What Motivates Employees Essay -- Employee Motivation Essays

How do you get things done in an organization? First, you must have managers who can delegate to employees. Effective managers have the ability to get things done through other people. This is accomplished by motivating employees to accomplish tasks. A manager must be able to delegate these tasks to employees. The technique a manager uses to motivate employees to work for him, will either motivate or dissatisfy employees. Motivated employees will work with the manager to achieve company goals. Those employees who are dissatisfied will work against company goals. It wasn't that long ago that employees were considered "just another input into the production of goods and services."(Linder 1998) Elton Mayo had a big impact on the view of employers at the time. Beginning in 1924 and continuing through 1932, Elton Mayo conducted the Hawthorne studies Linden, 1998) He concluded that employees were not solely motivated by money. Elton Mayo Previously believed that outside stimulus like lighting and physical surroundings affected productivity. Yet, no matter how they changed the stimulus during their experiment production increased. "It turned out that the stimulus that affected production most was being observed: being the focus of attention motivated people to hard work." (Cohen 1998, 93) His discovery was later refereed to as the Hawthorne Effect. His discovery changed the way managers looked at employees and they encouraged them. Encouragement is a technique managers use to motivate employees. â€Å"A supervisor’s willingness to give encouragement is not only an expectation of many employees but is beneficial in terms of job productivity†(Davidhizar 1997, 16). Employees feel better about themselves... ...3-94. Davidhizar, Ruth and Shearer, Ruth. â€Å" Giving Encouragement as a Transformational Leadership Technique.† Health Care Supervisors. (March 1997) : 16 - 21. Jukiewicz, Carole L. and Massey Jr, Tom K. â€Å"What Motivates Municipal Employees: A Comparison Study of Supervisory vs. Non-Supervisory Personnel.† Health Care Supervisors. (Fall 1997) : 367 - 378. Linder, James R.. Understanding Employee Motivation.† Journal of Extension. (June 1998) : Vol 36 Num 3. McConnell, Charles R.. â€Å"Mixed Motivations: The Leadership Contradiction.† Health Care Supervisors. (December 1998): 63 - 70. McConnell, Charles R. â€Å"Learn What Motivates Your Employees: Look to Yourself.† Health Care Supervisors. (June 1998) : 1 - 11. McConnell, Charles R. â€Å"Employee Involvement: Motivation or Manipulation?† Health Care Supervisors. (March 1998): 69 - 85.