We See What We Want to See

Reading about 'Content theories of motivation' (pages 267 to 270) should have given you information about Maslow and Herzberg's theories and may have prompted you to consider your own motivation. This exercise encourages you to consider your motivation from a manager's perspective. Note that the exercise can be applied to full-time or part-time work, to charity work, or even to your experience as a student.

How does the information about your hierarchy of needs relate to your present job role? What organizational changes might create a better fit between your needs and your present and future work?

Which, if any, hygiene factors are not being satisfied. What would the organization need to do to satisfy them all?

Which are your most important motivators? How can the organization try to maximise your motivation by helping you satisfy those needs?

Having responded to those questions, try discussing your conclusions with other students in your study group. You will probably find that different people have different needs. Discuss to what extent a single organization could try to motivate all of the people in your study group.

We need to become more customer-oriented.

Our mission is excellence.

We believe in employee empowerment.

Our survival depends on efficiency and cost effectiveness.

Initiative and creativity are key competences.

Flexibility is the key to competitive success.

We must strive for continuous improvement.

We are a total quality organization.

Study a range of job advertisements and other organizational literature. How often do you see comments similar to those listed?

Think now about two or three organizations that you know well, and think about people working at various levels in them. To what extent are the listed statements true for the people who work in those organizations?

Select two contrasting job roles in organizations you know well (they could be commercial, state or charity organizations). Write a set of comments that you consider apply to each of the job roles.

Discuss this activity in terms of the Stop and Think (page 248) comments on the postmodernist approach to management-speak.

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