5. Herzberg Two Factor Theory of Motivation
5. Herzberg Two Factor Theory of Motivation
Figure 2: Herzberg two factor theory
(Source: Herzberg, 1987).
What is the Herzberg Two Factor Theory of Motivation?
Two Factor Theory, Herzberg's Motivation-Hygiene Theory, and Dual Structure Theory are some of the titles given to Herzberg's Motivation Theory concept. The model was created in 1959 by Frederick Herzberg. In 1959, Frederick Herzberg created the model. Herzberg accomplished this by interviewing over 200 professionals, referring to those factors that affected job satisfaction as motivating Factors, and the Herzberg Two Factor Hypothesis is a theory on employee motivation (Haruna, 2013). On the other hand, this idea presupposes that employee can be unsatisfied with their occupations. This is frequently related to so-called hygiene variables, such as pay and working environment. Employee happiness, on the other hand, is related to so-called incentive variables. These elements have to deal with possibilities for growth, accountability, and appreciation. According to Herzberg, these variables coexist (Ball, 2003).
Taking away the sources of dissatisfaction does not guarantee that employees will be satisfied. To inspire a team utilizing motivation factors, the hygiene factors must first be addressed. Motivation and work happiness are not excessively complicated concepts. The difficulty is that many companies and managers use hygienic elements as a means to inspire when, in reality, they offer relatively little to motivate beyond the very short term (Dartey and Amoako, 2011). The measures aid in the elimination of work discontent in businesses, and it is pointless to try to inspire individuals or employees until these concerns are handled. Addressing the mentioned concerns should not be viewed as a goal in and of itself, but rather as a reminder to managers that just because someone is not unsatisfied does not imply, they are content. Identifying conditions for job satisfaction in the workplace is crucial (Dartey, 2011).
What is Two Factor Theory?
Herzberg's Theory of Motivation seeks to understand what motivates people in the workplace. This idea might assist in getting the greatest performance from the team.
Motivators and hygiene factors are the two elements discovered by Herzberg.
1. Motivating Factors
Employees work harder when there are motivators present. They might be discovered inside the task itself (Alshmemri and Shahwan, 2017).
2. Hygiene Factors
Employees will work less hard if hygienic elements are absent. Hygiene issues do not exist in the work itself, but they do exist in the environment (Alshmemri and Shahwan, 2017).
The following diagram depicts the influence of motivational and hygienic elements. It's worth noting that motivators are frequently referred to as elements of satisfaction, whereas hygiene factors are frequently referred to as reasons of discontent.
Motivating factors include:
According to Alshmemri and Shahwan (2017), the following are motivation factors
Achievement : A job should provide a sense of accomplishment for the individual. This will give you the satisfaction of completing a challenging but good task.
Recognition : A work must give the credit and acknowledgment for an employee's accomplishments. This acknowledgement should come from both superiors and peers.
The work itself : The work itself should be engaging, varied, and challenging enough to keep employees engaged.
Responsibility : Employees should take responsibility for their job. They should hold themselves accountable for the accomplishment of this task rather than feeling micromanaged.
Advancement : Employees should have possibilities for promotion.
Growth : Employees should be able to learn new skills as part of their work. This might occur on the job or via more formal education.
As an example, most Accounting Departments rely on their objectives, therefore the firm expects their staff to be acknowledged and recognized for their achievements by their team leaders based on the knowledge and point schemes of their yearly performance appraisals. Also, offer employees the opportunity to feel that they accomplished their own assignment in accordance with the company's aims. This is dependent on their specific work responsibilities. To inspire workers to perform effectively, most businesses give ongoing training and development sessions to their employees for their growth and promotion possibilities in the organization. The management expects top workers to monitor the groups and hold themselves accountable for the job, especially in target-oriented businesses. To meet the company's needs, the management handed them ownership of the job. They should maintain responsibility while minimizing control, and the task itself should be relevant, engaging, and difficult for the individual to perform and become motivated in accordance with business objectives.
Hygiene factors : According to Alshmemri and Shahwan (2017), the following are Hygiene Factors
Company policies : Every employee should be treated fairly and clearly. They ought to be comparable to those of rivals.
Supervision : Fair and adequate supervision is required. As much autonomy as is reasonable should be provided to the employee.
Relationships : Bullying and peer groups should be avoided at all costs. Between peers, bosses, and subordinates, a healthy, friendly, and acceptable connection should exists
Work conditions : Equipment and the working environment should be safe, fit for purpose, and hygienic.
Salary : The compensation structure should be appropriate and fair. It must also be competitive with other businesses in the same field.
Employee Status : The business should keep track of the status of all employees. Having a sense of prestige might come from doing important job.
Security : It's critical that employees feel safe in their jobs and aren't constantly threatened with layoffs.
For an example, accounting departments rely on their workers' performance, and staff turnover is significant, therefore the company's compensation structure should be fair and reasonable. It must be competitive and equal to those in the same industry and domain. Also, they should keep a watch on the company's policies, which should not be too strict. They must be fair and transparent. Flexible working hours, dress code, breaks, vacation, maternity leaves, and medical support should all be included. They also provided extremely flexible health-care plans for its employees, as well as this benefit for their family members. The firm stipulated that working conditions be extremely safe, clean, and sanitary. Work equipment should be updated with new systems and kept in good working order. Employees' connections with their peers, supervisors, and subordinates are always suitable and acceptable since management maintains a stronger internal relationship with them. There should be no elements of conflict or humiliation. The organization is always attempting to project a positive image of employee job security.
How to Use this Herzberg Model in working environment
Using the Two Factor Theory approach to boost team's motivation is a two-step process.
1. Eliminate Job Hygiene Stressors
The first step in improving your team's motivation is to verify that hygiene issues are not generating discontent. Each person will look at hygiene issues from their own unique perspective. As a result, working with each member of your team to grasp their unique perspective is critical (Büssing and Glaser 2000).
2. Boost Job Satisfaction
Following the removal of hygienic stresses, the following stage is to improve each team member's work happiness. We can do this by enhancing the job's real substance. Again, each employee will require a unique strategy, and there are three strategies that may be utilized to accomplish this: ( Ude and Coker, 2012).
a. Job Enrichment
Job enrichment is providing a team member with more hard or complex duties to do. These more difficult duties should make the work more enjoyable (Bennett, 2015).
b. Job Enlargement
Giving a team member a wider range of tasks to complete is referred to as job expansion. This diversity can also provide intrigue to a work. It's worth noting that employment expansion increases the diversity of activities, but not the complexity of those tasks. Job enrichment would occur if the challenge level increased (Dheerasinghe, 2009).
c. Employee Empowerment
Employee empowerment entails giving each team member more responsibility and exchanging good ideas. This may be accomplished by gradually increasing the amount of authority you provide an employee (Pradhan, et al, 2014).
In my organization, CFO, and CEO for example, has four main discussions every month and every two months with the team leaders, team in charge, HR departments, and finally with the management team to learn about their new ideas about the advantages and disadvantages of the current production process and other job and administrative related tasks. Internal facilities, complaints, personal and team difficulties, and the advancements they expect from the corporate end are some of the topics they discuss.
References
Alshmemri,M and Shahwan-Akl .L (2017) Life Science - pdfs.semanticscholar.org
Büssing, A and Glaser, J (2000) Work & Stress journal, Taylor & Francis
Bennett, D (2015). Job Enrichment, s.l.: s.n.
Ball, J. (2003). UNDERSTANDING HERZBERG'S MOTIVATION THEORY, s.l.: s.n.
Dheerasinghe, R (2009). Garment Industry in Sri Lanka Challenges, Prospects and Strategies, s.l.: s.n.
Dartey, B. (2011), Application of Frederick Herzberg’s Two-Factor theory in assessing and understanding employee motivation at work,Vol 3. European Journal of Business and Management.
Dartey-Baah, K. and Amoako, G.K. (2011).Application of Frederick Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory in Assessing and Understanding Employee Motivation at Work: A Ghanaian Perspective. European Journal of Business and Management, Vol 3, No.9.
Herzberg, F. (2005). Motivation-hygiene theory Organizational behavior one: Essential theories of motivation and leadership, eds JB Miner, ME Sharpe Inc, New York, 61-74.
Haruna, M. K. (2013) AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF HERZBERG'S TWO-FACTOR THEORY, s.l.: s.n.
Pradhan, P, Thulasiraj, R. D, Kamlanabhan, R.D, T. J. and Muraleedharan, V. R (2014). Employee Empowerment, s.l.: s.n.
Ude, U and Coker, M. A (2012). Incentive Schemes, Employee Motivation and Productivity In Organizations In Nigeria: Analytical Linkages, s.l.: s.n
Agree with you ,according to Armstrong, (2014), motivation is the strength and direction of behavior and the factors that influence people to behave in certain ways. People are motivated when they expect that a course of action is likely to lead to the attainment of a goal and a valued reward – one that satisfies their needs and wants.
ReplyDeleteWell said Lakshan, Vrooms expectancy theory is a cognitive theory, which arouse on that definition of motivation. The theory discusses the relationship between employee effort, performance and rewards with the formulation to practical scenario, in order to support managers with the estimated chances and probabilities, with relative to changing situations (Richard et al, 2004).
DeleteHerzberg’s two factor theory is one of the popular theory used by motivational researchers in different industry which provides integration of individual’s intrinsic and extrinsic motivation factors related to many motivational theories (Tan, 2013). Borkowsli in 2011 also mentioned that the Herzberg founded similarities of other theories with his theory and each carries motivation of employees in similar terms.
ReplyDeleteWell said Thushari Senevirathne, According to Bhatla (2011) argues that the need for such employees and how their presence can improve the progress and work efficiency of the organization as a whole. Also focused on the challenges faced by the HR managers to improve employee engagement for an organization’s survival.
DeleteWhen employed, factors and strategies can get the best out of employees in their dedication to work. Although the complex nature of the issues is worth considering when motivating people, it is always not easy for organisations to motivate workers for effective performance and inspire an employee utilising motivation factors, the hygiene factors must first be addressed (Author, 2011). Before using “Herzberg’s two-factor theory,” some scholars suggest.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Amila Wijayantha, According to the CIPD (2012: 13) to Engagement takes place when people are committed to their work and the organization and are motivated to achieve high levels of performance.
DeleteAgree with you. Additionally, Herzberg's two factor theory can be utilized as an important tool in HRM. However, Basset-Jones and Lloyd (2005) states that despite the common view, the reputation of one's in an organization and the financial benefits might be second to the intrinsic feelings' accomplishment.
ReplyDeleteEmployee engagement has become a focal point in today’s workforce because companies are finally beginning to grasp that in order to keep the employees are happy (Kumar and Pansari,2015).The benefits of employee engagement always balancing with how to measure it, and then how the company can start engaging the employees right way. Another benefit of investing in employee engagement is that it will help you retain your top employees and decrease your turnover rates by ensuring that your team is happy. When employees are engaged and feel that they are treated well by their managers, they will feel a sense of responsibility to reciprocate this respect by putting in their best effort AND feel that they are part of the organization they work for, and therefore would not want to let them down.
DeleteYes and Further Uzonna, 2013, states today's 'Y' generation who are ambitious and techno-savvy can be addressed and motivated through Herzberg's Theory through identifying their needs as their needs may be beyond monetary rewards.
ReplyDeleteDear Jayashi Silva, However, John Purcell (2013: 247) contended that: ‘Employee engagement is worth pursuing, not as an end in itself, but as a means of improving working lives and company performance’. And the CIPD (2012: 1) noted that Engagement is not about driving employees to work harder but about providing the conditions in which they will work more effectively it is about releasing employees’ discretionary behavior.
DeleteAgreed, Herzberg's two-factor theory highlights the motivating impacts of the work environment, according to Shermerhorn (2001). High motivation and satisfaction are further enhanced by elements like recognition, achievement, responsibility, growth, opportunity, and promotion. Hygiene considerations include salary, working conditions, job security, personal life, company policies, and administration (Kim, 2006). According to Herzberg, the best approach to encourage people is to give them tough work that they can own (Leach and Westbrook, 2000). To encourage employees, management must use a combination of hygiene and motivation aspects (Dartey-Baah and Amoak 2011).
ReplyDeleteGood explanation on Herzberg of two factor theory. Nevertheless, I feel this theory is bit outdated since there are number of limitations associated with. Yew and Manap (2012) conduct a critical assessment on this theory and reveal that there is absence of job factors which cause satisfaction or dissatisfaction. In addition to that, Herzberg is not attempted to identify the existence of substantial individual differences. Also, there are job satisfactions scales are which not specified.
ReplyDeleteMoreover, to the given points on the theory, the absence of hygiene factors can create job dissatisfaction, but their presence does not motivate or create satisfaction. These motivators are associated with long-term positive effects in job performance while the hygiene factors consistently produced only short-term changes in job attitudes and performance, which quickly fell back to its previous level (Ramlall, 2004).
ReplyDeleteAgreed with your argument. Luenendonk (2017) stated that if an employee feels that the management cares about his/her as a person and not just another employee, he/ she will be motivated and committed to his/her work. It is evident that employee welfare has a direct impact on employee motivation. Through that employees will highly engaged to the organizational goals and objectives.
ReplyDeleteHerzberg's two factor theory can be applied to any organization. Despite the common view, the reputation of one's in an organization and the financial benefits might be second to the intrinsic feelings' accomplishment (Basset-Jones and Lloyd,2005).
ReplyDeleteAgreed on the above contents danushkana,
ReplyDeleteThe difference between the other with two factors theory is the role of employee expectations. Herzberg believes that there is an inverse association between intrinsic incentives and extrinsic incentives. That is, when intrinsic incentives exist, they tend to Increase incentives, and when external incentives do not exist, they tend to reduce incentives because employees' expectations of external incentives (such as wages, benefits) are predictable, so when they exist, they do not increase incentives But when they don't exist, they can cause dissatisfaction(Owen, 2018).