Motivation derives from the Latin word movere, meaning,
‘to move’. Employees are essentially the most important aspect of an
organization. Managers strive to motivate their employees so that they are
willing to perform at their highest levels. When employees work hard, come to
work regularly and continue making positive contributions to the organization,
the business will be able to cut costs and yield more profit, both of which are
the ultimate goals of any organization. On the contrary, unmotivated employees
will mean the organization will have people that are not willing to do well in
the jobs or have to hire more people to do different jobs, which contribute to
higher operating costs and a reduction in profit. Motivation is an important
area of business research and over the years there have been many 'motivational
theories'.
Importance of Motivation –
Motivation is one of the most crucial factors that determine the
efficiency and effectiveness of an organization with its help a desire is born
in the minds of the employees to achieve successfully the objective of the
enterprise. All organizational facilities will remain useless people are
motivated to utilize these facilities in a productive manner. The importance of
motivation becomes clear from following facts :
1. High Level of Performance.
2. Low Employee Turnover and Absenteeism.
3. Easy Acceptance of organizational changes.
4. Good human relations.
5. Good image of organization.
6. Increase in Morale.
7. Proper use of Human Resource Possible.
Problems caused by Motivation –
Motivation is the outcome of a certain relation between the
superiors and the sub-ordinates for this the superiors or the managers make
special effort different from the daily control or functions. It is not
necessary that the efforts made by the managers will be unanimously acceptable.
It can also be opposed in this way there are many hurdles in implementing a
motivational system. They are follows:
1. A Costly Efforts
2. Trouble Making Employees.
3. Motivation is an internal feeling.
4. Opposition to changes.
Motivation can
be defined as "the complex forces, needs, drives, tension states, or other
mechanisms within us that will create and maintain voluntary activity directed
toward the achievement of personal goals". Employee motivation can be
defined as psychological forces that determine the direction of a person's
behavior in an organization, a person's level of effort and a person's level of
persistence. It is important to understand that employee motivation is a
separate and distinct topic apart from motivation.
Motivation
is a set of favourable or unfavourable feeling and emotions with which
employees view their work. Motivation is an affective attitude –a feeling of
relatively like or dislike towards something.
If the employee is de motivated with his or her job they will quit the
job faster. Motivation plays a very important role in any organisation. A
motivated employee is an asset to an organisation.
Some
factors effecting motivation are universal and consistent. However, there are
more important factors that contribute to motivation, such as relationship with
the immediate supervisors, monetary and non monetary needs, Incentives, Working
Conditions, Work Culture, management recognition of employee job performance,
and communication between employees and senior management.