Thursday 12th March 2014 Mr Nicholls Year 11 Business Thursday 12th March 2014 Mr Nicholls

Objective To further develop our understanding of motivation within the world of business.

Today A return to motivation – once again to ensure that we’re 100% clear on what we mean by it, and why it’s so important in the world of business. Saturday – Booster Next week - Coursework

To start Rank these in order of importance for YOURSELF

Motivation "Motivation is a decision-making process, through which the individual chooses the desired outcomes and sets in motion the behaviour appropriate to them". What does this mean though? Motivation can therefore be thought of as the degree to which an individual wants AND chooses to engage in certain behaviours.

For example… Are you motivated to study? Only you can answer that question, and the answer lies in whether you: Want to study – what are the reasons if so? Choose to study? Why are you here? What factors mean you have taken the decision to study? How much effort do you put in?

Needs/Goals Every individual has a set of needs and a different set of goals Individuals behave in a way as to satisfy their needs and fulfil their goals Therefore, individuals behave differently! Businesses, as organisations, are in a position to offer some of the satisfactions that individuals seek: E.g. - Relationships; sense of belonging; intellectual stimulation; mental & physical challenge; self-development

In business… The best businesses have the best motivated workers. Why might this be important? Because well-motivated employees are usually characterised by: Higher productivity (i.e. they produce more for a given level of resources than poorly-motivated workers) Better quality work with less wastage A greater sense of urgency (things happen quicker - when they need to) More employee feedback and suggestions made for improvements (motivated workers take more "ownership" of their work") More feedback demanded from superiors and management Working at 80-95% of their ability

Maslow

How it works… A person starts at the bottom of the hierarchy (pyramid) and will initially seek to satisfy basic needs (e.g. food, shelter) Once these physiological needs have been satisfied, they are no longer a motivator. the individual moves up to the next level Safety needs at work could include physical safety (e.g. protective clothing) as well as protection against unemployment, loss of income through sickness etc) Social needs recognise that most people want to belong to a group. These would include the need for love and belonging (e.g. working with colleague who support you at work, teamwork, communication) Esteem needs are about being given recognition for a job well done. They reflect the fact that many people seek the esteem and respect of others. A promotion at work might achieve this Self-actualisation is about how people think about themselves - this is often measured by the extent of success and/or challenge at work

In Business… Maslow's model has great potential appeal in the business world as the message is clear: if management can find out which level each employee has reached, then they can decide on suitable rewards.

However… There are several problems with the Maslow model when real-life working practice is considered: Individual behaviour seems to respond to several needs - not just one The same need (e.g. the need to interact socially at work) may cause quite different behaviour in different individuals There is a problem in deciding when a level has actually been "satisfied" The model ignores the often-observed behaviour of individuals who tolerate low-pay for the promise of future benefits

So… It has been suggested that motivation actually comes from within – to what extent do you agree with this statement?