As the company moves forward, it faces different challenges and difficulties. One of the main areas of concern for the management is the human resources of the company. The company values its human resources and it believes that its people are the main source of its competitive advantage. Over the years, the company has introduced different policies and programs that aim to enrich the knowledge, skills and abilities of its people. The company has also introduced various programs that aim to help the employees balance their work and family (or personal) responsibilities. In the present, the company is experiencing a challenge in the area of human resources. There are three main issues that the company needs to focus on:
1. The overall performance is declining. One of the main reasons for the decline in performance is the lack of employee motivation. The company needs to motivate employees. Lack of motivation does not only affect performance, it is also the main cause for the increase in employee absenteeism and turn-over.
2. Aside from lack of motivation, another factor that increases the employees’ desire to leave the company is the lack of clear and effective career development programs. The employees are not aware of the possible career opportunities for them in the company.
3. Another issue that the company needs to focus on is the increasing number of employees that have family responsibilities. The number mothers with children in the company is increasing. There have been reports that employees especially parents, are having a hard time balancing their work and life responsibilities. There have been numerous reports of stress because of the employees inability to manage their work and family life. The company needs to introduce work-life programs to accommodate the needs of the employees.
Reflection and Analysis
Motivation is very important today in organizations. According to (2002), motivation is the process of satisfying internal needs through actions and behaviors. It is concerned with a composite of mental and physical drives, combined with the environment that makes people behave the way they do
The company needs to realize that motivation is not all about money. The organization also needs to continuously assess the employees’ needs because motivation changes over time. Individual growth is the key vehicle for organizational success. Managers must attempt to identify individual employee needs and foster satisfaction. If they do so, employees will progress toward self-actualization, permitting the organization to be all that it can be. In addition to adequate salary, safe working conditions, and job security, managers must also satisfy the psychological needs of the employees.
Incentive programs can be very effective in motivating employees, however, the company needs to have clear goals and the rewards must be based on performance. Linking rewards to performance is essential. The company also needs to make use of non-cash awards to motivate employees. Non-cash awards and incentives serve as valuable tools to boost morale, increase productivity and improve service (Neff 2002). Employee performance could have been improved if the management focus on the needs of the employees and to satisfy them. The management needs to realize that employees become motivated if they know what is expected of them and if they have the right materials and equipment to do their work correctly ( 2006). Employees that are empowered and have more control over their work are motivated. The management needs to realize the influence of recognition or praise for doing good work.
Lack of career development programs for employees also affects the motivation of employees. Because of the lack of career development programs for employees, the intension to leave the company has increased. Career development is an organized, planned effort comprised of structured activities or processes that result in a mutual career plotting effort between employees and the organization. Within this system, the employee is responsible for career planning and the organization is responsible for career management ( 1998 ). In order to make the career development programs effective, there must be a partnership between the employee and the management. The employee is responsible for career planning while the company is responsible for career management. Career Planning is a process of setting up employee career objectives and developing activities that will achieve them. According to (2002), career planning is the process by which an individual formulates career goals and develops a plan for reaching those goals. Career Management refers to specific human resource activities, such as job placement, performance appraisal, counseling, training, and education. According to and (1991), career management is a set of programs that represent the organization’s requirements Career management emphasizes the recognition and response to the changing interests and needs of employees as they grow and mature within the organization. Career management takes the organization’s point of view in putting together job ladders, career paths, rotation programs, and planned learning activities to improve the supply of talent among current employees ( 1996).
Work-Life Balance is also a big issue in the organization because of the changes in the demography of the workforce. There is an increasing number of females with children that are entering the workplace. Performance and motivation is also affected by work-life issues. The workplace was once seen as a separate domain from home and family, a separation that was largely defined by gender roles. However, recent decades have seen the increasing participation of women in the paid workforce, changes in the structure of families, and an increase in dual-career families. Parents are challenged to find the balance between work and family responsibilities ( 2004). Employers and policy makers around the world are accepting the changes in the labor force. In recent years, there has been a steady growth of female participation in the labor force. Many of these women have families and children to take care of. In order to accommodate these women, many employers and policy makers are coming up with flexible working arrangements.
Improvement Plan
The proposed plan aims to address the issues surrounding employee motivation. The proposed plan will give particular focus on motivating employees through financial and non-financial means, developing career development programs, and improvement of the work-life balance programs of the company. These areas are seen as key factors in long-term motivation of employees.
Improving Employee Motivation
Pay for Performance
Pay for performance refers to any compensation method that ties pay to the quantity or quality of work the person produces. For a Pay for Performance plan to be successful, according to (2002), the manager must:
- Ensure that effort and rewards are directly related
The incentive plan should reward employees in direct proportion to their increased productivity. Employees must also believe that they can actually do the tasks required. Thus, the standard has to be attainable and the manager and organization have to provide the necessary tools, equipment, and training to meet it.
- Make the plan understandable and easily calculable by the employees.
It should be easy for employees to calculate the rewards they will receive for various levels of effort.
- Set effective standards that will benefit the organization.
The standards should be viewed as fair by employees. They should be high but reasonable; that is, there should be about a 50–50 chance of success. The goal should also be specific, such as, “decrease the work order by 10 percent.” This is much more effective than telling someone to “do your best.”
- Guarantee your program.
The rewards offered for a particular level of work should be viewed as a contract between the organization and the employees. Once the plan is operational, great caution should be used before decreasing the size of the incentive in any way.
- Guarantee a base rate.
It is often advisable to give employees a safety net by providing them with a base pay. They will know that no matter what happens, they can at least earn a guaranteed minimum amount.
Spot Awards
A spot award is a financial award given to an employee literally on the spot as soon as the laudable performance is observed. Spot awards have a sound basis in motivation. For example, to the extent that the rewards are both contingent on good performance and awarded immediately, they are certainly consistent with the expectancy approach, and provide the recognition most people desire ( 2002).
Recognition
Most people like to feel appreciated. Being recognized for a job well done – and not necessarily just financially – makes a lot sense in terms of motivation theory. Immediate recognition can be a powerful reinforce, for instance, and can provide some immediate outcomes to counterbalance the employees’ inputs and efforts. Recognition also underscores the performance-reward-expectancy link, and it helps appeal to and satisfy the need people have to achieve and be recognized for their achievement. (1991) gave eleven types of employee behavior that must be recognized by organizations and individual managers. These are:
- Solid solutions instead of quick fixes
- Risk taking instead of risk avoiding
- Applied creativity instead of mindless conformity
- Decisive action instead of paralysis by analysis
- Smart work instead of busywork
- Simplification instead of needless complication
- Quietly effective behavior instead of squeaky wheels
- Quality work instead of fast work
- Loyalty instead of turnover
- Working together instead of working against
- Lack of absenteeism and tardiness (cited in 2002).
Empowering Employees
Empowering employees is a popular approach to work organizations. It means giving employees the authority, tools, and information they need to do their jobs with greater autonomy, as well as the self-confidence required to perform the new jobs effectively. Empowering is inherently a motivational approach. It boosts employees’ feeling of self-efficacy and enables them to more fully their potential, satisfying high-level needs for achievement, recognition, and self-actualization. Empowerment results in changes in employees’ effectiveness. The result is that people take more initiative and persevere in achieving their goals and their leader’s vision even in the face of obstacles. In order to effectively empower the employees, the manager must:
- Make sure people understand their responsibilities
- Give them authority equal to the responsibilities assigned to them
- Set standards of excellence that will require employees to strive to do all work “right the first time”
- Provide them with training that will enable them to meet the standards
- Give them information that they need to do their jobs well
- Trust them
- Give them permission to fail
- Treat them with dignity and respect
- Provide them with feedback on their performance
- Recognize them for their achievements ( 2002)
Career Development
Career Pathing
Career pathing is a technique that addresses the specifics of progressing from one job to another in the organization ( 2002, ). It can be defined as a sequence of developmental activities involving informal and formal education, training, and job experiences that help make an individual capable of holding jobs that are more advanced. The organization must be formally defined and documented. The formalized career paths lead to precise descriptions of chronological work experiences as well as how the different sequences relate to one another. The organization must use career pathing activities that will enhance skills, competencies, and knowledge of employees. Organizations use three existing career paths ( 2002). The organization should develop effective career pathing programs that:
- Include lateral and downward possibilities, as well as upward possibilities
- Are provisional and quick to respond to changes in organizational needs
- Are flexible enough to take into account the qualities of each employee
- Specifically define each jobs along the paths in terms of acquired skills, knowledge, and other detailed qualities ( 1999)
Career Counseling
Career counseling is the activity that integrates the different steps in the career-planning process. Career counseling may be performed by an employee’s immediate manager, a HRM specialist (or a combination of the two), or outside consultants (2002). The immediate manager must be the one to conduct the counseling with appropriate input from HRM personnel. According to (2002), the immediate manager generally has the advantage of practical experience, knows the company, and is in a position to make a realistic appraisal of organizational opportunities. The managers should be well trained in conducting career counseling. Generally, managers who are skilled in basic human relations are successful as career counselors. Developing a caring attitude toward employees and their careers is most important. Being receptive to employee concerns and problems is another necessity.
The career counseling programs that the organization must employ should address a wide variety of career-related issues and are readily accessible to people in the organization.
Effective Performance Appraisal
The effectivity of a performance appraisal starts with the adequate explanatory material about the performance appraisal system and how it works ( 2003). In addition, the organization should employ the developmental approach in performance appraisal. The organization should use this approach is to motivate and direct individual performance as well as career development efforts. The focus should be on future planning; counseling and interaction between the manager and employees. Emphasis should be placed on goal setting as well as review. This appraisal system allows the manager, supervisor and employee to share responsibility. The basis of this approach is future goals and plans for future development. The organization must use a performance appraisal system that will help in the development of a person’s career as well as enhance communications and understanding ( 1998).
Life-Work Balance
Job sharing is among the top recommendations to ease the burden of heavy workloads and solve work-life balance issue in the firm. Under job sharing, two employees voluntarily share one full-time position, with prorated salary and benefits. People who share jobs, often termed “partners” can share with each partner handling separate tasks. Job sharing was first viewed primarily as an option for women with young children. Gradually, employers have recognized that it can be an alternative for a larger group of employees ( 2001).
The company may give the employees a job share option. This is voluntary and the firm must make a clear policy and regulation for this technique. This option can help the employees who are having a hard time balancing their work and personal/family life. Job sharing can make both “partners” able to balance work and home responsibilities. Job sharing is expected to increase the employees’ level of enthusiasm, productivity, and job satisfaction. This option can also minimize stress and burnout among employees. Both partners can also learn from each other through job sharing.
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