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Managing Human Element at Work

Notes to some other need (linking his performance with effective rewards) which causes further
disequilibrium. This cycle of motivation continues to move, enhancing the individual’s capacity
and capability.

13.1.3 Motivation and Performance

Very often, motivation and performance are assumed to be one and the same. This faulty
assumption can lead to poor managerial decisions. The following formula for performance
helps put motivation into proper perspective. Performance = Level of ability × Level of skill
× Motivation × Knowledge about how to complete the task × Facilitating and inhibiting
conditions not under the individual’s control. Thus, we see that motivation is a necessary but
an insufficient contributor to job performance. The performance of an employee depends on
various other factors. Managers who are able to identify such indicators of performance are
better able to manage their job and work organizations as compared to the ones who just focus
on any one or two of these variables.

13.1.4 Challenges before the General Model of Motivation
The pictorial presentation of motivation, which appears to be so simple and straightforward,
is not so simple to apply in the operational setting. In the real world, the process is not so
clear-cut. There are many inherent challenges in the process. Some of the challenges are as
follows:
The first challenge in operating this model is that motives cannot be seen, they can only be
inferred. In an organization, employees with the same level of educational qualifications,
competence, and compensation package may not work at the same pace and with the same
enthusiasm. One may perform exceptionally well and the other may be an underperformer.
The real motive of each employee, which propels them either to work or underperform, needs
to be investigated.
A second challenge is the varying and the dynamic nature of needs. At any given point of time,
everyone has various needs, desires, and expectations. These factors may keep on changing
over time. The need for accomplishment may directly be in conflict with the need for affiliation
for some employees in the organization.

A third challenge involves considerable differences in the motivations of people and in the
energy with which people respond to them. A lot of this energy also depends on the cultural
background of the individual. These challenges are the things that managers can do something
about. They can determine what motivates employees and use this energy to channelize
employees’ energy towards the achievement of organizational goals. The various approaches
managers can use to manage employees in organizations can be broadly divided into two
categories: content models of motivation and process models of motivation.

13.1.5 Content Models of Motivation
Content models of motivation envisage that motivation begins with individual needs. Need is
a state in a person’s life that triggers action and activates behaviour. Some theories arrange
needs in hierarchical levels, with each level activating a different behaviour aimed at satisfying
that need. Some arrange them on a continuum, indicating that they could influence a person’s
behaviour. In this section, four content theories of motivation that dominate organizational
thinking even today have been discussed.

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