Contribution of Motivational Management to Employee Performance

Abstract

The relationship between motivation and performance is a universal concern and is often talked about but many organizations do not make concrete efforts to study it in detail. These organizations blindly apply the popular motivational theories without findings and instigators which would be the result of an intensive study on motivation. In today’s hyper-competitive marketplace, understanding what fosters and forwards employee motivation and thus organizational performance is critical. Motivation is about stimulating people to action and to achieve a desired task. For organizations of all sorts to be efficient and successful, enough of every person’s drives must be stimulated and satisfied to ensure effective performance. There is more emphasizes on excellent management as a major contributor to personal effectiveness, group efficiency and business success. The concept of motivational management was there in practice since the age of slavery; however, its motivation was as a result of fear, suffering and intimidation. Today, managers have at their disposal managing instruments by which they can stimulate latent efforts and performance of their teams. The research set out to investigate the contribution of motivational management to employee performance in the Vehicle Body Building industry. Dodi Autotech (K) Limited and Two M Autotech (K) Limited were identified for the study. The researcher first reviewed the relevant literature on motivation, the role of management in motivation and in particular motivational management as a factor of motivation. Questionnaires were used to collect information from the organization’s employees. The researcher interviewed the senior managers and also spent a day in the organizations’ premises observing the workers as they worked and interacted with one another. This was to gather information on behaviour and attitudes at work and towards work in the organizations. The data collected was entered and analyzed on the SPSS software, after which it was presented and interpreted using a combination of tables, bar charts and continuous prose. The Chi-square test of association was used in testing the hypothesis of the study. The result showed that employees in the two organizations of study were to a very large extent influenced to perform by a combination of intrinsic and extrinsic motivational factors applied through management initiatives. The research found the following motivational variables to have significantly influenced employee retention in both organizations; challenging/interesting work; awareness of the relationship between work, organization goals and priorities; performance progress review; performance discussions and rewards for good performance. Motivational management can influence the workplace behaviour and attitudes both positively and negatively. The researcher intends to create awareness on the importance of designing and maintaining an environment that is stress free and an environment that is conducive for optimum employee performance The research was then concluded by indicating areas of improvement and recommending management methods that enhance the employee motivation that leads to increased employee performance.