A MANAGERS RESPONSIBILITY TO MOTIVATESTEPHINE MOLNERINDIAN RIVER STATE COLLEGEAuthor’s Note:This paper was prepared for MAN3303, taught by Dr.
Bailey on July 16, 2018.AbstractThe following paper focuses on two main questions, but have several answers; how do managers motivate and help drive their employees? What important interpersonal skills must managers have to effectively connect with employees? The results indicate that a combination of strategies, such as appreciation, guidance, and communication appear to provide success when motivating employees effectively. Motivating employees is a challenge and opportunity when a company wishes to outperform the competition. This is where interpersonal skills seem to be effective and they are verbal communication, nonverbal communication, listening skills, negotiation skills, ; problem solving.IntroductionMotivation is an internal force that drives a person to move toward a goal, whether personal or organizational.
A managers’ responsibility is to get things done through employees. However, that’s not always easy to do. The manager controls the key environmental factors necessary to motivate employees. The most significant factor that the manager controls is his/her relationship with each employee. Another important factor in a managers’ ability to motivate employees, is creating a work environment and organizational culture that fosters employee motivation and engagement. In this environment, employees are trusted and not micromanaged. They are trusted with values and strategic framework and they are expected to accomplish their jobs to the beat of their abilities.
MethodThe sources of information used in this paper were journal articles and text book data. This information was processed by reading literature, conducting online research, and forming my own personal opinions. Therefore, proper research, surveys and testing were not factored in.ResultsAs managers, we can recognize our employees’ most common needs, learn how to bring out their drive and steer that drive toward the next level. Although to accomplish this and to motivate employees, there are 5 interpersonal skills that all effective managers need (Williams, 2016). Those are verbal communication, nonverbal communication, listening skills, negotiation skills, ; problem solving. While those are extremely important for managers, employees also need their managers’ to possess these qualities:Appreciation- Everyone wants to feel valued and appreciated, especially at work.
On average, adults spend more time at work than they do at home (BLS, 2018). So, employees want to feel like they and their opinion matters to the organization. If your employees feel respected and recognized for their efforts, they’re more likely to stay with your organization longer and apply themselves. Guidance- Employees want and expect direction from their manager.
They want responsibilities and they want to set goals. Communication- All employees want to feel included. Even if a manager has to say that they don’t know how much weight the employees’ opinion will have, at least the manager was thoughtful enough to ask. When it comes down to the company and/or their job, employees want to be in the loop. These are examples of verbal communication.
Some research suggests that nonverbal communication is also important, although often overlooked (Williams, 2016). “A leader who constantly crosses his arms in front of him when addressing his staff may seem uncomfortable or standoffish.” And “a manger who can’t hold eye contact during a conversation will seem bored and uninterested.”DiscussionAccording to David Javitch (2005), a company’s best asset are their motivated employees. These are the employees that are well organized, productive, and willing to go above and beyond. Not all experts agree, but there are quite a few ways to motivated employees.One motivation technique is money. In today’s world, people seem to be driven by instant gratification an if you give them a reason to do more, they will.
However, monetary compensation is not the only driver of employee motivation (Dickson, 1973). Recognition is another motivator for employees. Everyone loves to hear that they are doing a great job. Job security is also a huge motivator for employees. No one wants to go to work daily, fearful of losing their job. (Islam, 2008)). Security, promotions and growth are the highest-rated factors in keeping employees satisfied (Accel TEAM, 2005).
If employees know that there’s an opportunity for growth or a promotion, they are more inclined to stay with you longer (Linder 1998). Some interpersonal skills that every effective manager need is verbal communication, nonverbal communication, listening skills, negotiation skills, and problem-solving skills. Verbal communication is very important when leading a team.
Managers should know how to speak technically, concisely, and professionally. Nonverbal communication, however, is often overlooked. This includes the tone in which you say something, your tone of voice, and facial expressions.
Listening skills keep mistakes from happening, which can have aa significant impact of the communication process. Negotiation skills and problem-solving characteristics sometimes go hand in hand. There are times that you may need to make a deal for a lower price or keep the ball rolling in a crisis. (Williams, 2016)ConclusionIn conclusion, it can be said that motivation is a very critical element in an organization and though the findings have shown that motivation does not directly affect performance, if neglected by managers there will likely be a drop-in sales or profitability. Employees are a very important resource to a company.ReferencesRafikul Islam and Ahmad Zaki Hj. IsmailEmployee motivation: a Malaysian perspective. International Journal of Commerce and Management.
18.4 (Winter 2008): p344. Retrieved from Linccweb, GALE Business Collection.
David Javitch (2005) Retrieved from https://books.google.com/books?isbn=1351644599 and www.
nachc.org/…/Office-Hour-3-Leadership-and-Management-Tips-for-Success.pdfBureau of Labor Statistics, June 28, 2018Retrieved from https://www.bls.
gov/news.release/pdf/atus.pdfWilliams, Mark; www.MTDtraining.com, July 22, 2016Dickson, W.J.
(1973). Hawthorne experiments.The encyclopedia of management (2nd edition, pg298-302).
New York, NYAccel TEAM. (2005). Employee motivation in the workplace.Retrieved from www.accel-team.com
