teamwork-and-motivation

Assignment 3: Teamwork and Motivation

BUS 520 – Leadership and Organization Behavior

One of the key ways to keep employees engaged and satisfied at their place of employment is through motivation. Money does not keep employees happy or motivated while at work. Being the owner of Woo Woo manufacturing company there are many different salary ranges as well as a variety of ways to motivate employees at work. Being able to motivate a team is very important in the manufacturing industry this day in time. The plan for motivation within this company is to determine a way to maintain the high levels of productivity, job satisfaction within each department and, how to keep the department change of people at a low rate.

In order to keep the turnover rate low, high levels of productivity as well as high work quality satisfaction on the job is the key. “An individual’s reaction to the job experience” (Berry, 1991) is job satisfaction. There are many contributing factors in order to have satisfaction on the job. Some of them are as follows:

Is the work fulfilling?

Is supervision good?

Worker types and relationships

Opportunities for promotions and acknowledgement

Salary of each employee

When reviewing each of these factors of satisfaction on the job it is very important to examine each department separately because each department has needs of their own.

The job of sales can be a job that is very tedious therefore someone that can handle rejection well would have to be placed in this position. Because this is a job that is hard there are special rules put in place in order to make this sales team satisfied. Since the job in sales is not consistently fulfilling this part of job satisfaction has to come from within other departments. Supervision in this area is not tight or micro-managed however if there is a need for the sales

team they are available. With a managing style such as this for this team they have the ability to do their job with freedom but also still have support if it is needed. One of the key things that is needed in the sales area is relationships since this is a job that is and can get lonely at times. They need to be able to get along with each other which is also important to on the job satisfaction. By having contests within the sales team this helps to bring them together instead of putting them against each other. This is a way for them to communicate effectively and efficiently which also helps to keep numbers flowing in a positive direction. This team is paid a salary which is set along with a commission that is based on sales percentage. The entire sales department is paid a rate that is the same however performance is used to determine who makes the most money.

The line of assembly can very repetitious so to carry out this type of work can be very challenging. Job enrichment and rotating the job are a few things that can make the job fulfilling. By rotating the job, individuals will not be able to become bored or uninterested in their jobs and by using a reward system will help as a way to provide feedback on any work that has been done. Supervisors in this area of work are strict in order to maintain a high productivity rate which helps to keep quality high. Relationships are very critical in this assembly area because of job rotation, they have to be able to train each other. A way to provide recognition to individuals on the assembly team is to have employee of the month and employee of the year. In order to keep them satisfied on the job, the employees have to see that there is a way for them to be recognized as well as promoted. The opportunities for promotion is to have a way for the individuals on the assembly line to advance into roles of supervisors which allows employees to feel a sense of attachment and this to contributes to job satisfaction. These employees are paid on a merit system and are encouraged to be as productive as they can in order to earn more and better wages.

In the department of technology the work is very interesting as well as fulfilling. Supervision in this department is not stifling or suffocating however it is present which allows for innovation. Employees are encouraged to work together as a team which helps relationships to build and grow. The quality of work in this department is high which influences the pay and the promotions. By maintaining a share of the market and keeping these employees happy in the technology department is very essential.

The job of administration within a company is very stressful and it is not a fulfilling job to have. By paying well and offering rewards is a way to compensate employees for the stresses of the job. Because everyone has the ability to work independently and stay on task supervision in this department is very light. The administration department has a common purpose therefore relationships are very important amongst this team. In this department the opportunity for growth is pretty limited because many individuals within this team are at the highest level position available and their salary is also high because of the roles they are in. This is the highest paid department within the organization. Recognizing and rewarding individuals in this department is very important in contributing to job satisfaction. When quarterly meetings take place in administration department, employees have come up with ways to recognize individuals for their hard work by giving away gift cards, have team outings, as well as bonuses.

The rate at which a company reorganizes individuals in the workplace is very expensive and the turnover rate ties into satisfaction on the job. Employees that are late consistently and that call in regularly will be observed and monitored. Their situations will be reviewed by management to find out if they need any assistance from the company to better improve their issues.

Maintaining productivity that is high is very important when in competition with other companies that make widgets. Supervisors are placed along the assembly line to make sure all quotas are met which ensures all widget orders have been fulfilled. The department of technology has an environment that is relaxed and they are provided with refreshments regularly. This helps to make sure that work is completed with minimal breaks. Through the different rewards that are distributed within the administration department the employees of this department are inspired to keep productivity high.

There has been some defects with the product so there has to be a focus on work quality. This starts with the line of assembly however this affects all of the departments. If the technology department can work on a widget that is easily assembled then there will be a chance that less defects will happen. Any problems or defects with the widget will need to be handled by the sales department by being honest and advising the customers that any problems will be resolved. Making sure that quality parts are used and the assembly being done is the responsibility of the assembly line. The funds are then allocated by the administration department to the technology department and assembly department’s main objective is to keep any problems or major issues restrained and controlled.

Working conditions and reward systems are two methods that are used to help motivate employees within the organization. The reward system is the most important factor of motivation because this system allows individuals to be recognized and rewarded for the hard work they do. Each department will nominate the best worker every quarter is how the reward system will work. The employee of the year is also selected within each department and these individuals will receive a plaque as well as a paid vacation. This is huge reward and this will encourage employees within each department to work hard towards winning the accomplishments on a daily basis. The next factor used for motivation will be the conditions of work within each department. The employees within the sales department will be provided with a laptop as well as a company vehicle to make sure they are prepared for all sales meetings. The department of assembly will be able to take breaks because they will be provided a break room with drinks and foods that are healthy. All these things will help with satisfaction on the job along with productivity. The technology department will have an environment that is relaxed while the department of administration will have time off which will help relieve stress and reduce the amount of employees that are burned out.

Workers that make minimum wage have to feel valued and their feelings have to be observed in comparison to the other employees within the organization. The theory of Equity then becomes a motivation factor. This will show these individuals that they are being paid the same salary as the other individuals within the organization and they will not feel as if they are a unequal part of the company. They will be treated with dignity and respect even though they are making minimum wage. They should know that they have a chance for a raise in pay and the ability to advance to a different position within the company. These things gives employees the sense of accomplishment and that they have a future within the organization along with their hard work and dedication.

The individual worker is very critical within today’s organizations. Within the environment of work it only takes one employee to be negative and this can influence the entire organization. Now contrary to the negative employee, a worker that works hard for the company can also encourage and motivate others to work hard and this will help the organization to operate effectively and efficiently. In some organizations individuals can be made to feel as though they are just a number or part of the equipment and that they can be replaced easily. It is very critical for the organization to make their employees feel like they can run the organization and that they are valued and important.

To sum it all up, motivation is something that is very critical in order for a company to be productive. Each and every employee should be satisfied with their job and they should have pride in the job that they do on a daily basis. Motivation factors should be used by each organization because they have access to many and each factor should be used in a way that is fair and equal to all employees of the organization. When all employees of a company know and feel that they are being paid and treated fairly this helps to improve motivation, the turnover rate and improve productivity.

Individual Work to Teamwork

Individual Worker Team Member (change in behavior from individual team member)

Talks Ideas are exchanged

Me oriented Team oriented

Department focused Focused on the organization

Competitive Works as/within the team

Logical Ideas are good

Written messages Coordination; face to face communication

Image Team/corporate images

Secrecy Open and communicates

Short-term sighted Long term oriented/sighted

Immediate results Goal specification/Long term goal oriented

Critical Creative/part of the team

Tenure Equality

References:

Berry, Lilly M. (1997). Psychology at Work. San Francisco: McGraw Hill Companies Inc.

Job Satisfaction Retrieved May 25, 2014 from http://www.u.arizona.edu/~ctaylor/chapter9/jobsat.htmlSchermerhorn, J/Osborn, R/Uhl-Bien, M/Hunt, J (2012). Organizational Behavior 12th edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Importance of Motivation Retrieved May 25, 2014 from http://www.managementstudyguide.com/importance_of_motivation.htm

Eight Tactics to Motivate Minimum Wage Employees Retrieved May 25, 2014 from http://train2gainus.wordpress.com/training/eight-tactics-to-motivate-minimum-wage-employees/