Human Motivation Principles for Managers. Eight Fundamental Needs that Motivate Employees in the Long Term.

July 30, 2010 by oscadmin · 3 Comments
Filed under: Human Resources, Self Improvement 

There are many theories and insights that management psychologists and behaviouralists have come up with about human motivation. Certainly this is a complex area in terms of human energy and behaviour. What most specialists agree, however, is that:




? Motivation comes from within; it is drawn out of individuals, not imposed on them.
? Motivation is multi-dimensional and there is no single universal answer about what motivation is, true for all time and all people.
? Some things motivate and encourage extra effort; others only cause dissatisfaction by their absence.
? Clear goals are an aid to motivation: they enable individuals to know what to aim for, and feedback gives an energizing sense of progress.
? Increasingly, ‘carrots’ are seen as generally more effective to foster sustained motivation than ‘sticks’.




To foster long-term, sustained motivation, recent thought is that managers must inspire employees to draw their motivation from inside rather than rely on external factors such as pay.






There are eight fundamental needs that motivate employees in the long term and which are shared to varying degrees by us all. These are:
Desire for activity.

People want to be active and involved. In their personal lives most people avoid boredom and monotony. Yet at work employees are expected to accept boring, repetitious, monotonous jobs without complaint.
Desire for ownership.

Owning things makes people feel better about themselves. ‘Psychological’ ownership is even more important than ‘physical’ ownership. Employees want to psychologically own their work. They want input into their work and want to feel responsible for their jobs.
Desire for power.

People want to control their destiny. They don’t want to feel powerless over external forces shaping their lives. With fewer top-down, control organizations more and more employees are demanding their freedom back.
Desire for affiliation.

People are social creatures. They like to interact and socialize with one another, though the degree of sociability will vary. Social support and helping relationships are among the many benefits provided by work.
Desire for competence.

This is the core of self-esteem. People welcome opportunities to feel more competent. Work can provide these opportunities.
Desire for achievement.

It is important for people to succeed at something. Under the right conditions, employees will be willing to work hard and overcome obstacles to achieve a goal.
Desire for recognition.

People want to feel appreciated by others and be positively recognized for their efforts. Recognition is a powerful force which has the capability to unleash energy and motivation.
Desire for meaning.

People want a reason for doing something. They want reassurance that their efforts, however small, are making a difference.

We advocates that the manager finds out which of these eight desires the individual most wishes to satisfy and then facilitate ways of helping the employee achieve these desires.

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KEY BENEFITS OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT. 4 WAYS TO IDENTIFY YOUR ACTIVELY ENGAGED EMPLOYEES.

July 26, 2010 by oscadmin · 4 Comments
Filed under: Human Resources 



Employee engagement is personified by the passion and energy employees have to give of their best to the organization to serve the customer. It is all about the willingness and ability of employees to give sustained discretionary effort to help their organization succeed.
Engagement is characterized by employees being committed to the organization, believing in what it stands for and being prepared to go above and beyond what is expected of them to deliver outstanding service to the customer. Employee engagement is more a psychological contract than a physical one. It is something the employee has to offer. As we will see, employees make a choice about how they behave and the extent to which they are engaged. Engaged employees feel inspired by their work, they are customer focused in their approach, they care about the future of the company and are prepared to invest their own effort to see that the organization succeeds.
Engagement can be summed up by how positively the employee:
?    thinks about the organization;
?    feels about the organization;
?    is proactive in relation to achieving organizational goals for customers, colleagues and other stakeholders.
In other words, it is about the degree to which employees perform their role in a positive and proactive manner.
Engagement therefore is about what employees think rationally about their employers, what they feel about them, their emotional connection, as well as what they do and say as a result in relation to their co-employees and their customers.
So why has employee engagement become so important across the globe? There are two key reasons: the increasing power of the customer and the increasing power of the employee.

THE BENEFITS OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
Creating the conditions where employees feel able to give of their best therefore results in documented benefits such as:
?    greater productivity;
?    increased passion for and commitment to the organization’s vision, strategy and goals;
?    greater alignment with the organization’s values;
?    a high-energy working environment;
?    a greater sense of team;
?    higher levels of creativity and innovation;
?    a greater sense of loyalty to the organization;
?    higher staff retention, lowered attrition rate;
?    better recruitment and selection;
?    higher talent retention;
?    employees being better brand ambassadors;
?    attractive reputation;
?    improved customer experience and customer loyalty;
?    boosted business growth;
?    greater value creation;
?    sustained, long-term success.




IDENTIFYING ACTIVELY ENGAGED EMPLOYEES
When employee was highly engaged, I would probably see this through:
?    Cognitive engagement: the degree to which the employee focuses very hard on work. Engaged employees are focused and at one with their work. For example, they are not distracted from what they are doing, they display single-mindedness and high energy.
?    Emotional engagement: the degree to which the employee feels engrossed in the work. Engaged employees are ‘in the zone’, they are engrossed in what they are doing to the extent that they do not become distracted. They live in the ‘here and now’ when they are at work.




?    Physical engagement: the degree to which employees are willing to go the extra mile, not just in terms of customer service but also for themselves, for example in taking responsibility for their own learning and development, in finding new ways of doing things and in putting in discretionary effort.
?    Advocacy: the extent to which employees recommend the organization to their family and friends in terms of job opportunities and doing business with the organization. A key determinant is how employees portray the organization to others when they are outside work. Do they show pride in the organization? Do they relate to it and talk as ‘we’ rather than ‘they?’




There is a buzz about an organization where employees are truly engaged. People feel trusted, valued and empowered. They are emotionally committed and personally involved; there are high levels of motivation and enthusiasm.
One way of describing the level of engagement that an employee has is to gauge their enthusiasm and energy level and the degree of positivity that they display at work. The model has two dimensions. The first is employees’ attitude towards the customer, their colleagues and the organization, be it positive or negative. The second is their enthusiasm and drive towards activity, be it positive (active) or negative (inactive).

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