This is the topic what we discussed for this week:
For this week’s discussion board question will relate to Chapter 10 – “Managing Employee Motivation and Performance.” Before you begin answering this week’s questions, I encourage you to watch the video featuring the late Jim Valvano’s March 3, 1993 speech at ESPN’s very first Espy Awards event. Valvano, widely acclaimed as a highly successful men’s national championship basketball coach and motivational speaker, died from bone cancer less than two months after giving this speech.
“Jimmy’s 1993 ESPY Speech” YouTube video courtesy of The V Foundation for Cancer Research https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuoVM9nm42E
In answering this week’s questions I want to ensure that you make reference to one or more of the more of the motivational theories discussed in this chapter. If you don’t, you will receive no credit for this discussion question. I am not looking for just an experience, but an “understanding” of that experience. With this in mind, here are the questions that I’m looking forward to your insights:
- What motivational strategies have you used when trying to increase the performance of others? Were you successful?
- What motivation strategies work best for YOU in order to for YOU to increase your performance? Please cite at least one example.
Again, be sure to correlate your personal/professional experiences with the concepts discussed in our textbook.
Example Discussion:
One of the motivational strategies that I like to use to try to increase the performance of others is positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement “…is a reward or a positive outcome after a desired behavior is performed” (Pg. 304). When I was taking psychology back in high school, we had numerous group projects. In order for me to keep my group motivated, I would tell them how good they were doing while we worked. I noticed that if I told them that, it always improved their mood and they started to enjoy what they were doing even more. This relates to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs because esteem needs, “…the need for recognition and respect from others,” is achieved by using positive reinforcement. The motivational strategy that works best for me is also positive reinforcement because it confirms that my coworkers and supervisors know that I am doing what I am supposed to be doing. For instance, a couple of weeks ago some people called off of work. Both A and B unit CNA’s were extremely busy trying to help all of the residents while also trying to figure out who was going to cover those people’s shifts. After I transported the residents into the dining hall for lunch, a supervisor came over to me and told me that she appreciated all the hard work I was doing that day. Not only did it feel nice to be appreciated, but also confirmed that my coworkers and supervisors know that I do take my job seriously.
Example Response: Other student responded on this discussion.
I believe there will always a place at work (or in life for that matter) for timely positive reinforcement.
Generally speaking, positive reinforcement at work should achieve two outcomes:
- To show an employee that their positive actions or behavior have been noticed.
- To relay the message to an employee that their positive actions or behavior are commendable and encouraged to be repeated.
The second outcome is somewhat dependent on the positive reinforcement taking place as soon as possible after the original action or behavior. Time is of the essence, and a delay in response makes it less likely that a person will repeat the desired action or behavior. It is almost as though the delay itself breeds uncertainty or confusion. In other words, an employee who is preoccupied about why a supervisor has remained silent about a commendable act or behavior, would be unlikely to go out of their way again to repeat those commendable acts or behavior.
Please response three discussion below:
Discussion 1:
In reference to our Griffins course book Chapter 10, “Figure 10 The Expanded Goal-Setting Theory of Motivation: One of the most important emerging theories of motivation is goal-setting theory. This theory suggests that goal difficulty, specificity, acceptance, and commitment combine to determine an individual’s goal-directed effort. This effort, when complemented by appropriate organizational support and individual abilities and traits, results in performance. Finally, performance is seen as leading to intrinsic and extrinsic rewards that, in turn, result in employee satisfaction.”
I have found that many employees are concerned that managers rush through performance development reviews at the end of the year just to say they are done. After all, how much honest feedback can one be given after a full year’s time has gone by? This type of disconnect can hold employees back from not only performing at their best, but also trusting in the management of the company. In my personal experience bi-weekly one-on-one meetings to discuss my performance and helps keep us fresh on the same page about my goals and objectives. Employees who are able to see what they’re doing correctly, where improvement may be needed, and how management is helping them reach the next step in their careers will be motivated to reach the peak of their success with the organization.
Response here:
Discussion 2:
One of the motivational strategies that I like to use to try to increase the performance of others is positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement “…is a reward or a positive outcome after a desired behavior is performed” (Pg. 304). When I was taking psychology back in high school, we had numerous group projects. In order for me to keep my group motivated, I would tell them how good they were doing while we worked. I noticed that if I told them that, it always improved their mood and they started to enjoy what they were doing even more. This relates to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs because esteem needs, “…the need for recognition and respect from others,” is achieved by using positive reinforcement. The motivational strategy that works best for me is also positive reinforcement because it confirms that my coworkers and supervisors know that I am doing what I am supposed to be doing. For instance, a couple of weeks ago some people called off of work. Both A and B unit CNA’s were extremely busy trying to help all of the residents while also trying to figure out who was going to cover those people’s shifts. After I transported the residents into the dining hall for lunch, a supervisor came over to me and told me that she appreciated all the hard work I was doing that day. Not only did it feel nice to be appreciated, but also confirmed that my coworkers and supervisors know that I do take my job seriously.
Response here:
Discussion 3:
There are many motivational factors that can be used to increase performance in others and lead others to gain more of a want and desire to be better workers. One that I used to help others was the strategy of participation because when it comes to some people and how hard they work, it can be a huge determinant of how much they are participating to how hard they are working. I have used this strategy in the classroom and out of the classroom as in the class there are group work and projects that must be done and some people sit there and just let others do the work and get the bare minimum of understanding the topic or goal at hand. Allowing others to become more participative and include them in the decision making as well as work that is at hand, makes them feel more needed and allows individuals to enjoy the work as well as feel useful to the group. It has worked many times because, in a person’s mind, there is not much motivation to do something when someone feels as if they are not useful to the group they are in.
A strategy that has worked for me and I noticed in the book was the strategy of empowerment founded in chapter 10. This allows me to set my own goals, make my own decisions, and solve problems within the responsibility of my own self. It has allowed me to be very successful and determined to achieve my goals as well as motivated to do the work that will lead up to them being achieved. It has increased my performance in and out of the classroom as well as allowed me to share my insight to others who struggle being motivated to achieve their own goals that they set for themselves or let alone feel unmotivated to have a high performance.
Response here: