How does one motivate an employee? This is an all to common question asked by managers at all levels. For the most part people get it right. However sometimes, managers ask themselves "Why is it that I've been doing so much to motivate my employee... but they still keep resigning?" Managers give bonuses, higher salaries, etc. etc. to make people stay yet it still doesn't seem to work. What could possibly be wrong?
Well... before anyone says its the manager himself that's the problem (at times that's true), you need to know that not everything that motivates can inversely demotivate, and vise-versa.
This is otherwise known as the Herzberg's Motivation-Hygiene Theory. Surprisingly, this has been around since the 50's but apparently, it is not as widespread as it should be. To put it simply, the theory basically states that factors leading to job satisfaction (Motivation) do not necessarily contribute to job dissatisfaction once removed. On the other hand, factors leading to job dissatisfaction (Hygiene) do not necessarily contribute to job satisfaction once removed. In short, hygiene factors make you stay, while motivation factors make you a top performer.
Salary for example is a hygiene factor. Take away salary (or provide less than agreed salary) would definitely make your resource walk out the door. Give him more salary... and you can be assured that he stays. However, don't expect your resource to perform better. No one performs better just because he gets paid more (yes! stop lying to yourself!).
Performance Bonuses, on the other hand, are motivation factors. If your company pays out a decent performance bonus, you can be assured that there are some people (not all) that will strive to reach that. Yet, this will not always stop them from leaving.
Below are some motivation and hygiene factors.
Motivation Factors
- Achievement - people are motivated by having a sense of achievement and being able to accomplish something in the office. Most good PM's are like this.
- Recognition - if you did something great, and get recognized by it, the tendency is for you to continue doing that thing and maintaining that level of performance.
- Work Itself - there's a saying that people perform best at the things they like. If you do not like your work, then obviously won't perform as good as the one who does
- Responsibility - people are motivated (or forced to motivate themselves) when they are aware of their level of responsibility and accountability in their work.
- Promotion - what most people in the corporate world want. To a certain degree, promotion is actually a form of Recognition. It is undoubtedly the most tangible and long-lasting implementation of motivation given to a person.
- Growth - growth may be a bit vague, but generally, it states that people look to grow in knowledge and exposure to certain things. Knowing that these exists encourage people to actually perform at their best.
- Pay and Benefits - The reason why we work in the first place (unless its a charity)
- Company Policy and Administration - You'd be surprised to hear how much people like to leave their company just because of bad office management. Having training bonds and requiring people to dress in an appropriate manner are samples of company policies that just don't work.
- Relationship with co-workers - Having a co-worker that you just can't stand is a surefire way of leaving early.
- Supervision - YES - people leave because of bad management. This is one of the top reasons why people leave. Why? Because this is one of the factors that have a huge impact on resource himself as well as all other factors.
- Status - very very few people like to be at the bottom rung of the ladder. Hence once a person feels that he should be at a higher status, he looks elsewhere for that.
- Job Security - No one likes to work knowing that you might not have work on the next day. It makes people hesitant to perform at their best because at the back of their mind, it can all go to waste anytime.
- Working Conditions - working in a pathetic looking office or working in a hell-hole makes people dissatisfied. Trust me, there is a reason why offices and workplaces need to look nice. Just like your own house which you spend a good amount of time on cleaning and making sure it looks nice... your workplace is to be viewed as just the same since you spend one-third of your 24 hours at the office.
- Personal Life - the way your work impacts your personal life is a hygiene factor. For a person that frequently travels as part of his work may not find it appealing if he needs to be home early everyday to take care of his kids. A highly sociable person may not find a night shift job appealing since it takes time away from parties and other events.
