Types of Motivation

We are a heterogeneous group of 7.5 billion on Earth. We differ in our physical features, backgrounds and lifestyles. As we get down to business every day, we see a difference in work attitude amongst our colleagues or peers. Many companies have spent months and even years trying to figure why their highly qualified employees aren’t able to convert plans into reality. What they forget is that due to heterogeneity, mindsets are different, because of which the concept of motivation varies. So, does that mean companies have to develop customized motivation plans for each employee? Imagine a company like Google developing customized motivation plans for its 88,110 employees. Certainly, there is a need to understand the types of motivation and develop one plan which caters to all employees.

Here are some motivation techniques:

The promise of a happy and productive workplace.

Can you imagine a workplace where you are asked to give a feedback about your boss? This is a technique used at Google, where employees are asked to give a feedback about their boss. This has not only led to a 75% improvement in work practices, it has also increased employee satisfaction as they are able to work in an environment where individual opinions are valued. Companies often underestimate the value of an open work environment which involves a two-way communication between superiors and subordinates, as restriction of communication between superior and subordinates leads to a thought of inequality amongst employees.

A secure future.

Costco, an American supermarket retailer was named the ‘Best Employer in the World’ by Forbes in 2017. Costco believes in equality amongst all employees. The fact that it provides health insurance even to its part-time employees, speaks volumes. Additionally, any vacancy for a full-time job at the company is first offered to part-time employees, thus fulfilling the need for job security, a common concern among many people these days.

If you ask for it, you get it, no questions asked.

We all know about Microsoft and the amazing line of products and services it offers. Well, what goes behind motivating its employees who create such stuff? It has been revealed that fulfilment of employee demands is a key component in company culture. Suppose the marketing head wants a TV in his office, the TV shall be installed in his office within 24 hours, no questions asked. Such a company culture instills a mindset within the employees of being responsible for their work and demands leading to higher productivity as the employees are aware of their rights and responsibilities at all times.

Your strengths matter.

Imagine if Lionel Messi was asked to be a pop singer by his parents. The world would have never gotten to see his talent at football. It is often said a person thrives when they do what they are best at and this is the philosophy Facebook believes in. Your duties at work depends purely upon your strengths at Facebook. At Facebook, the work assigned to you is purely based on your strengths, no heed is paid to your weaknesses. For example, there is a need for a report on data analytics. Now, just because an urgent report needs to be prepared for data analytics, the job will not be assigned to a digital marketer who probably a very basic idea on data analytics. The job shall be assigned only to a qualified person and hence the end-result would be quality work with no frustration for a person who has minimal skills on data analytics.

An all-round motivation policy.

Monetary and non-monetary motivation play an equal role in motivating employees. This is the policy followed by Apple. The non-monetary motivation used by Apple is to give challenging work to its employees thus developing a mindset that everyone who is hired are highly capable, hence, they work even harder to produce great results, leading to creation of products that revolutionize the field of technology. Monetary rewards play an important role as well, with bonuses paid to employees even if they aren’t able to achieve targets, as Apple believes in appreciating the efforts undertaken in the process of achieving targets.

To summarize, all the MNCs cited as examples of motivating employees place a greater amount of importance on psychological motivation rather than monetary motivation. Why? The answer to that is very simple. At the end of the day, mental satisfaction with a job goes a longer way than monetary rewards. This does not mean that monetary rewards aren’t important, but to give complete emphasis to monetary rewards and neglecting the importance of psychological motivation isn’t a good practice. Employees are motivated to take the initiative and step out of their comfort zone only when a work environment filled with opportunities and equality is created.