Having read this week’s assigned readings, you are now familiar with various theories and approaches to motivating employees. Consider your current job, a job you have had in the past, or one you know well, and then complete the Assignment.
Submit by Day 7 a 300- to 700-word paper which answers all of the following questions:
What motivational techniques, methods, or strategies does (or did) your current or past employer use to try to keep employees productive, satisfied, or motivated?
What worked and didn’t work to keep you productive, satisfied, and/or motivated?
What motivational theories explain why your employer’s efforts worked or didn’t work to keep their employees productive, satisfied, or motivated?
Based on your experiences and the readings, what would you recommend that your current or past employer do to try to keep their employees productive, satisfied, and/or motivated?
Application Assignments must be in APA style and format.
Week 4 Learning Resources
This page contains the Learning Resources for this week. Be sure to scroll down the page to see all of this week’s assigned Learning Resources.
Required Resources
Readings
Jones, G. R., & George, J. M. (2014). Essentials of contemporary management (6th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Chapter 7, “Designing Organizational Structure” (pp. 222–257)
This chapter addresses the different ways of structuring an organization. The authors emphasize the ways in which environmental, technology, and human factors can and should influence the choice of organizational structure. This discussion flows into an explanation of designing jobs, grouping jobs, and then forming divisions within an organization that may be based on functional, geographic, product, or market areas. The criteria and variations in global structures are also discussed. Finally the authors explain the establishment of lines of authority, communication, and collaboration.
Focus on the definitions and concepts provided throughout this chapter. Think about an organization that you have been a part of or are familiar with. Did that organization appear to have been rationally organized to achieve specific criteria? Were responsibilities clearly delineated? Were there unnecessary obstacles to communication or collaboration? Was technology adapted to the organization’s design, or was the organization’s structure adapted to take advantage of new technology? Was the structure of the organization truly efficient and effective? Did the organization’s structure influence the productivity and morale of employees? How might you go about changing the structure of that organization?
Chapter 8, “Control, Change, and Entrepreneurship” (pp. 258–295)
This chapter addresses the importance of organizational control and of designing a control process, as well as how technology and the establishment of control systems can facilitate organizational control. Two categories of control processes are examined. (1) “Output control” focuses on quantitative indicators of output, production, quality, satisfaction, and the achievement of goals, objectives, and targets. (2) “Behavior control” focuses on directing and influencing the behavior of employees and groups of employees through the use of goals, objectives, policies, procedures, rules, boundaries, and direct supervision. Lastly, control is discussed as an important element of change management and of entrepreneurship.
Focus on the definitions and concepts provided throughout this chapter. Think about an organization that you have been a part of or are familiar with. Did the managers and supervisors have effective control over their areas of responsibilities? When the managers and supervisors wanted something changed or done, did this get changed or done in an efficient manner? Did the managers and supervisors really know what was occurring within their areas of responsibilities? Were there clear standards of performance and personal conduct, and how were these standards monitored and enforced? Were there goals, objectives, or targets for all functional areas? Was progress toward those goals, objectives, or targets continually monitored?
Chapter 9, “Motivation” (pp. 296–325)
This chapter addresses the nature of human motivation and introduces you to various theories that explain various aspects of motivation. Those theories include the family of “needs” theories, as well as expectancy theory, equity theory, goal-setting theory, and two learning theories. The chapter ends with a discussion of various ways in which money, in the form of compensation, has been used to influence employees’ behavior and performance.
Focus on the definitions and concepts provided throughout this chapter. Try to see how each of the theories complements the other theories. Ask yourself, what does each motivational theory contribute to your understanding of human motivation? What are the differences and the relationship between job satisfaction and motivation? What is the difference between attempting to motivate an employee versus attempting to manipulate an employee? Based on the motivational theories and your personal observations, under what conditions may a pay increase motivate an employee, and under what circumstances might a bonus work better? What really motivates you to be a good employee? Is it different than that which can motivate you to excel or strive for higher achievements?
