Motivation Definition:
"Motivation takes place when people expect that a course of action is likely to lead to the attainment of a
goal - a valued reward that satisfies their particular needs"( Armstrong:1997)

"The willingness to exert high levels of effort toward organizational goals,
conditioned by the effort\'s ability to satisfy some individual needs.(Robbins:1998)
Source : Ernest J.McCormick and Daniel Ilgen(1992)\"Industrial and \" Organizational Psychology
Great Britain: Routledge

Introduction:
After carefully reading the project outline it was clear to me to see that this company had a serious problem in regard to getting the Die-Cutters to make the new cut. Having also researched the various theories by people such as Abraham Maslow , McGregor , McClelland , Aldefer , Herzberg and Vroom I came to the conclusion that there is quite a few theories which can be applied to this companies motivation problem. I have also researched the Path-Goal Hypotheses . In part 1 I will attempt to explain which theories apply to the Die-cutters situation. The Die-cutters are not willing to give up their knowledge of the Die-cut and this means that thee wastage levels will still remain too high . The Die-cutters know how to resolve the situation
and make the Die-cut work but feel that they will not benefit from this.
“Look, Mr. Norwall , we know how to make this new die-cut work, but what’s in it for us?” (From Supplied text) This clearly indicates to me that they feel that they will not receive any benefit or recognition for their part in the development of the die-cut. The company has to decide how they will deal with this problem and I will attempt to suggest possible theories that may be suitable to solve the problem and also, the theories that it is an example of.
Part One:Diagram of Maslow\'s hierarchy of needs
Source:Retreived From http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/motivation/motivate.html on the 6th of January 2006
:



The theory that I feel is most relevant to this company is Abraham Maslow\'s motivation theory.
Hierarchy of Human Needs

Maslow\'s primary contribution to psychology is his Hierarchy of Human Needs, which he often presented as a pyramid, with self-actualization at the top as the highest of those needs. The base of the pyramid is the physiological needs, which are necessary for survival. Once these are taken care of, an individual can concentrate on the second layer, the need for safety. The third layer is the need for love and belonging, followed by the need for esteem. Finally, self-actualization forms the apex of the pyramid. The idea of the pyramid came to his mind after an inspiration on visiting the Great Pyramids of Egypt.
In this scheme, the first four layers are what Maslow called deficiency needs or D-needs. If they are not filled, you feel anxiety and attempt to fill them. If they are filled, you feel nothing; you feel only the lack. Each layer also takes precedence over the layer above it; you do not feel the lack of safety and security until your physiological needs are taken care of.
Needs beyond the D-needs are \"growth needs\", \"being values\" or B-needs. When fulfilled, they do not go away, rather, they motivate further. He outlines about 14 of these values or B-needs, including beauty, meaning, truth, wholeness, justice, order, simplicity, richness, etc.
Maslow also proposed that people who have reached self-actualization will sometimes experience a state he referred to as \"transcendence,\" in which they become aware of not only their own fullest potential, but the fullest potential of human beings at large. He described this transcendence and its characteristics in an essay in the posthumously published (The Farther Reaches in Human Nature). In this essay, he describes his experience as not always being transitory, but that certain individuals might have access to it, and spend more time in this state. He makes a point that these individuals experience not only ecstatic joy, but also profound, \"cosmic-sadness,\" (Maslow, 1971) at the ability of humans to foil chances of transcendence in their own lives, and in the world at large.
Source:Retreived From http://facultyweb.cortland.edu/andersmd/MASLOW/HOMEPAGE.HTML on the 6th of January 2006

I believe that this theory has a very strong link to the Die-cutters situation .The key factor for me in terms of their resistance towards the implementation of the new production method is that they feel that they will not receive the recognition that they deserve, “Look, Mr. Norwall , we know how to make this new die-cut work, but what’s in it for us?” (From Supplied text) This clearly indicates to me that they feel that they will not receive any benefit or recognition for their part in the development of the die-cut. This clearly fits into Maslow\'s Hierarchy of needs. It belongs to the Self-Actualization section of the of the pyramid (as can be seen in the above graph). This section deals with the Fulfillment of Goals and Dreams. They may feel like they deserve to be promoted for there role in the production but do not believe that they will receive their ware reward. This will have caused them to resist and not support the production of the new Die-Cut. They deliberately held back their specialized information which would help the companies wastage problem immensely .It is also relates to the second tier of the pyramid which deals with Self-Esteem. This theory is extremely relevant in the resistance the production of the new Die-Cut as these employees feel that they will not receive the recognition for their input into the development. Since a need or appreciation for attention is a major factor in this tier .The employees are longing for an appreciation for their input and will not supply information for the production ,they feel they deserve recognition either financially or public recognition for their capabilities. This clearly demonstrates that this company\'s situation in regard to the resistance of the workers can clearly apply to Maslow\'s Theory of motivation. The workers can also be related to the next level of the hierarchy of needs (Love and Relationships).While love is not involved in this situation ,relationships could be playing a crucial part in this situation as the workers may feel like the belong to a group by withholding the needed information. This is just a minor point in comparison to the previous levels. However the next level which is related to (Your Family and Work).This is perhaps the most crucial level of the pyramid as this deals with the idea of longing for a sense of trust in their future in terms of employment. This may have caused a sense of distrust towards their bosses as they where not even considered for a pay-rise for the extra work that they would have to undertake, This may have caused the workers to feel insignificant and taken for granted ,causing them to feel that progression in their workplace was unachievable. This may also cause the workers to feel insecure financially because they are paid by the amount of pieces they make in a day (because of the added time factor).\"Since the Die-Cuts were single pieces it took a great deal of time to align them and use the press for each piece. Because workers were paid by how many pieces they cut per hour”. This could have a huge significance to the workers wage at the end of the week. This could cause havoc with savings loans and cause a disturbance towards in their financial situation causing family and work problems which can only lead to further problems. This resistance on behalf of the workers can clearly be linked to the Family and work level of Maslow\'s hierarchy of needs. The next level Survival and Security does not have an impact on the workers except in the extreme scenario where an employee may loose his Home (his source of shelter and comfort)
Source: Ernest J.McCormick and Daniel Ilgen(1992) \"Industrial and Organizational Psychology\"
Great Britain: Routledge

Overall Maslow\'s \"Theory of Motivation\" has extremely significant comparisons to the Die-Cutters resistance to the production of the new Die-Cuts. It has links at all levels, while some are more important than others Maslow\'s theory gives a very good explanation of why the employees the employees have withheld information. I could have also used many other theories such as Herzberg , McClelland or Aldefer Areas such as “Need for achievement“ in McClelland and Herzbergs “Hygiene factors” could have been used but overall I felt that Maslow’s Theory of Motivation was the most applicable to the situation that the company found themselves in .



Part Two: Solving the Problem at hand
Source: Received From http://www.tutor2u.net/business/people/motivation_theory_herzberg.asp
on the 5th of January 2006



From my knowledge of motivation theories I suggest that the company use Fredrick Herzberg’s (Two Factor Theory) method of getting the Die-Cutters to adopt the new method. I have chosen this method as it specifically deals with the Work-Place. In this answer I will attempt to explain Fredrick Herzberg’s (Two Factor Theory) and how it can be used to get the Die-Cutters to give their specialized information of the production. Hopefully the die-cutters will be satisfied if all the factors of Herzberg’s theory are achieved.
The most important part of this theory of motivation is that the main motivating factors are not in the environment but in the intrinsic value and satisfaction gained from the job itself. It follows therefore that to motivate an individual, a job itself must be challenging, have scope for enrichment and be of interest to the jobholder. Motivators (sometimes called ‘satisfiers’) are those factors directly concerned with the satisfaction gained from a job, such as:
• the sense of achievement and the intrinsic value obtained from the job itself
• the level of recognition by both colleagues and management
• the level of responsibility
• opportunities for advancement
• The status provided.
Motivators lead to satisfaction because of the need for growth and a sense of self-achievement. The workers in the factory don’t have all these factors satisfied. They don’t receive the level of recognition by management for their abilities and how can You feel that your job is rewarding if you do not receive this recognition .
A lack of motivators leads to over-concentration on hygiene factors, which are those negative factors which can be seen and therefore form the basis of complaint and concern. Hygiene factors (often referred to as maintenance factors) lead to dissatisfaction with a job because of the need to avoid unpleasantness. They are referred to as hygiene factors because they can be avoided or prevented by the use of ‘hygienic’ methods. The important fact to remember is that attention to these hygiene factors prevents dissatisfaction but does not necessarily provide positive motivation.


Source: Received From http://www.tutor2u.net/business/people/motivation_theory_herzberg.asp
On the 5th of January 2006

What might the evidence of de-motivated employees be in a business?
• Low productivity
• Poor production or service quality
• Strikes / industrial disputes / breakdowns in employee communication and relationships
• Complaints about pay and working conditions
According to Herzberg, management should focus on rearranging work so that motivator factors can take effect. He suggested three ways in which this could be done:
• Job enlargement
• Job rotation AND Job enrichment

In my opinion the company has to start satisfying the workers and give them the level of recognition from management that they deserve. They need to make the workers feel
appreciated and this can be achieved by giving a wage increase to the workers or give them an hourly rate based on their knowledge of their work so they can still receive a generous bonus based on your work output and also wastage will be reduced ,(the main reason for Mr. Norwall being hired by Susan Shoshonai.)Another way to increase the die-cutters job satisfaction is to give them more responsibility .This will create a sense of achievement for the worker and therefore making him more motivated to work since they now feel as if there is a chance for promotion .These are key factors of Herzbergs Two factor theory .I feel that recognition for the workers input is the key issue holding back the production of the Die-Cut and management need to satisfy the workers and to get them to be motivated towards the companies cause .The longer they refuse to recognise their employees skills the more wastage there will be .Mr. Norwall should never have been needed to solve the wastage problem as the workers could do this the whole time. This is a sign of poor communications between management and the Die-Cutters as they could have solved the problem. If they had been better communications in the workplace (Another key component of Herzbergs theory) they could have solved the problem years ago when it first happened.
“Mr. Norwall, we tried this same thing 15 years ago and it didn’t work then either. On the first try, the die-cut broke. In fact we had 4 different cuts made and none of them worked they all broke.”



Locke (1969) once described job satisfaction as a “……pleasurable emotional state resulting from the appraisal of one’s job as achieving or facilitating the achievement of one’s job values.”

Source: G.Yukl (1971) “Organizational & Industrial Psychology”
Oxford University Press London

I feel these are the key components/theory that can used to solve the dilemma that faces the organisation in regard to the Die-Cutters Herzbergs theory fits perfectly in as the missing equation that will solve the problem for the organisation. It is the organisations job to solve the problem as they don’t have the needed information to reduce wastage and the workers do.

Sources List:

G.Yukl (1971) “Organizational & Industrial Psychology”
Oxford University Press London

Source: Received From http://www.tutor2u.net/business/people/motivation_theory_herzberg.asp
On the 5th of January 2006

Source: Received From http://www.tutor2u.net/business/people/motivation_theory_herzberg.asp
on the 5th of January 2006

Source:Retreived From http://facultyweb.cortland.edu/andersmd/MASLOW/HOMEPAGE.HTML on the 6th of January 2006

Source : Ernest J.McCormick and Daniel Ilgen(1992)\"Industrial and \" Organizational Psychology
Great Britain: Routledge

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