Change for Motivation
Workforce change can take several forms, from a primary change in the business philosophy to formal change in business services and products. Motivating workers through changes in the workforce requires devotion to maintain the morale of the employees. It can be challenging to make the workers happy, especially in small changes of operations unless the management places value in personal development and each worker
‘s opinion.
Several changes that take place in the job organizations can make employees motivated. The first change is treating workers with respect, and it is in Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory, under self-esteem, the fourth one in the hierarchy of needs. Handling workers like intelligent individuals have a significant impact. The fact is that there are a lot of companies that are insulting and juvenile to their workers. Such companies need to apply this change to boost the company’s productivity because it makes workers feel sensible, competent, and trustworthy, and in the end, they become motivated (Lagacé & Privé, 2016). Even though treating workers with respect is suitable and recommended, it may raise one or two conflicts between them. Some of the workers may feel that their co-workers are treated with respect more than them. The management must make sure that the workers receive equal treatment, starting with the manager to all the workers.
The second change that can motivate the workers in an organization is ensuring a healthy life-work balance. It is in Hertzberg’s two-factor theory under the motivators of job satisfaction. The workers do not like underworking and overworking. Overworking workers may indeed boost the quantity of production, but it is only temporary and in a brief period. By doing this, the motivation of workers will significantly drop. In the long run, they will be producing a large quantity of production but of low quality and finally, small volume and quality (Deschamps & Rinfret, 2018). Employees can be more motivated, energetic, and happy in a surrounding that respects the balance of free time and work. So the management should let the workers take some time off if the work is not in bulk and should not be demanding overtime every week. However, the administration may have a good reason at heart to give free time to the employees. It can raise conflict whereby some employees may feel that the company does not appreciate their work, yet it is just free time. The management of organizations must make sure that when giving free time or overtime, they should explain everything clearly to the workers to prevent conflicts that may arise from life and work balance.
The third change that the organizations need to implement to motivate the workers is through setting small, measurable goals. It is in McClelland’s theory of needs under the achievement sector, whereby small goals are easier to archive. Setting big projects is not advisable because the workers will end up dragging and take ages to complete them. Although big projects need to be more productive in the organization, workers taking so long accomplishing them are not productive. Workers will be demoralized and have low motivation if they are stuck in one project for a very long time. However, if the plans are small and measurable, the workers will see that they have made progress, and in the long, they feel good, increasing their motivation (Rinfret & Lagacé 2016). Therefore, setting achievable and clear goals is a motivational booster, primarily when a specific task is over. The motivation makes the workers happy to the point of celebrating the results. Setting small goals for the workers can also cause conflict between the management and the workers. The workers may feel that the administration considers them incapable of completing large projects. The feeling can as well diminish motivation, and it can be dangerous to an organization. The management needs to make sure that the workers are well informed about the advantages of setting small goals to avoid conflict and demoralization of motivation.
For the organizational changes mentioned to occur, there have to be implementation plans that can make the company avoid any resistance. The best implementation plan is employee involvement. In case there is any resistance in the organizational changes, the high chances are that it is likely to come from employees. By involving the employees in during regulatory changes, it means that they agree with the changes. Not only employees but also the entire organization’s entire staff need to be involved in the organizational changes (Khan & Mujtaba, 2018). The organization’s changes need to be communicated to the workers, especially if the changes alter the performance of the employees.
An appropriate communication plan that will make sure the changes are followed effectively by the staff is laying out a clear future blueprint. By doing this, the workers will know what the changes are all about, and they will be anxious to see the effect of the changes in the future. By laying out the blueprint of the future, it makes the management look confident in the workers’ eyes that the set changes will work in the future (Khan & Mujtaba, 2018). It will motivate the workers to know that the company is heading somewhere, and therefore, they will work to get the company where it is supposed to be.
References
Deschamps, C., Rinfret, N., Lagacé, M. C., & Privé, C. (2016). Transformational leadership and change: How leaders influence their followers’ motivation through organizational justice. Journal of Healthcare Management, 61(3), 194-213.
Firdaus, V., & Handriyono, H. (2018). The Effect Of Change Management And Managerial Skill To Employee Motivation.
Raza, M. A., Khan, M. M., & Mujtaba, B. G. (2018). The Impact of Organizational Change on Employee Turnover Intention: Does Stress Play a Mediating Role?. Public Organization Review, 18(3), 313-327.