Engineering Management

Lesson No. 10 - Motivation

 Specific Objective of the
Lesson
• At the end of the lesson, the students should
be able to:
• Define motivation.
• Learn the common characteristics of
motivation
• Know and compare the different
approaches or theories that motivates
people.
• Explain the greatest management
principle of all.
 MOTIVATION
• By considering the need of the workforce
as well as the company, the Aspirations
Statement foster motivation, the force
that energizes behavior, gives direction
to behaviors, and underlies the tendency
to persist.
• Motivation comes from the Latin word
movere, which means to move.
• Numerous definitions are given in the
term such as: aim, desire, ends, impulse,
intention, objective, and purpose.
• Motivation is the force that energizes, directs,
and sustains personal efforts to work hard
towards achieving performance goals, and with
adequate ability and understanding of the job,
such a person will be highly productive.
• This definition recognizes that in order to
achieve goals, individuals must sufficiently
stimulated and energetic, must have a clear
focus on what is to be achieved, and must be
willing to commit their energy for a long period
of time to realize their aim.
• Since the leading function of management
involves influencing others to work toward
organizational goals, motivation is an
important aspect of that function.
THREE COMMON CHARACTERISTICS
OF MOTIVATION

• Motivation is concerned with what

activates human behavior.
• Motivation is concerned with what
directs this behavior towards a
particular goal.
• Motivation is concerned with how
this behavior is sustained.
• Motivation can be analyzed using the following
causative sequence:
NEEDS → DRIVES OR MOTIVES → ACHIEVEMENT OF GOAL

• In motivation, needs produce motives, which

leads to the accomplishment of goals. Needs
are caused by deficiencies, which can be either
physical or psychological.

• For instance: A physical needs exists when

an individual goes without sleep in 48 hours.

A psychological need exists when an

individual has no friends or companions.
• A motive is a stimulus that leads to an action to
satisfy the need. In other words, motives
produce a actions.
• Lack of sleep (the need) activates the physical
change of fatigue (the motive), which produces
sleep (the action or, in this example the inaction)
• An achievement of goal satisfies the need and
reduces the motive. When the goal is reached,
balance is restored. However, the other needs
arise, which are then satisfied by the same
sequence of events.
 WHAT MOTIVATES
PEOPLE?
• The different approaches to determine
what motivates people are as follows:
 Scientific Management
Approach
• Frederick W. Taylor and the scientific
management:
• “Taylor’s ideas were based on his belief
that existing reward systems were not
designed to reward individuals for high
performance. He believed that when
highly productive people discover that
they are being compensated basically the
same as less productive people, then the
output of highly productive people will
decrease.”
• Taylor’s solution was quite simple. He designed
a system whereby an employee is compensated
according to individual production. Taylor solved
the problem by breaking down jobs down into
components and measuring the time to
accomplish each component. In this way, Taylor
was able to establish standards of performance
“scientifically”. Once the standard was reached,
a significantly higher rates was paid, not only for
the units above the standard but also for all units
produced during the days. Thus, under Taylor’s
system, employees could in many cases
significantly increase their pay by producing
above the standard.
• The scientific management approach to
motivation is based on assumption that money
is the primary motivator (financial rewards).
 The Equity Theory
• Equity theory is based on the idea
that people want to be treated fairly
in relationship with others.
• Inequity exists when a person
perceives his or her job inputs and
outcomes to be less than the job
inputs and outcomes of another
person.
 Maslow’s: Hierarchy of
Needs
• This approach is based on the
assumption that individuals are
motivated when a number of their
needs are satisfied and that money
can directly or indirectly satisfy only
some of these needs.
 Hierarchy of Needs

SELF- Challenging projects, opportunities for

ACTUALIZATION Challenging
innovation andprojects, opportunities
creativity, for
trainings and
NEEDS innovation
seminars, etc and creativity, trainings and
seminars, etc
ESTEEM Important projects, recognition, prestigious
NEEDS
NEEDS office setting and location, etc

SOCIAL Good co-workers, peers, superiors, and

NEEDS customers

SAFETY
SAFETY Job security, benefits, life insurance, safety
NEEDS regulations, condition of workplace, gadgets
for personal safety, etc

PHYSIOLOGICAL Basic pay, work space, heat, water, food,

NEEDS shelter, exercise, clothing, etc
 Achievement-Power-
Affiliation Approach
• In this type of approach, people are
motivated by satisfying the following
three needs:
– Need to achieve – a desire to do something
better or more efficiently that it has been
done before.
– Need for power – to be strong and influential
– Need for affiliation – to establish or maintain
friendly relationship with others.
 Motivation-Maintenance
Approach
• The development of this approach
involved the extensive interviews
with approximately 200 engineers
and accountants from 11 industries
in the United States.
• Analysis of the interviewee’s
statements showed that different
factors were associated with good
and bad feelings.
• The factors that were most frequently
mentioned in association with Good Feelings
were Achievement, Recognition,
Responsibility, Advancement, and the
Characteristics of the Job.
• The factors that were most frequently mention
in association with Bad Feelings were
Interpersonal Relationship with Supervisors,
Peers, and Subordinates; Technical aspects
of supervision; Company policies and
administration; Job security; Working
conditions; Salary; and Aspects of their
personal lives that were affected by the work
situation
• THEREFORE: Giving attention to these
factors may induce motivation for people.
 Expectancy Approach to
Motivation
• The expectancy approach postulates that
an employee’s level of motivation
depends on the three basic beliefs:
– Expectancy – refers to the employee’s belief
that his or her effort will lead to the desired
level of performance.
– Instrumentality – refers to the employee’s
belief that attaining the desired level of
performance will lead to certain outcomes.
– Valence – refers to employee’s belief about
the value of the outcome.
• THEREFORE: Giving attention to the
above beliefs will developed motivation,
 Reinforcement Theory
• The general idea behind Reinforcement
Theory is that the consequences of a
person’s present behavior influence
future behavior.
– For example:
– Behavior leads to a positive consequences is
likely to be repeated, while behaviors that
leads to a negative consequences is likely to
be unrepeated.
• THEREFORE: The following should be
introduced:
• Positive Reinforcement – involves providing
positive consequences as a result of desired
behavior.
• Avoidance – also called negative
reinforcements, involves giving a person the
opportunity to avoid a negative consequence by
exhibiting a desired behavior.
• Extinction – involves providing no positive
consequences or removing previously provided
positive consequences as a result of
undesirable behavior.
• Punishment – involves providing negative
consequences as a result of undesired behavior.
THE CONSEQUENCES OF
BEHAVIOR

POSITIVE/OR SAME BEHAVIOR

NEGATIVE LIKELY TO BE
REINFORCEMENT REPEATED

BEHAVIOR

PUNISHMENT OR SAME BEHAVIOR

EXTINCTION LESS LIKELY TO BE
REPEATED
The Greatest Management
Principles in the World
• “The things that get rewarded get
done” is what one author calls The
Greatest Management Principles
in the World. With this in mind,
Michael LeBoeuf offers 10
prescriptions for effective motivating
high performance. Companies, and
individual managers, should reward
the following:
• Solid Solutions instead of quick fixes.
• Risk Taking instead of risk avoiding.
• Applied Creativity instead of mindless
conformity.
• Decisive Action instead of paralysis by
analysis.
• Smart Work instead of busy work.
• Simplification instead of needless
complication.
• Quietly Effective Behavior instead of
squeaky wheels
• Quality Works instead of fast work.
• Loyalty instead of turnover.
• Working Together instead of working
against.