“We do not want any initiative. All we want of them is to obey the orders we give them, do what we say, and do it quick.”
- F.W. Taylor (1856-1917), American mechanical engineer

Often regarded as the father of motivation theory, Frederick Winslow Taylor (1856-1917) was an American engineer and management consultant who aimed to make efficiency gains and raise productivity levels.

Writing near the start of the 20^th Century, Taylor argued in The Principles of Scientific Management (1911) that entrepreneurs “do not want any initiative” (from their workers) but “them to obey the orders we give”. Instead, he suggested that managers and business owners only sought obedience from their workers, i.e. he argued for a command and control approach whereby workers follow the orders given to them. He believed in measuring, monitoring and controlling efficiency and productivity levels in the workplace.

Taylor argued that the main reason why people work is money, stating “what the workmen want from employers beyond anything else is higher wages.” He believed that there should be a higher financial reward for more hard-working and productive workers. In this case, scientific management means using differentiated piece rate (sometimes referred to as differentiated compensation) to motivate workers to be more efficient and productive. Such a payment system rewards those who meet or exceed targets.

For example, a worker who makes up to 100 units of output might be paid $3 per unit but this increases to $4 per unit for each item made above 100 units. Hence, piece rate as a financial payment system rewards workers who are more productive, i.e. piece rate can be highly effective in motivating and rewarding workers.

Taylor advocated pay differentials to motivate workers

Scientific management does not only encourage people to work. Taylor introduced rest breaks in order for his workers to recover from exhaustion, which would otherwise reduce productivity.

There are several limitations of Taylor’s motivation theory (although he was writing over a century ago). These arguments include:

• The scientific management approach to human resources is rather authoritarian, and perhaps less suitable in modern businesses of the 21^st Century.

• Subsequent theorists (such as Maslow as well as Herzberg) felt that there is far more to motivation than money. They argue that people cannot be effectively managed in a scientific way. People are not motivated in the same way, so a prescribed method (differentiated piece rates) does not suit all individuals or organizations.

• Qualitative factors that affect the level of employee motivation are ignored.

 Watch this 7-minute video to consolidate your understanding of Taylor’s scientific management theory of motivation:

Download this poster to add to you notes and/or use as a revision tool with students. The poster has been created by my highly talented IBEN colleague Tahmidul Haq Ansari.

“What we in industry learned in dealing with people is that people do not work just for money and that if you are trying to motivate, money is not the most effective tool.”
- Kio Morita (1921-1999) Co-founder of Sony Corp.

Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

Abraham Maslow (1908 – 1970) was an American social psychologist. His most famous theory, the hierarchy of needs, discusses how people are motivated by different levels or categories of needs.

According to Maslow (1943), needs are people’s unfulfilled physiological and/or psychological desires. The model suggests that only when one level of needs is met is it then possible for the next level to be addressed. Maslow split these needs into two different categories:

• Lower order needs (or deficiency needs): physiological, safety, and social (love and belonging) needs. These needs must be met to prevent dissatisfaction or unhappiness.

• Higher order needs (or growth needs): esteem and self-actualization needs. Meeting these needs help to provide a person with a genuine sense of being complete, contented and overjoyed.

The five levels of needs in Maslow’s model are explained below. Maslow stated that a particular need that is satisfied will no longer motivate people’s behaviour or productivity. He also states that a need higher up in the hierarchy cannot be met until the preceding lower-level need is satisfied.

• Physiological needs (also known as basic needs) are the requirements for human survival. These are the combination of people’s physical and biological needs. Physiological needs are so significant to people that they must be met first. Improved financial reward systems and working conditions can help people to meet these basic needs.

• Safety needs (also known as security needs) are the requirements that make people feel safe, such as job security. In the every day sense, physiological needs are the essential things that all human beings must have in order to survive, such as food, clothing and shelter. These physiological needs appear at the bottom of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. In a business context, this means the assurance (confidence) given to employees that they will keep their current job for the foreseeable future. Factors affecting job security include a worker's performance, financial success of the business, employment legislation and the current economic climate. However, firms can address safety needs, to some extent, by using contracts of employment.

• Social needs (also known as love and belonging needs) refer to the requirements about being accepted by others. Hence, this refers to the social needs of people. In the workplace, social needs can be met by creating opportunities for team working and having social facilities or functions. A mentoring or coaching system can also help to improve working relationships.

• Esteem needs refer to the desire of people to feel respected, having value and having self-respect. Intrinsically, self-esteem exists when people are able to feel good about themselves, as they feel valued by others. Extrinsically, esteem needs can be met by genuine recognition, acknowledgement, trust and respect from others.

• Self-actualisation occurs when people become the very best that they can be, i.e. fulfilling their full potential. In Maslow’s words, self-actualisation means “What a man can be, he must be” and “to become everything that one is capable of becoming.” Being the highest level in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, self-actualisation exists a person is able to fulfil their true potential. This can also be summed up by a quote by Steve Ackerie, an American entrepreneur, who said, "When you love what you do, you’ll never have to work a day in your life.”

Examples of Maslow's hierarchy of needs

However, critics of Maslow’s theory of motivation argue that people are not necessarily motivated in the same way, so the levels of needs do not apply to everyone in all contexts. For example, not everyone is motivated by job promotional opportunities even though these are associated with esteem needs. Some people prefer to work alone, rather than in team. For most people, it is probably unrealistic for them to ever reach self-actualization.

 Watch this video to recap your understanding of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory of motivation:

 For an alternative perspective of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, take a look at this video of how Maslow’s theory might apply to the characters in Universal Picture’s Despicable Me, played to the soundtrack of Happy by Pharrell Williams:

"The job satisfiers deal with the factors involved in doing the job, whereas the job dissatisfiers deal with the factors which define the job context."
- F. Herzberg, 1959

Download this poster to add to you notes and/or use as a revision tool with students. The poster has been created by my highly talented IBEN colleague Tahmidul Haq Ansari.

With reference to two motivation theories, discuss the effects of the trend towards offering flexible work patterns and practices on employee motivation.  [10 marks]

Students can approach this task in the following ways:

1. Answer the question below for homework or as an activity in class.

2. Mark the sample script that follows.

Reflect on best practice based on the above two tasks - what did you do relatively well compared to the sample script, and vice versa?

 Exam Practice Question - Forest Hill Potters (FHP)

Forest Hill Potters (FHP) is a private limited company that produces pottery products. Workers at FHP are paid an hourly wage rate. The work is generally repetitive, and workers are lack the opportunity to work in teams as they are instructed to concentrate on meeting their daily production targets.

The nature of the business means that local workers are hired, but the relatively high labour turnover rate at FHP means that the managers have to spends a significant amount of time throughout the year on recruiting and training new workers. There have been suggestions made by some workers that paying piece rate and job enrichment opportunities would help to improve the level of staff motivation and productivity at FHP.

 Teacher only box

Answers

(a)  Define the term wage rate.  [2 marks]

The wage rate is a form of financial payment system, rewarding employees by time rather than volume or quality of output. Workers are paid the flat rate wage rate per hour they work.

Award [1 mark] for a definition that shows limited understanding of the term wage rate (or wages).

Award [2 marks] for a definition that shows a good understanding of the term wage rate (or wages), similar to the example above.

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(b)  Define the term motivation.  [2 marks]

Motivation refers to the desire and willingness to complete a task or to achieve a goal. It can be extrinsic or intrinsic (such as morality or altruism - the desire to help others).

Award [1 mark] for a definition that shows limited understanding of the term motivation.

Award [2 marks] for a definition that shows a good understanding of the term motivation, similar to the example above.

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(c)  Outline two potential problems of low staff motivation for FHP.  [4 marks]

Possible responses could include:

• Workers at FHP will not enjoy their work (as they lack the opportunity to work in teams, for example), so this effectively leads to low morale (social needs are not met) and lower productivity. There is a lack of incentive to work hard, especially as workers are paid a fixed hourly rate.

• Higher labour turnover is likely to result from low motivation, leading to higher costs for FHP, such as the need for managers to recruit and train new workers.

• High labour turnover due to a lack of staff motivation can give FHP a poor corporate image, meaning it can be more challenging and expensive for the company to attract and hire suitable local staff in the future.

• Accept any other reasonable outline, written in the context of FHP.

Mark as a 2 + 2

Award [1 - 2 marks] for a written response that is limited in meeting the demands of the question. Award up to [2 marks] if only one reason is provided.

Award [3 - 4 marks] for a written response that is accurate in meeting the demands of the question.

Alternative approaches may be taken in response to the [4-mark] question that uses an AO2 command term. If an alternative approach is valid, then full credit should be given.

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(d)  Using relevant motivation theory, explain how FHP might be able to better motivate its workers.  [4 marks]

Possible responses could include an explanation of:

• As suggested by F.W. Taylor, linking the pay of workers to their level of output through a piece rate payment system creates an incentive for workers to be more productive. This is based on Taylor's assumption that (all) workers are motivated by receiving more money for their work.

• Herzberg argued that wages and salaries do not, on their own, motivate workers – it simply removes potential dissatisfaction at work (as workers expect to be paid for any work they commit to). Instead, he argued that that job enrichment opportunities are a good way of motivating workers, such as by giving them more challenging and responsible tasks in order to increase their morale and job satisfaction, rather than their existing work that is simply repetitive and therefore not so engaging.

• Accept any other reasonable explanation, written in the context of FHP.

Mark as a 2 + 2

Award [1 - 2 marks] for a written response that is limited in meeting the demands of the question.

Award [3 - 4 marks] for a written response that is accurate in meeting the demands of the question. Students can, although are not expected or required to, use more than one motivation theory to answer the question.

Alternative approaches may be taken in response to the [4 mark] question that uses an AO2 command term. If an alternative approach is valid, then full credit should be given.

To test your understanding of this topic (Motivation theories), have a go at this review quiz.