Culture as a Determinant of Motivation Essay Example for Free

Culture as a Determinant of want EssayWhy is the study of Different Theories of Motivation significant to managers? The World has changed at a very fast pace and allow for continue to do so. The view point that many prominent researchers had on motivation has as well evolved with changing times. There has been a phenomenal change in the way organizations and individuals function in the twenty first century if we make a comparison with how organizations functioned back in the day. There is a signifi finishtly greater focus today on employee satisfaction, model life balance, cross ethnic values, virtual teams and formal performance management processes to name a few. Globalization is one the key factors which has brought a prominent change in many organizational practices in the twenty first century.Hershey and Blanchard (1977) mentioned that motives give the bounce be defined as pauperisations, wants, drives or impulses within the individual which atomic number 18 direc ted towards goals which may be advised or sub conscious. Motivation has been defined by Robbins, Decenzo and Coulter (2011) as motivation is the process by which a persons efforts ar energized, directed, and sustained towards attaining a goal In this paper we volition define motivation as the force which helps an individual focus on his immediate and considerable term goals and helps him run the extra mile. Also in this essay we will be focalisation on the impact of culture on organizational expression and the reasons why managers need to be aware of various motivational theories so that they are well equipped to handle this impact of culture change.Motivation is a very important tool that is not effectively utilized by managers. Motivation if used effectively can significantly improve the performance of teams and employees. It was theory earlier that motivation could be directed only by external factors, but it is now understood that every employee has his avouch set of m otivators which if addressed powerful can significantly improve a manager and his teams performance. It is the managers responsibility to correctly identify these motivating factors and take all(prenominal) steps possible to address them. But this is easier said than done. As observed in todays environment there are many issues which develop a hindrance for managers to motivate their respective teams. In more or less organizations because of the growing impetus of globalization and the fact that individuals from different cultures, ethnic backgrounds come on the comparable platform and work together, it is becoming increasingly difficult for managers to be on top of these growing trends and continue to motivate their respective teams.It is very important for managers to recognise how important the concept of culture plays in the way an employee thinks and get alongs. Only when a manager is aware of the subtle changes in an individuals behavior because of their ethnical backgr ound, can he actually make a concentrated effort to analyze and evaluate methods to motivate that particular individual. Geert Hofstedes (1980) theory of cultural dimensions describes how a particular societys culture influences the behavior and values of individuals using a structure derived from factor analysis. This theory proposed four concepts on the basis of which cultural values could be evaluated Individualism- collectivism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, power distance and masculinity- feminity. As per Sledge, Miles and Coppage (2008) power distance is the degree to which control and influence are distributed unequally in society.In countries with high power distance it would not be recommended to give employees a lot of freedom with respect to their work. The employees would be much prospering when they are abiding by a strict protocol and set guidelines and procedures whereas in countries with low power distance decentralization of power would be recommended wh ere employees can be empowered and inspired to come up with creative ideas in their work. Countries like Venezuela and Malaysia are examples of nations which show High Power distance whereas Denmark and Great Britain are nations which show very low power distance. Sledge, Miles and Coppage (2008) defined the concept of individualism versus collectivism as I and Me versus We and Us. Cultures where the article of beliefs are that one is responsible for his own decisions and the general tendency is to take care of only oneself and his own family are individualistic cultures.Collective cultures are those where people rely more heavily on groups and the general tendency is to take care of each other. Individualism is common in USA, Canada and mostly in the West whereas collectivism is more common in Pakistan, India and Brazil. In collective cultures promotions and appraisals are generally done on the basis of seniority, age and loyalty whereas in individualistic cultures appraisals are done only on the basis of merit. In countries where the culture is individualistic strong individual recognition and rewards would be very strong motivators. Sledge, Miles and Coppage (2008) expounded that uncertainty avoidance was the degree of risk abhorrence. Individuals from Countries with high uncertainty avoidance are generally very wary of ambiguous situations and they create beliefs and situations to increase their gumption of security. They have very strong belief in experts and they generally arrive at decisions only with consensus of their entire group.Denmark and Great Britain are examples of low uncertainty avoidance cultures whereas Germany, Japan and Spain are examples of High hesitation avoidance countries. Sledge, Miles, and Coppage (2008) elucidated on masculinity versus femininity as the desire for material possessions and recognition versus the desire for relationships and family In masculine societies monetary rewards would make very strong motivators whereas in predominantly distaff societies Flexible working hours or more time away from work for family would be very strong motivators. A feminine society is more concerned with family and personal relationships as against masculine societies where jobs are more or less gender based.Examples of much(prenominal) masculine cultures are China, Japan, Philippines, India, Bangladesh whereas examples of more feminine cultures are Thailand, Korea, Vietnam and Indonesia. Some researchers like William Ouchi (Theory Z) and Peters Waterman(Excellence theory) developed theories on the exit between management practices between Japanese and American business corporations . They firmly believed that most American and Japanese corporations functioned similar to the McGregors Theory X Theory Y where the American companies firmly believed that workers are generally unwilling to work and can be motivated only with economic benefits whereas the Japanese corporations were of the belief that the workers can be motivated by a sense of duty and loyalty.The major difference in the functioning of these organizations was also the fact the managers from the west which are predominantly individualistic cultures could not generally think about the bigger picture and this probably showed in the treatment of their employees. Hence the intrinsic factors of most employees were not catered to. Companies from the East like Japan which is a collective culture showed that managers used to generally behave with their workers like they were a part of a collective unit and this made the employees think about the companies as an extension to their individual self. This made them believe that bills and economic benefits were not primary motivators. Such employees were motivated with other factors like by acquaintance sharing, improving their self esteem, self respect, achievement, recognition and opportunities for more challenge work. Organizations need to pay utmost attention to the cultural and e thnic sentiments of their employees.Lets say for instance Multinational Companies who have their setup in India also have to take many factors into consideration like the fact that every state in India has some festivals which have a very strong regional and cultural flavor. Organizations have to accompaniment in mind that regular within Cultures there are many sub cultures and the sentiments of the employees within these sub cultures also need to be taken care of. interchangeable for instance in India in the state of Maharashtra the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi is of very high cultural and emotional significance whereas in the state of Punjab Baisakhi as a festival is of very high importance. Organizations need to take these aspects also into consideration and keep a correct balance when they are deciding holidays for the employees in a particular culture or sub culture.If the management does not pay attention to the sentiments of their employees, this will send the wrong signal s to their employees and they will be unable to identify themselves with the ideals of the company. In such situations motivating employees would become very difficult. Having seen the impact of culture on the behavior of employees and individuals it would be very discriminatory for managers to infer the underlying and basic crux of motivation theories. These theories when used in the right context with employees will help motivate them and improve their performance. Herzbergs devil Factor Theory of Motivation (1968) emphasizes on core job factors and distinguishes them into two categories Hygiene Factors and Motivational Factors. Herzberg further added that the Hygiene Factors like Pay, Company Policies, Fringe Benefits, fleshly working conditions, Status, Interpersonal Relations, and Job Security were only factors that were extrinsic to the work environment and only pr plainted dissatisfaction.These factors never motivated individuals but only prevented the individuals from ge tting disgruntled which might further lead to de-motivation. He further added that the motivational factors were intrinsic to an individual and were inherent in work. The motivational factors like recognition, Growth Opportunities, Responsibility, Leadership Quotient, and Meaningfulness of work were what were instrumental in creating satisfaction in an employee and motivating him. What is interesting to know is that in different cultures the motivators and hygiene factors are slightly different. In collective cultures sense of fulfillment and working towards company goal is considered far more important that individual pay and remuneration like in western cultures. Managers need to revive the right balance with employees to properly inspire them to perform better.In order to be able to do this they need to have sufficient background knowledge of the culture quotient of an employee along with certain theories of motivation which might be applicable to those employees. In recent tim es of financial crisis it has become even more important for managers to understand the key factors which can motivate their employees. Organizations in recent times have become hard pressed to offer economic benefits and rewards to their employees. In such situations it would a great advantage to managers if they have sufficient knowledge of motivation theories like the Equity theory of Motivation which states that every individual has an ingrained instinct to continuously evaluate what is it that he is gaining from the company with respect to what he investing in the company.Individuals also continuously compare themselves with their peers and colleagues. Such theories will help manages keep a right balance and ensure that certain factors which can give impetus to an employees dissatisfaction are sufficiently curtailed. They will then start focusing on improving an employees soft skills like interpersonal communication, instilling a sense of duty and loyalty towards the organizat ion, making the employees strive for self improvement. intelligence and praise for good work will also be used more effectively used to motivate employees. The uses of motivation theories have become even more important as in most organizations virtual teams have become the order of the day.Employees work with their associates and colleagues whom they have never even met. It has become even more instrumental for managers to instill a sense of collectivism in their teams so that individuals working in a group can transform into a team in an actual sense. As per the survey done by Mckinsey(2010) it was found that most employees in organizations feel de motivated when they are unable to fear themselves with the leadership of the company.It was also found that the many employees in the organization would feel even more motivated if they were offered a few words of praise from their boss. Like for instance if a manager appreciates the efforts of an employee who is a part of his virtual team whose first language is not English, this will really do wonders for that specific employee. in all the small bits when put together make a collage. The study of motivation theories has now become of paramount importance to managers as they really need to understand that small bit which will motivate their team and their associates to do better than they actually can. This is what will separate a manager from a leader and will elevate the performance of a group of people to a team.BibliographyReferences* Hofstede, G. (1980). 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