Key Idea: Motivated staff work harder, stay longer and care about the customer. This topic is the theories of what motivates people, the rewards a business can use, and how to tell when staff have lost heart.
The theories
- Taylor: people work for money, so pay by output and measure the work.
- Maslow: five levels of needs, from pay and safety up to self-actualization.
- Herzberg: hygiene factors stop dissatisfaction; only motivators create effort.
The rewards
- Financial: salary, wages, commission, PRP, profit-related pay, share schemes, fringe payments.
- Non-financial: job enrichment, rotation, enlargement, empowerment, purpose, teamwork.
- Match the reward to what the staff actually need.
Demotivation
- Causes: poor pay or conditions, no recognition, no say, unfairness, dull work.
- Signs: absence, lateness, staff leaving, complaints, survey results.
- Fix the cause, not the symptom: a pay rise does not cure a boring job.
The words to know
| Word | Means | Do not confuse with |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific management (Taylor) | raising output by measuring work and paying for results | scientific thinking about decisions |
| Hierarchy of needs (Maslow) | five levels of needs, met from the bottom up | Herzberg's two lists |
| Hygiene factor (Herzberg) | something that prevents dissatisfaction but does not motivate, such as pay or conditions | a motivator, such as recognition or responsibility |
| Piece rate | pay per item produced | a time rate, which pays per hour worked |
| Commission | pay as a share of the value of sales made | a bonus for any target |
| Fringe payments | financial extras beyond pay, such as a company car or free meals | non-financial rewards: fringe payments cost money |
| Job enrichment | giving a job more responsibility and more demanding tasks | job enlargement, which adds more tasks of the same level |
| Empowerment | giving staff the authority to make decisions about their own work | delegation of one task |
Name the theory or reward, say what it says or does, then show it in the case: which need it meets, for which staff, and what changes. For a theory question, use the theory's own words: 'safety needs', 'hygiene factor', not 'they feel better'.
Exam-style question
Lena's Bakery Ltd pays its bakers above the local rate, gives every baker a written contract with a pension, and has started a Baker of the Year award chosen by the customers. With reference to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, explain how Lena's Bakery Ltd meets two levels of its employees' needs.
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.
Important: For Herzberg, pay is a hygiene factor: poor pay causes dissatisfaction, but more pay does not create lasting effort. For Taylor, pay is the motivator. Say whose view you are using. And fringe payments are financial rewards, even when they are not cash.
Tap each card to check yourself.
Which Maslow level does a safe, clean bakehouse meet? Safety needs. Protection from harm at work.
Hygiene factor or motivator: responsibility for a new recipe? Motivator. Responsibility creates satisfaction and effort.
Enrichment or enlargement: a baker also wraps and labels the loaves? Enlargement. More tasks at the same level, not more responsibility.
Financial or non-financial: free breakfast for the night shift? Financial. A fringe payment: it costs the business money.
Absence at one shop doubles. What should the manager do first? Find the cause: talk to the staff or run a survey, then fix the cause, not the symptom.
Why did Taylor's piece rates fail with Rosa? She values her craft and a say in the bread. Pay alone ignores social and esteem needs.
Exam tips
- Use the theory's own words: safety needs, hygiene factor, motivator.
- Pay motivates for Taylor; for Herzberg it is a hygiene factor. Say which view you are using.
- Fringe payments are financial rewards; job enrichment, empowerment and teamwork are non-financial.
- For each level or reward, find the exact detail in the case that shows it.
- Demotivation: name the cause from the case, then match the fix to it.