Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory-Motivators & Hygiene Factors

 

Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory-Motivators & Hygiene Factors

 

According to Bah & Amako (Baah and Amoako, 2011 ; Owler and Morrison (2015),) The two-factor theory speaks on the factors associated,

a)       Hygiene Factors /Demotivators –Extrinsic factors that create job dissatisfaction

b)      Motivators -Intrinsic factors that create Job Satisfaction

 While the fulfillment of Hygiene factors will minimize employee dissatisfaction, the lack of it will create employee dissatisfaction, at the same time while the fulfillment of Motivation factors will improve employee satisfaction and motivation, the lack of it will reduce motivation. However, the Hygiene factors and Motivation factors are mutually independent of each other, in terms of addressing the Hygiene factors will not increase Employee satisfaction it will just reduce employee dissatisfaction and vice versa (Ghazi, Shahzad a and Khan, 2013). The Hygiene factors align as extrinsic factors focusing on the context of the job than its content focusing on salary fulfillment, company policies, administration and logistics, work environment, and interpersonal collaboration. Hygiene factors align with the Intrinsic side of the Job content, focusing on the employee's experience on performing work such as the quality of work, responsibilities which are assigned, fair recognition and reward, achievements (Owler and Morrison, 2015).According to Herzberg the opposite of satisfaction is not dissatisfaction but rather no satisfaction hence this is one of the reason why job satisfaction does not result in increased performance . But he also suggested that to unleash performance, the manager must encourage the motivated the team.

 

Figure:1

Different views between traditional motivation and Herzberg’s two-factor theory

 

 

 

Source (Chu and Kuo, 2015)

 

The above diagram by Chu and Kuo (2015) explains how Hygiene and Motivation factors work on an employee with different state transitions, from Dissatisfied to Not Dissatisfied and Satisfied to Not satisfied. As an example, an employee will get motivated and will be in a satisfied mindset when he is presented with challenging meaningful work where his achievements are well recognized. He will be not satisfied when the work is monotonous, and no proper recognition is in place. At the same time, the same employee can be dissatisfied when he is underpaid working in an environment with lack of facilities and hindered by strict organizational policies. However, providing a good environment to work in will only result in not dissatisfied employees but will not guarantee satisfied employees.

 

 

 

Applying the theory to the organization for my work place

I’m working for leading bpo company and the organization scores highly on Motivational factors, however still 100 % motivation not completed in the business model. employees in my organization can be categorized as motivated bur still dissatisfied with certain items. Below is an evaluation of this scenario.

Motivational Factors

Been a BPO organization with a capable & professional workforce, the organization I work for focusses highly on employee engagement and their motivation. We have the following practices in place as a motivational framework to support this.

We have few pillars to practice those.

·         Achievement: This is a measure of the opportunities to use full capabilities and make a worthwhile contribution

·         Recognition: An indication of the amount and quality of all kinds of feedback whether good or bad, about how you are getting on in the job.

·         Work Itself: The interest of the job, usually involving variety, challenge the personal conviction of one’s significance

·         Responsibility: A measure of freedom of action in decision making, style and job development.

·         Advancement: This shows the potential of the job in terms promotion.

·         Growth: Opportunities of learning and maturing

To motivate the staff, it is important to understand the major motives in work. Company follows below three major motives in work.

1.       Need for Achievement -The drive to excel and succeed

2.       Need for Power -The need to influence the behavior of others

3.       Need of Affiliation-The desire for interpersonal relationship

 

Further, Motivating a diverse workforce through flexibility

 

·         Men desire more autonomy than do woman

·         Woman desire learning opportunities, flexible work schedule and good interpersonal relations.

Motivated Professionals

·         Strong and long-term commitment to their filed of expertise.

·         Loyalty is to their profession, not to the employer

·         Have the need to regularly update their knowledge

·         Don’t define their workweek as 9 hours per day

 

Hygiene factors

The organization has mixed success when it comes to Hygiene factors. The organization has provided basic needs such as state of the art, work environments, enough platforms to collaborate and build positive interpersonal relationships, facilities to take part in sports and leisure activities and enough supervision. While this has contributed to reducing employee dissatisfaction, certain organizational policies and compensation-related concerns have driven employees to a certain level of dissatisfaction. The company engage below mentioned Hygiene factors and carefully evaluated time to time using employees’ feedback.

·         Supervision

·         Company policies& procedures

·         Relationship with supervisor

·         Working conditions & Working shifts

·         Salary & Increment

·         Relationship with peers

·         Personal life balance

·         Relationship with college, Subordinate

·         Status

·         Security

 

 

Conclusion

Herzberg’s two-factor theory is a powerful concept where Organizations in the modern service industry still use its application with high success to create a culture where employees are highly motivated. However, it will always be a balancing act between hygiene and motivation factors where each organization needs to find its optimized formula to achieve the desired sweet spot when it comes to ideal motivation and no dissatisfaction.

References

 

Baah, K. and Amoako, G. (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, [online] 3(9), pp.1-7. Available at: https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8120/9583968b25d38e08f353aef4004be7cd099c.pdf [Accessed 18 Sep. 2019].

 

Chu, H. and Kuo, T. (2015). Testing Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory in Educational Settings in Taiwan. The Journal of Human Resource and Adult Learning, [online] 11(1). Available at: http://www.hraljournal.com/Page/10%20HuichinChu&TsuiYangKuo.pdf [Accessed 18 Sep. 2019].

 

 

Ghazi, S., Shahzada, G. and Khan, S. (2013). Resurrecting Herzberg’s Two Factor Theory: An Implication to the University Teachers. Journal of Educational and Social Research, [online] 3(4), pp.445-450. Available at: https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a49f/86fcea51dc67d89c1a5ae4401062bcfa4242.pdf [Accessed 18 Sep. 2019].

 

Owler, K. and Morrison, R. (2015). What makes work enjoyable and motivating for Learning Advisors in Aotearoa-New Zealand?. Association of Tertiary Learning Advisors Aotearoa/New Zealand Journal, [online] 1(1), pp.16-33. Available at: https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/99a5/eea366617653d0e957e4bbb3cce0b93c6d7b.pdf.