Motivational Strategies (ANSWERED)

QUESTION

Required Resources

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapters 8 and 9
Lesson
Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Instructions

Issues with morale at the workplace are common in many industries. Often, these problems can be overcome by managers employing a specific motivational strategy to help improve morale.

Find an example of a workplace suffering from motivational issues (either a personal example or a case study that you research). Determine the best motivational strategy to apply to the problem. The paper should be written in essay form but should answer at minimum the following questions.

What is the specific problem affecting workplace morale?
What specific motivational strategy can be used to solve the problem?
Why is this the best motivational strategy to use in this situation?

Writing Requirements (APA format)

Length: 1.5-2 pages (not including title page or references page)
1-inch margins
Double spaced
12-point Times New Roman font
Title page
References page (minimum of 1 scholarly source)

ANSWER

Undervaluing Employees through Decreased Engagement as an Issue Affecting Employee Morale

Employee morale consists of their attitudes, satisfaction, and outlook of their organization. Lack of employee morale can adversely affect a business in different ways, some of which are lethal to operations. One of the problems affecting workplace morale is undervaluing employees, which can be addressed through employee engagement.

There have been reports that Amazon is not valuing its frontline employees, leading to a lack of motivation to continue doing their job. The enormous performance pressures, majorly caused by the belief that employees need to consider the company a start-up, seem to contribute to the lack of morale. Moreover, employee engagement hangs by the string as management looks at increasing profits. According to Yohn (2020), employee treatment at Amazon is not at its best, as the employees fear retaliation. Hence, they have to continue working for a livelihood minus the intrinsic motivation.

As a motivational strategy, the organization can seek to maximize employee engagement. According to Bhuvanaiah and Raya (2015), adopting a competitive space is easier compared to obtaining and retaining talented employees. Since managing talented employees is not easy, approaching the motivation aspect can save the day. Normally, engaged employees will be passionate about their job, put discretionary effort into every task they do, and are the most desirable employees an organization can trust in innovation and commitment towards successful business operations.

Employee engagement and motivation are almost becoming inextricable as feedback is now integral to the performance of most businesses. Without engaging employees, it will be difficult to obtain feedback, which will be used to make the necessary improvements. By using employee engagement as the determinant of increased motivation, you will have created an intrinsically motivated workforce as opposed to extrinsic motivation. Most studies indicate that strong employee engagement contributes to a healthy and successful workplace, which is a win-win for both employees and the organization. The more employees are engaged, the more they are productive, and vice versa is also true.

In the employee engagement strategy, Amazon can give decision-making authority to its employees so that they are not afraid of retaliation unnecessarily. At the same time, the organization can provide opportunities for growth and development and not limit employees to pathways for profit maximization. Empowerment and fair treatment, which stem from the prevention of discrimination and harassment in the workplace, can also reduce motivation problems as employees will feel recognized and appreciated.

Employee engagement is the best strategy for addressing undervaluing of employees at Amazon Inc. because of many reasons. First, it allows employees to decide on the quality of their work and tap into their potential to accept challenges within the workplace and change where necessary (Bhuvanaiah and Raya, 2015). Secondly, employee engagement through growth and development opportunities will enable employees leverage their skills via inhouse training and managerial development programs. Lastly, fair treatment and empowerment characteristic to employee engagement nurtures healthy relationships within the organization leading to proper and effective communication (Mehta and Mehta, 2013). Otherwise, the work itself should be empowering and enable employees make proper decisions and take their jobs as meaningful, courtesy of Amazon’s supportive mechanisms.

In summary, employees should be valued if they are to stay motivated and perform their job effectively. Using employee engagement through various strategies can contribute to their motivation. Engagement is a continuum which contributes to effectiveness in workforce performance. Understanding employees as humans and not regular industrial aids can save corporates from low performance caused by lack of motivation. Once catered for, employees will communicate effectively, engage with their tasks and lead to best job performance.

References

Bhuvanaiah, T., & Raya, R. P. (2015). Mechanism Of Improved Performance: Intrinsic Motivation And Employee Engagement. SCMS Journal of Indian Management, 12(4), 92. https://www.academia.edu/41582988/Mechanism_of_Improved_Performance_Intrinsic_Motivation_and_Employee_Engagement?from=cover_page

Mehta, D., & Mehta, N. K. (2013). Employee Engagement: A Literature Review. Economia. Seria Management, 16(2), 208-215. http://management.ase.ro/reveconomia/2013-2/1.pdf

Yohn, D. L. (2020). Amazon Faces A Crucible Moment With Employees. Forbes: CMO Network. https://www.forbes.com/sites/deniselyohn/2020/06/02/amazon-faces-a-crucible-moment-with-employees/?sh=121edba03822