HUMAN RESOURCES

MANAGEMENT
SECTION 4
MOTIVATION AND RETENTION
 Section Objectives
• BY THE END OF THIS SECTION
STUDENTS SHOULD BE ABLE TO:-

• Identify the types of motivation

• Explain the various motivation theories
• Explain retention strategies
• Relate recognition to motivation
• Relate money to motivation
• Implement motivation strategies
 Introduction
• Motivation is the force that energizes, directs and
sustains behaviour.
• High performance is achieved by well-motivated
people who are prepared to exercise discretionary
effort, ie independently do more than is expected of
them.
• Even in fairly basic roles, Hunter et al (1990) found
through their research that the difference in value-
added discretionary performance between ‘superior’
and ‘standard’ performers was 19 per cent.
 Conceptualising Motivation
• Motivation was derived from the Latin word
for movement (movere).
• A motive is a reason for doing something.
• Motivation is the strength and direction of
behaviour and the factors that influence
people to behave in certain ways.
• The term ‘motivation’ can refer variously to
the goals that individuals have,
• The ways in which individuals chose their
goals and the ways in which others try to
change their behaviour.
• Locke and Latham (2004:388) : ‘The concept
of motivation refers to internal factors that
impel action and to external factors that can
act as inducements to action.’
 Components of Motivation
1 Direction – what a person is trying to do.
2 Effort – how hard a person is trying.
3 Persistence – how long a person keeps on
trying.
(Arnold et al., 1991).
 Types of Motivation
There are basically two motivation types
• Intrinsic motivation
• Extrinsic Motivation
 Intrinsic Motivation
• It is based on the need to be competent and is self-
determining (that is, to have a choice) (Deci and Ryan,
1985).
• It takes place when individuals feel that their work is
important, interesting and challenging and that it
provides them with a reasonable degree of autonomy
(freedom to act), opportunities to achieve and advance,
and scope to use and develop their skills and abilities.
• They are likely to have a deeper and longer-term effect
because they are inherent in individuals and the work.
 How to Intrinsically Motivation People

1. Autonomy – encourage people to set their own

schedule and focus on getting work done not
how it is done.
2. Mastery – help people to identify the steps they
can take to improve and ask them to identify
how they will know they are making progress.
3. Purpose – when giving instructions explain the
why as well as the how.
(Pink, 2009)
 Extrinsic Motivation
• It occurs when things are done to or for people in
order to motivate them.
• These include rewards such as:-
– Incentives,
– Increased pay,
– Praise or promotion; and
– Punishments such as disciplinary action, withholding pay,
or criticism.
• Extrinsic motivators can have an immediate and
powerful effect, but it will not necessarily last long.
 Motivation Theory
• It explains the ways in which intrinsic and
extrinsic motivation take place.
• The three main areas of motivation theory
that is instrumentality, content and process
• Here we will focus on Instrumentality and
Content Theories.
Motivation and Money
 Instrumentality Theory
• It states in effect that rewards and punishments are the
best instruments with which to shape behaviour.
• It assumes that people will be motivated to work if
rewards and penalties are tied directly to their
performance; thus the awards are contingent upon
effective performance.
• It relies exclusively on a system of external controls and
does not recognize a number of other human needs.
• It also fails to appreciate the fact that the formal
control system can be seriously affected by the informal
relationship existing between workers.
 Content Theory
• The aim of the content or needs theories was
to identify the factors associated with
motivation.
• The theory focuses on the content of
motivation in the shape of needs.
• Its basis is the belief that an unsatisfied need
creates tension and a state of disequilibrium.
 Content Theory
• To restore the balance a goal is identified that will satisfy
the need, and a behaviour pathway is selected that will
lead to the achievement of the goal and the satisfaction
of the need.
• Behaviour is therefore motivated by unsatisfied needs.
• Content theory, as the term implies, indicates the
components of motivation but it does not explain how
motivation affects performance – a necessary
requirement if the concept is to provide guidance on HR
policy and practice. This was the role of expectancy
theory, as will be discussed later.
 Examples of Content Theories
• Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (1954)

Self Actualisation Needs

Esteem Needs

Social Needs

Safety Needs

Physiological Needs
• He suggested that there are five major need categories that
apply to people in general, starting from the fundamental
physiological needs and leading through a hierarchy of safety,
social and esteem needs to the need for self-fulfilment, the
highest need of all.
• When a lower need is satisfied the next highest becomes
dominant and the individual’s attention is turned to satisfying
this higher need.
• The need for self-fulfilment, however, can never be satisfied.
‘Man is a wanting animal’; only an unsatisfied need can
motivate behaviour and the dominant need is the prime
motivator of behaviour.
• Psychological development takes place as people
move up the hierarchy of needs, but this is not
necessarily a straightforward progression.
• The lower needs still exist, even if temporarily
dormant as motivators, and individuals constantly
return to previously satisfied needs.
• Maslow’s needs hierarchy has an intuitive appeal and
has been very popular. But it has not been verified by
empirical research such as that conducted by Wahba
and Bridwell (1979), and it has been criticized for its
apparent rigidity – different people may have
different priorities and the underpinning assumption
that everyone has the same needs is invalid.
• It is difficult to accept that needs progress steadily up
the hierarchy and Maslow himself expressed doubts
about the validity of a strictly ordered hierarchy.
• But he did emphasize that the higher-order needs are
more significant.
 ERG Theory (Alderfer, 1972)
1. Existence needs such as hunger and thirst – pay, fringe
benefits and working conditions are other types of
existence needs.
2. Relatedness needs, which acknowledge that people are
not self-contained units but must engage in transactions
with their human environment – acceptance,
understanding, confirmation and influence are elements
of the relatedness process.
3. Growth needs, which involve people in finding the
opportunities to be what they are most fully and to
become what they can. This is the most significant need.
 Others
• McClelland’s achievement motivation
• Herzberg’s two-factor model
• Self-determination theory
• Reinforcement theory
• Expectancy theory
• Goal theory
• Equity theory
• Social learning theory
• Cognitive evaluation theory
• Purposeful work behaviour
 Retention Strategies
• Salaries and Benefits
• Training and Development
 Motivation and Money
• Money, in the form of pay or some other sort of remuneration,
is regarded by many people as the most obvious extrinsic
reward.
• Money seems to provide the carrot that most people want.
• Questioned by (Herzberg, 1968),
• Lack of money can cause dissatisfaction, its provision does not
result in lasting satisfaction.
• What cannot be assumed is that money motivates everyone in
the same way and to the same extent.
• Thus it is naive to think that the introduction of a performance-
related pay scheme will miraculously transform everyone
overnight into well-motivated, high-performing individuals.
• Money is a powerful force because it is linked
directly or indirectly to the satisfaction of many
needs. Money may in itself have no intrinsic
meaning, but it acquires significant motivating
power because it comes to symbolize so many
intangible goals. It acts as a symbol in different
ways for different people, and for the same person
at different times.
• But do financial incentives motivate people? The
answer is yes, for those people who are strongly
motivated by money and whose expectations are
that they will receive a worthwhile financial reward.
• But less confident employees may not respond to incentives that
they do not expect to achieve. It can also be argued that extrinsic
rewards may erode intrinsic interest – people who work just for
money could find their tasks less pleasurable and may not,
therefore, do them so well. What we do know is that a multiplicity
of factors is involved in performance improvements and many of
those factors are interdependent.
• Money can therefore provide positive motivation in the right
circumstances not only because people need and want money but
also because it serves as a highly tangible means of recognition.
But badly designed and managed pay systems can demotivate.
Another researcher in this area was Jaques (1961), who
emphasized the need for such systems to be perceived as being
fair and equitable. In other words, the reward should be clearly
related to effort or level of responsibility and people should not
receive less money than they deserve compared with their fellow
workers. Jaques called this the ‘felt-fair’ principle.
 Employee Recognition
• Recognition – the perception that members’
contributions to the organization are acknowledged.
• Recognition schemes as part of a total reward
package enable appreciation to be shown to
individuals for their achievements through
– Day to day Recognition, Informal Recognition and Formal
recognition arrangements.
• They can take place quietly between managers and
their team workers or be visible celebrations of
success.
• A recognition scheme can be formal and
organization wide, providing scope to recognize
achievements by gifts or treats or by public
applause.
• Typically, the awards are non-financial but some
organizations provide cash awards.
• Importantly, recognition is also given less formally
when managers simply say, ‘Well done’, ‘Thank
you’, or ‘Congratulations’ – face-to-face or in a brief
note of appreciation.
 Ways to show effort recognition
Create a #celebrations channel in your
company chat
Celebrate success! Create a channel in your
company’s workspace to celebrate the good
things e.g. Shout-outs for jobs well done,
work anniversaries, birthdays, welcoming new
employees, etc.
Handwritten cards for birthdays and milestones
• In our ultra-digital world, personal touches go
a long way.
• Send handwritten notes to co-workers to
celebrate birthdays, babies, and work
milestones. (Bonus tip: Try to include at least
one personal memory or detail, rather than a
generic “happy birthday.”)
Ask employees and management to nominate/vote for
the employee of the month/Year
• Employees will appreciate the recognition that they
receive and realise that their daily performances are
being noticed.
• When management deliver the ‘Employee of the
Month’ award, they have to be specific as to why such
employee deserved it and could be either written out or
publicly explained during monthly team meeting.
• By doing so, other employees would learn from it and
work harder the following month. The ‘winning’
employee that the company recognises will be
delighted that their work was noticed and appreciated
Reward the team or department that shows great
achievement.
• Besides awarding ‘Employee of the Month’,
management could also reward the team that
have accomplished or worked well together.
• Rewards could be as simple as lunch with the
management, shopping voucher or even movie
tickets for them to enjoy together after work
and bond on a personal level out of the
workplace.
• This encourages employees to work together as
a team and not just as an individual all the time.
Starting an employee appreciation program.
• Management could start an appreciation program for
the employee that shows positive qualities at the
workplace.
• Points could be awarded to the employee for simple
task like assisting their colleagues to their punctuality
or any other qualities.
• These points collected at the end of the week or
month could be redeemed for small prizes like
shopping vouchers or certain benefits like leaving a
half hour early one day.
• Practicing such an employee recognition program can
strengthen employee engagement.
Recognise your employees’ personal
accomplishments.
• Employees will appreciate it when management
recognise their personal accomplishments.
• From donating blood to the Red Cross to getting the
keys to their new house, it is getting noticed out of
the workplace that makes the employee feel
appreciated.
• Even though all management did was to
acknowledge these personal accomplishments,
employees do not feel that managements only
concern was about work but also about the
employee’s activities out of work.
Expressing interest in your employees’ professional
development.
• Expressing interest in the employees’ professional
development it does not necessarily mean paying for
their education or courses.
• It just mean that management are interested in knowing
what their employees personal goals and supporting
them in trying to achieve them.
• It could mean looking out for courses and sending them
emails about them, assisting them in accomplishing
their goals faster.
• Employees will appreciate the interest and guidance on
achieving their dreams given by their management
 Conclusion
• What did we learn today?
• Name any two theories of motivation.
• What is effort recognition.

Home work
• In groups discuss the value of the effort recognition
ways used in the Hospitality and Tourism Industry (25)
• Distinguish between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
(25)