Measuring Motivation and Morale - Essay Sample

Introduction

Motivation is a psychological and internal drive that urges an individual to behave in a particular way or respond to different situations. It is an act of encouraging a person in a bid to achieve the desired results (Bawa, 2017). Morale is the satisfaction that a person derives from their job, group work, leaders, and the organizational environment. It involves the creation of a feeling of comfort, pleasure, and happiness (Rawat, 2015). Productivity is termed as a description of different measures of efficiency in production. It is a measure of a person’s efficiency in completing a task (Bawa, 2017). While motivation is more of an individual concept, morale is more of a group scenario. motivation focuses on the individual differences among employees. In contrast, the morale of employees can be improved by considering factors that influence group work. Productivity is highly determined by the motivation and morale of employees to work towards effectively completing assigned tasks (Srivastava & Barmola, 2011).

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High motivation usually increases employees' morale, but increased confidence may not essentially lead to exceptionally motivated employees. It is because having a positive attitude towards workplace environmental factors may not be an eventual reason to make employees work more efficiently. Therefore, productivity may not be improved through increased morale as it is with enhanced employees' Motivation (Bawa, 2017). As a result, motivation is taken as a primary concern in all organizations, while enthusiasm is given secondary consideration. Morale is tied to things that are part of the work environment, while motivation is linked to issues of personal performance. High morale does not necessarily lead to more employee motivation since individual attitude may not encourage one to increase efficiency at work. Increased morale may result in both favorable and unfavorable changes in productivity since it is just a single factor that influences productivity (Rawat, 2015). Therefore, chances of high morale resulting in low productivity and vice versa may happen.

Motivation can be achieved in different ways, including offering incentives, recognizing and rewarding best employees, and also through self-motivation (Bawa, 2017). Incentives drive motivation as they offer workers more to work harder than a regular paycheck. Recognizing and acknowledging a job well done derives a good feeling and encourages better performance. Personal achievement of set goals motivates employees to work even more challenging (Bawa, 2017). Employee morale can be boosted through various ways, including enhancing frequent communication, soliciting feedback, making informed decisions to ensure their trust, creating an effective incentive program, publicly praising highly performing employees, and having fun with them, thus, creating a fair and free work environment for all. Productivity can be improved through motivation and, at times, even increasing employee morale (Muogbo, 2013). Overall, it can be improved through employee training, removing time-to-time blockers, having the right technology in place, encouraging flexible working, and celebrating success.

Motivation and Morale

Both motivation and morale are subject to mental feelings but have a strong connection with each other. Motivation is a process of creating an inspiration to work for an employee, while morale is the mental strength for work (Rawat, 2015). High and robust mental strength means there are high morale and vice versa. If there is no motivation to work, increasing morale toward the job is very uncommon. Stimulation increases inspiration to do, and by this, morale is gradually enhanced. Therefore, the nature of employee’s morale in an organization depends on the nature of motivation given in that organization. The higher the motivation given to workers, the higher the morale expected towards the work of all employees (Bawa, 2017).

Motivation and Productivity

Motivation is a means of attaining productivity at the end. It is the best approach to achieving productivity as a favorable result (Bawa, 2017). It is also a stimulus that triggers productivity as a response. Motivation and productivity are twin concepts in any organizational development where most employees require motivation to enjoy their jobs and ensure maximum performance (Muogbo, 2013). Some love being motivated through money, while others like recognition and rewards. Motivation levels have a direct impact on workers' productivity (Bawa, 2017). Motivated workers find excitement in their jobs, offer their best in carrying out their responsibilities, and as a result, increase production.

There are also tangential issues that contribute to lower productivity among highly motivated employees. Even the most committed workers can be unproductive, which creates enormous problems. Low productivity decreases output, performance, and overall income (Muogbo, 2013). It also affects employee morale and creates a toxic work environment for all. Such issues may include a lack of clear goal definition. Employees may be highly motivated to work, but without explicit knowledge of the specific organizational goals and expectations, productivity will never be maximized since they are unable to set concrete targets or even the plans may be unattainable with such a set of workers. Another issue is where the organization provides a situation where there is no work-life balance. They may be motivated through extra pay, but employees also need to have a life outside work to meet their personal goals (Muogbo, 2013). When there is no priority for good company culture, employee feeling of engagement is reduced, thereby decreasing productivity.

References

Bawa, M. A. (2017). Employee motivation and productivity: A review of literature and implications for management practice. International Journal of Economics, Commerce, and Management, 12,662-673. https://www.academia.edu/download/60832003/5123920191008-6701-uj50eo.pdf

Muogbo, U. S. (2013). The impact of employee motivation on organizational performance (A study of some selected firms in Anambra State Nigeria). The International Journal Of Engineering And Science, 2(7), 70-80. http://www.theijes.com/papers/v2-i7/Part.6/J0276070080.pdf

Rawat, S. R. (2015). Impact of transformational leadership over employee morale and motivation. Indian Journal of Science and Technology, 8, 25. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Surya_Rawat/publication/276167686_Impact_of_Transformational_Leadership_Over_Employee_Morale_and_Motivation/links/5615609308ae4ce3cc6531bd/Impact-of-Transformational-Leadership-Over-Employee-Morale-and-Motivation

Srivastava, S. K., & Barmola, K. C. (2011). Role of motivation in higher productivity. Management Insight, 7(1), 63-82. http://journals.smsvaranasi.com/index.php/managementinsight/article/download/522/501