Motivation Theories - Understanding the Expectancy and Equity Theories of Motivation

Before we go in to look at the Expectancy theory and the Equity theory  in detail, it is thus vital to understand what ‘process theories' are in the first place, as the Expectancy theory and the Equity theory are both process theories. Hence so in general, the process theories are basically concerned with how the people think and behave to get what they want. To say, these theories do go to explain how the employees/people are motivated thus focussing on the process by which motivation occurs. In other words, it could also be said that these theories explain why the employees behave the way they do. However, the process theories do help the managers to basically understand, predict and influence employee performance, job satisfaction and other outcomes paving way to help motivate the employees.Having said that, let us now look at each of the two theories seperately in order to better understand the two  and their contributions to help motivate employees.

Vroom's Expectancy Theory
The Expectancy theory is a process theory developed by Victor Vroom. Unlike the other content theories which focuses on the needs of the individuals in order to motivate human/employees, this theory basically concentrates on the outcomes. What Vroom  explained in his theory is that fact that in order to motivate employees/ people the effort put in by the employees, the performance generated and motivation must be linked to one another. In other  words Vroom basically proposed three variables which in turn was vital  to motivate  employees. They are basically,
·         Expectancy
·         Instrumentality
·         Valence
Having said that, Expectancy is  the believe  that increased effort will basically lead to increased performance. In other words, the more the effort put in, the more the performance will be. For example, an employee assumes that if he works  harder the  better the performance will be. But believing that increased effort will lead to increased performance is mainly influenced by  factors such as having the right amount of resources available, having the right skills to carry out the job and the necessary support of the supervisor etc. Without these, it is unlikely that expectancy could be achieved.
Likewise, Instrumentality is the believe  that if you perform well in a task then the outcome is going to be good.  In other words, a valued outcome is received the more you perform the task well. At the same time, instrumentality is also influenced by factors such as having a clear understanding of the relationship between performance and outcome and trusting the people who will basically decide on the who gets what outcome.
Valence on the other hand is basically the importance that the individuals place on the expected outcome. In other words, meaning to say that how do the employees take the outcomes offered to them for their task performance. For example, an employee may be motivated by recognition. If so the case, then  the employee may not value a rise in pay because it is not the most important to him. At times, they may even go to reduce the effort they put in according to how they value the outcomes received.
Having said that,  the employees in an organization will only be motivated if they tend to believe that,
·         By putting in more effort will lead to better performance.
·         Better job performance will lead to better rewards such as better salaries, benefits etc.

·         And the predicted organizational rewards are valued by the employee.
By any chance if  the employees happen to believe that any one of the above are not true, then Vroom states that the employees are unlikely to be motivated. In other words, meaning to say that in order to motivate the employees all of above three have to be achieved by the organization.
Adam's Equity Theory
The Equity theory  developed by Adam in 1963  is based on the idea that employees basically expects a fair balance between their inputs and outputs. In other words, what exactly means by is that the employees are likely to be de-motivated  both in relation to their employer and the job if they happen to believe that their inputs ( effort, loyalty, hard work, commitment, ability, adaptability, tolerance, flexibility, skills etc)  are greater than their outputs( salary, benefit, recognition, reputation, responsibility, sense of achievement, sense of advancement/growth, job security, praise etc).
The employees usually  compare themselves with the other employees who are likely to put in  similar inputs as they do and the outputs they receive. Meaning to say that,  an employee will basically compare himself/ herself with another employee in order to find out whether he/she has been treated fairly. However, this actually does not mean that all employees have to be treated the same way and given exactly what is being to the other employees. This is because all employees are not motivated by the same outputs expected by the other employees. For example, a newly working mother may look for something like flexible hours more than an in crease in pay.
However, even though employees may seek for a balance between  their inputs and outputs it is not always possible to measure the inputs and out puts of the employees  and provide them with the correct  balance . But still it is possible to give a similar output for the inputs of the employee in order to have a fair balance between the two. Having said that, in order to motivate the employees to higher levels  and which eventually lead to enhance the performance, it is thus important to try and give a fair outcome  for the inputs of the employees. In order to do so, the managers must understand the employees better of what are they aiming for and try and give them the best possible out come according to what they expect.
Finally,  it should be said that both the Expectancy theory and the Equity theory do provide the managers with an insight of how to motivate the employees not by concentrating on the needs of the employees but rather the outcomes. In other means, the managers basically get to understand what exactly have to be done or the actions taken when it comes to motivating employees, by way of outcomes. To say, when it comes to the expectancy theory this theory highlights the fact that in order to motivate the employees the managers should basically tie the rewards to performance. In other means, the employees need to be rewarded according to how they perform meaning to say that the better they perform the better the rewards should be. In spite of that the manager should also ensure that the rewards given to the employees are deserved and wanted by the employees. Not only that , but the managers should also conduct training programs which will eventually improve the capabilities of the employees while making them to understand that the more the effort the better the performance will be. Like wise, the equity theory also goes on to say that if the employees are to be motivated then it is time for the managers to try and provide the employees with rewards that are very much equal to  their inputs as far as possible.
By Shameena Silva

Job Analysis Methods

Do you want to learn about the different job analysis methods that human resource professionals use in order to define jobs and profile them? Read the following article that provides you with a quick overview of them.

Before learning about the different methods, it is important to understand the concept of job analysis. It refers to the systematic study of different jobs to understand the work activities, tasks, and responsibilities that need to be undertaken by employees for the same. It also defines the qualities and characteristics needed in order to ensure that the work performance of the employees reaches optimum levels.

These methods help ensure that the right candidate is hired for a job. In plain and simple terms, it is a systematic technique to gather information, and identify those qualities that are needed in order to perform a job. When such different techniques are employed, the analysis is done on the basis of the demand of the job at that time and not as per its demand if it were in another organization or as it was in the past. This is not a subjective study of just one person who is doing the job, nor does it analyze thought processes or traits of a person.

So, what are the different advantages? The data that is made available to the organization after this analysis helps in the decision-making process. It also serves as a way to help different organizations cope with the changes that occur as a result of the changes in technology and needs of the world. They need reliable information that can help them design profiles for various jobs. Not receiving complete information about a job can result in its incorrect evaluation that, in turn, can result in unfair pay scales. Besides setting the pay scale of the organization, information obtained as a result of this process is useful in recruiting, planning of organizational hierarchy, designing jobs, training, settling grievances, and other such programs. It is also helpful in ensuring job satisfaction in employees.

Common Methods

There are several of them that are employed to analyze the demand of the job. These include interviews, questionnaires, observation, investigations, etc. It is generally common for most professionals in human resources management to use a group of methods for this purpose. Such a professional may actually observe employees for the analysis and then, interview them to understand what they believe that the job needs. This means that the person conducting the analysis uses both observation and interviews for this purpose. He may actually back these techniques with employee surveys and meetings with psychologists, in order to detail out the profile obtained as a result of job analysis. The different commonly used methods are described below:

Observation
One of the most commonly used techniques, a person trained for the job will observe the employee and make records of all the tasks he performs and the methods he employs to perform them. If the professional observing employs the method of continuous observation, then he will observe the employee for a long period of time, which is specified and if he employs a technique that is commonly called sampling, then he will observe different employees, performing the same jobs across periods.

Interview
As the name suggests, in this method, the professional conducting the analysis interviews an employee, trying to understand the different skills that the employee needs to use in order to perform his tasks. It is, generally, advisable to interview more than one person to get a reliable pool of data, as the answers to the questions asked will be subjective. You can also conduct group interviews, where every employee contributes towards building the profile. This is one of the common methods for police officers and other security and defense forces job profiling.

Questionnaire
This is another commonly used technique, where the analyst frames a questionnaire with standard, structured questions that help identify the tasks related to the job and also, the time they spend on performing it. In this type of questionnaire, the employee sticks to answering the questions in the list. An open-ended questionnaire will have the employee describing his job and tasks involved in his own words.

Other techniques that are commonly used are critical incidents, wherein the analyst defines a job on the basis of the behavior needed to perform it. Maintaining a diary is also a common method, where employees are asked to record activities and tasks that they perform as part of their job. Often, experts are hired to provide information about the job profile and the characteristics needed in an employee performing it. These are just some of the most commonly used techniques. There are other more specialized methods that enable professionals to define the job better.
Read more at Buzzle: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/job-analysis-methods.html

And don't forget to check the best jobs online. Here's the list of favourite  10 job searches for the US internet users:

Manager, Houston

Customer Service, Chicago

Contract Recruiter, Los Angeles

Design, New York

Insurance, Houston

IT, Atlanta

Medical, Oakland

IT, Indianapolis

Insurance, Chicago

IT, Columbus

 

What is Human Resource Management?

Human Resource Management (HRM) is considered as the heart of a company. This article tells you what this concept exactly means and why it is so important for any organization.

Human resource management is a broad term and is based on the effective deployment of workers or employees to accomplish the objectives of a company. It is present in each and every organization; there is no company which does not have a human resource department. Its primary function is to efficaciously utilize the talents and capabilities of the employees to achieve the planned goals of the organization. It ensures that the employee is comfortable and satisfied with the working conditions and the policies regarding compensation and benefits which are offered to him.

Concept

HRM plays a very important role in managing, controlling, and developing the workforce, which significantly contributes to the existence and profitability of the organization. They are in continuous contact with the top-level management and are responsible for assisting them in running the business efficiently. They are also responsible for attracting skilled workers, carrying out recruitment and induction procedures, training and development, and settlement of the employee in a particular work environment where he feels comfortable.

Sections of the Department

In most companies, the human resource department is further divided into two main sections depending on the type of duties and responsibilities it carries out. The first one is the HR administration group, which is responsible for taking care of employees' general work-related needs and issues such as payroll, working conditions, and conflicts between them and the supervisors or the top management. Whereas the other section is responsible for handling the recruitment function, training employees on corporate policies, providing information about the company in induction sessions, behavioral trainings, etc. In this way, they handle most of the functions in an establishment, and as a result, the top management highly depends on them.

There are some cases wherein the obligations of the HR department come in contrast with each other. There can be some instances where it is not possible to conclude an appropriate resolution that is suitable for both, the objectives of the organization and the wants or needs of the employees. At this stage, the department needs to be very careful on what decision it takes, as it may have an adverse effect on either the management or the company's workforce. This is where the skills, talents, and abilities of the HR personnel come into play, as they need to be able to satisfy the top management along with the staff, thereby, maintaining a healthy relationship between them.

Whenever, any department in the company requires qualified manpower, they approach the recruitment section who then start their process by calling potential candidates, shortlisting eligible ones, conducting HR and functional interviews, selecting worthy candidates, and introducing them as new-joinees of the company. In this way, they provide the company with an efficient workforce who can improve and maintain its standard of performance. They also handle disciplinary procedures, employee motivation, health insurance, retirement, and profit sharing processes. The department ensures that the decisions taken by them are according to the organization's rules and regulations, which is included in its information handbook. The HR personnel also assist and guide employees regarding company policies on leave and holidays, insurance, benefits and allowances, etc.

In this way, human resource management is very crucial in any organization, be it from the services or manufacturing arena. There are many other functions that this department carries out, which are important for the smooth running of a company.