothes, or other things vital for survival
- Security and safety including the protection against threats, or other dangerous situations that can be faced during work
- Social contacts including love, affection, and respect
- Social status; gaining trust in own power of succeeding, self confidence and obtaining a position in the society corresponding to the real capacities possessed by the employee
- Self achievement; a powerful feeling of doing the right thing in the best possible way
Maslow creates a pyramid including those necessities and he considers every stage like a new step forward in order to achieve the wanted success. Generally people prefer a constant environment without changes and adapting efforts, and sometimes the employees are selfish, ignoring the common values that should be well understood in the organization. Internal promotion can be used to prove that performance is rewarded, but that should take place with extreme precaution because it can lead to internal conflicts. R. Jacobson, in his book called "The real world of teams", considers that a team is always more powerful and significant than individual professionals, so this way should be well analyzed before starting an internal promotion policy. That is why a case study is requested before any innovation.