comment on your classmate’s posts as a follow-up to the discussion 

My Intial post:  

DQ1: Goal-Setting Motivation

Managers are interested in the subject of motivation because they want to learn how to get the most effort from their employees. I think this is ethical since, in the process of asking employees to do better and work hard, the employees gain a lot as well as the organization. Dozier (2013) suggest that most manager and business leader knows that their employees are the lifeblood of their company. Therefore, when employees are ordered to work extra hard, it does not necessarily mean that the manager is only interested in increasing production or raising more revenues. Still, they also want their employees to grow and become better people in the future. No one is born a manager; rather, one starts as an employee and is promoted to reach that position out of hard work.

As shown in the YouTube video on the two-factory theory of motivation and job enrichment, Herzberg talks about hygiene needs at work. He justifies that it refers to how employees are treated at work, paid, supervised, and the prevailing work conditions. When managers provide their employees with “good work hygiene,” they expect the best, and they may frequently ask them to work hard. Like Herzberg, I believe this is ethical and justifies variables that motivate people to include achievements, recognition, meaningful, interesting work, increased responsibility, and growth and advancement. Therefore, apart from asking employees to meet the requirements, managers should learn to motivate their employees by training and giving them opportunities.

Even when managers set hard, specific goals for employees, I think its not about manipulation; instead, it is about being result-oriented. In the YouTube video about setting SMART goals, a goal is defined as how to develop an effective one-to-three-year statement. When running a business, managers also set their goals to ensure the business doesn’t close due to debts and continue meeting all the expenses, such as paying salaries. Therefore, managers need to set SMART goals and follow up with the employees to ensure they are completed. SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound.

DQ2: Performance management

I worked as a junior accountant in my previous job, and my supervisor, the chief accounting officer, was not very motivating. I think the supervisor ought to have utilized performance management to motivate me and make my work more rewarding. The supervisor would have done so by keeping a positive momentum. One way of doing it is by encouraging group work other than individualism. Davies, Chun & Kamins (2010) justifies that 60% of employees believe their performance is more likely to improve if they discuss it more frequently. I believe this would have motivated the rest of the team and I to perform better. The supervisors would have encouraged me by allowing feedback from everyone. My supervisor was very strict, making fellow accountants fear communicating anything. Baker (2014) justifies that work reviews among employees are effective ways of getting immediate feedback flowing. It would have allowed the supervisor to recognize my hard work and inspires me to produce the highest quality of work.

Herzberg’s Motivation Theory is one of the theories that I would have applied in my previous work situation. It is also known as the Two-Factor or Hygiene Theory and suggests that employees have two needs while working, hygiene and motivators (Malik & Naeem, 2013). It would have helped my supervisor understand that job recognition, promotion, and achievement are some factors that motivate employees. Maybe after realizing this, the supervisors would have changed and started motivating all employees through these ways.

References

Baker, M. (2014). Peer-to-peer leadership: Why the network is the leader. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Davies, G., Chun, R., & Kamins, M. A. (2010). Reputation gaps and the performance of service organizations. Strategic Management Journal, 31(5), 530-546.

Dozier, D. M., Grunig, L. A., & Grunig, J. E. (2013). Manager’s guide to excellence in public relations and communication management. Routledge.

Herzberg, F., (n.d.). Jumping for the Jelly Beans: Two Factory Theory of motivation and Job Enrichment. [YouTube channel]. YouTube. 

Malik, M. E., & Naeem, B. (2013). Towards understanding controversy on Herzberg’s theory of motivation. World Applied Sciences Journal, 24(8), 1031-1036.

Virtualstrategist. (n.d.). How to Set SMART Goals. [YouTube channel]. YouTube.

Peer 1: 

DQ1: 

No, being interested in motivation theories and employing them to encourage staff is not unethical. It is an established science that can assist managers in obtaining higher levels of production and efficiency from their workers. Employees do not all have the same job needs or qualifications. While some people seek monetary compensation, others seek job happiness and recognition. Their performance is influenced by these elements. 

If the manager can understand more about what motivates each employee, he or she can establish job tasks, as well as a wage and benefits package, to aid in employee motivation.

By setting firm, defined targets, the manager is not manipulating the employees. Instead, he provides direction and a goal for the staff to work towards. People can work more productively when they have a specific goal in mind, and each step toward that goal is viewed as a success, which helps to motivate employees to work harder. As a result, defining goals aids in improving the efficiency of the workforce.

DQ2:

In high school I worked a sales associate for TJ Maxx. My job duties consisted of greeting customers, operating cash registers, increasing store sales, maintaining sales floor appearance, directing customers to merchandise, etc. 

TJ Maxx gives its employees a 10% discount at all of its stores including Marshals, Home Goods, etc. They also occasionally bring food and snacks in to treat the employees. My favorite motivator they used was gift cars to their stores. When they needed to motivate us to sell more of their credit cards they would bribe us with $20 store gift cards. 

I feel like TJ Maxx uses Maslow’s Need Hierarchy and Applications to support their employees because they were always looking for new ways to effectively motivate employees and make sure their needs were met and sales were being made in exchange. 

Sources;

Motivation at Work Doc

JacksonTed, Ted. Types of Performance Management Systems (& How Best to Use Them). ClearPoint Strategy, 19 Sept. 2021, . 

Peer 2:  

DQ1:     It can be ethical for managers to be interested in motivation. If they have very obviously uninterested employees, motivation is crucial to get work completed in a timely manner. I know this from experience from when I was a supervisor. There was a lot of employees that had no ambition and I had to think of ways to get them to complete tasks without taking an unnecessary amount of time. The degree of the goals set by employers needs to be taken into consideration before determining goals as manipulation. As mentioned in an article, unachievable and/or moving targets create a very stressful environment for employees and be viewed as manipulation (“Motivation or Manipulation?, 2007). 

DQ2:     At my current job, I don’t believe that I am in a position where performance management is necessary as I am still learning all of the ropes. It would not be as efficient now as it may be in the future once I am working more independently. At my previous job in a grocery store, performance management was half-heartedly used. All three elements involved in performance management (goal setting, performance review, and performance improvement plans) (“Managing Employee Performance”) were used with employees, however the idea was never followed through with. For example, a performance improvement plan would be created and it was either forgotten about or the employee would leave before it could be reassessed. I think the behavior that would have helped me be motivated most is for management to be more enthusiastic. You could tell that all employees were experience burn out and no one really cared. Had upper management cared, motivation throughout the store would have increased. 

References

Managing Employee Performance. SHRM. (n.d.). Retrieved April 6, 2022, from

Motivation or manipulation? SmartCompany. (2007, June 22). Retrieved April 6, 2022, from https://www.smartcompany.com.au/marketing/sales/new-sue-barrett/