Running head: MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR MODULE 1 CASE

Trident University International

Management and Organizational Behavior Module 1 Case

MGT501: Management and Organizational Behavior

Dr. Leon Jablow

June 30, 2019

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Management and Organizational Behavior Module 1 Case

Introduction

Being selected for a job promotion is an exciting time in anyone’s career let alone

being selected for two promotions within the same month. In October of 2001, I had the

honor of being selected to Sergeant First Class as well as being selected to attend the United

States Army Warrant Officer Candidate School two weeks later. Needless to say it was a very

exciting and motivational time that paved the way for the remainder of my military career as

well as job opportunities after retirement.

The Experience

At the time of the two selections for promotion I had already served 9 ½ years on

active duty, and was stationed at my third duty assignment which happened to be in Fort

Bliss, Texas. I had already been serving in a Sergeant First Class position for the last three

years and had received several evaluation reports to state that I was more than qualified to

attain the next rank. During the same timeframe, I had worked with three Warrant Officers to

which I had the highest regard and they helped me make the decision to submit my Warrant

Officer Recruitment packet. October of 2001, was a very exciting time in my life because it

showed that the US Army considered me for two distinctive promotion opportunities due to

my technical and tactical expertise as well as promotion potential. I was promoted to

Sergeant First Class on November 1, 2001, and I was appointed to Warrant Officer 1 upon

graduation from the Warrant Officer Candidate School on April 24, 2002.
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Reflection

The experience was motivating to me because the US Army had recognized all of my

hard work and dedication and selected me for two different promotion opportunities. I had

known friends who had been promoted to Sergeant First Class and chose to remain enlisted

during their military career and also knew others that were not selected to Sergeant First

Class and decided to pursue becoming a Warrant Officer. I had never known anyone to get

selected for both promotions within the same month so it was very special which made it a

motivational experience. I received praise from my entire chain of command to include

Senior Non-Commissioned Officers and Warrant Officers within the entire Brigade because

it was a unique circumstance to which many said they had also never seen before. The

situation was motivating to others because it showed junior enlisted soldiers that if you are

dedicated to your job and work hard that the military can recognize you with unique

opportunities such as mine.

Abstract Conceptualization

I was able to serve with great leaders by this time in my career and they created an

environment that fit in line with Locke’s theory on goal setting and task motivation (Chinn,

n.d.). My leaders provided clear goals by providing me purpose, direction, resources, and

time needed to achieve the goals that were set. They also provided feedback that highlighted

my progress and identified areas for improvement. The care that my leaders showed to my

professional development provided me with the drive and determination to want to become

more. This led me to develop my own personal goals in my military career using the goal

setting theory. The goal setting theory states that goals are the most important factors

affecting the motivation and behavior of employees. One of the first factors in goal
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commitment means that if you are a dedicated individual and want to achieve a goal, the

more you will be motivated to exert effort toward goal accomplishment (Motivation, 2015). I

pushed myself to fulfill my goal in becoming a Sergeant First Class in less than 10 years to

which not many had done before, and I also fulfilled my goal in becoming a Warrant Officer

as well. My main motivations for striving for excellence within my job were Achievement,

Affiliation, Security, and Adventure. According to Murphy, he states that “research of

employees and leaders have shown that there are five major motivations that drive people’s

actions at work; Achievement, Power, Affiliation, Security and Adventure” (Murphy, 2018).

I truly enjoyed serving in the military because it did provide security for me and my family,

and I had been able to travel and see several countries so it was always an adventure. The

units that I served in always attained the highest scores in gunnery, marksmanship, physical

fitness, and maintenance which showed our achievement and affiliation within our unit. I

ultimately chose to accept both promotions because they were something that I strove for. I

did eventually go on and remain a Warrant Officer to which I made the right decision for my

career, family, and was able to set myself up for great opportunities upon retirement from the

military.

Experimentation

Now that I am retired from the military and working as a government contractor I am

not sure if a situation of two promotions occurring simultaneously might ever occur again. If

a situation like this does occur then I will assess the situation and make the best decision just

like I did before. I will continue to push myself, work hard, and continue to set goals for

myself to achieve. This shows the leaders within my company that I am a motivated

employee who wants to do great and wonderful things for the company and those that he
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works with. It shows that I take my job seriously, strive for excellence, and a team player that

can be counted on in all aspects of any task. I will push others and show them that they have

potential to do great things, and that if you set goals for yourself to strive to achieve them.

Conclusion

Being recognized for the hard work that you are doing in a promotion is a great

feeling and brings on the motivation to work even harder. Go through your job and find the

things that motivate you to work hard, plan goals, and apply theories to push yourself. Having

leaders who care about your professional development and provide the tools you need to push

yourself is needed, but ultimately the promotion you received is the promotion you earned.
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References

Motivation and motivation theory (2015). In Reference for Business: Encyclopedia of

Business (2nd ed.) Retrieved from http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Mar-
No/Motivation-and-Motivation-Theory.html

Chinn, D. (n.d.). How to motivate employees using E. A. Locke’s goal-setting theory.

Retrieved from https://smallbusiness.chron.com/motivate-employees-using-ea-lockes-
goalsetting-theory-24176.html

Murphy, M. (2018). What Motivates You at Work? Forbes. Retrieved from

https://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2018/07/29/what-motivates-you-at-
work/#36c6d9ee5c1f