Role And Importance Of Motivation In Project Management

Significance of Motivation in Project Management

Question:

Critically discuss and Analyse the Role and importance of Motivation In Project Management.

Motivation of the employees and project team members play a significant role in the success of the projects. This also helps the organizations to grow. Employee retention has become a challenging factor for the organizations (Ganta 2014). Globalization has increased the demand of the human resources, but at the same time employee motivation has become a catalyst for the improvement of employee performance and for the success of the projects. Leaders are said to motivate the employees and help to lead to project success. Motivated employees have seen to be high achievers. Motivation is considered to be an external or internal factor that stimulates energy and desire in individuals to constantly remain interested as well as committed to a role or job. There are motivational theories such as Maslow’s needs hierarchy and Herzberg’s two factor theory that explains how individuals and project team members can be motivated (Ozguner and Ozguner 2014).  Several leadership styles also help in motivating the employees.

This report tries to find a solution for motivating Tom, who is an inexperience new employee and Harriet, who is an experienced project manager by using various motivation theories. This report shows the role played by various theoretical models of motivation in project management. It also discusses the role of leadership and communication process in motivation. This report discusses about various styles of leadership and shows which leadership style can motivate Tom and Harriet.

Motivation is considered to be a process by which people are stimulated to actions for accomplishing their goals. Motivated parties are needed to be induced for performing actions. Several desires of the people like desire for success, recognition, job satisfaction and money motivate them to perform better and achieve their goals (Dinibutun 2012). One of the main functions of organizations is to develop a sense of willingness amongst the staffs and employees so that they give their best performance for the organizational growth as well as their own benefits. In order to get motivated, an individual must feel the desire or need to achieve goals. This need or desire needs to be aroused through some actions. Motivation can be considered to be a psychological process or phenomenon (Reeve 2014). There are mainly two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation is developed when people find their work to be interesting and are satisfied with their work. Extrinsic motivation needs external rewards that help the people to get motivated and perform better.

Motivational Theories

Motivation plays a significant role in the success of projects and leads to organizational growth. Motivated employees perform better than the unmotivated employees. Project managers are responsible for motivating their project team members and employees. They apply different leadership styles and utilize power to influence their team (Dörnyei and Ushioda 2013). Motivation can be enhanced by using participative style of leadership. Intrinsic motivation is considered to be highly beneficial as the team members are directly connected to the goal or cause of the project. Rewards do not play any role in intrinsic motivation. Projects are said to operate in a hybrid system. Project managers are expected to optimize motivation rather than maximizing it. They can directly influence motivation by giving feedback, offering rewards and allowing autonomy (Schunk and Zimmerman 2012). Project management has several stages, and different leadership styles and approaches are applied depending on the stage. Project managers must identify the type of approach that needs to be applied depending on which stage the project is currently present. In order to achieve project success, the project managers must be able to influence motivation in the team throughout all the stages of the project. Participation and engagement of the project team members play a major role in influencing motivation and in the success of the project.  Clear communication during the initial stage of the project also helps in motivating the team members. Support from top management and clear scope of project also act as the key influencer of motivation. Poorly motivated project teams face difficulty in achieving the project goal and leads to failure of the project in most cases. Project managers are mainly responsible for harnessing initial motivation and maintaining the motivation throughout the project in order to get accomplishment (Dobre 2013). Project teams and organizations can achieve excellence through the process of motivation.

The theoretical models of motivation can be utilized in an effective manner for motivating the project staffs. Some of the motivational theories are discussed below.

1) Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: According to this theory, people can get motivated once their needs are satisfied. Maslow divided the needs of the individuals into various levels. This theory says that the individuals move to next level after meeting the need of the present level (Lester 2013). The first level of needs is the physiological needs or basic needs like food and shelter. In the context of project management, the first level needs will be salary of the employees. The second level of needs is the safety needs like fair work practices, safe and healthy work environment. The third level of needs is the belongingness needs where project staffs expect to develop a friendly and cooperative relationship with the other team members. After meeting the first three levels of needs, project staffs try to meet the self esteem needs like respect, recognition and prestigious job titles (Jerome 2013). The last level of need is the self-actualization needs like workplace autonomy, challenging work and other achievement issues that will bring out the best in the project staffs.   

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Figure 1: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

(Source: Lester 2013, p.16)

In the given case study, Tom is a new graduate and does not have much work experience. He does not seem to be motivated towards achieving his goals. A feedback mechanism must be used to understand whether the needs and requirements of Tom are getting fulfilled or not. Tom must be provided with sufficient salary so that he feels motivated to achieve the next level of need (Lester 2013). Tom must be made to feel a part of the project team by encouraging him to participate in the decision making process. Challenging and innovative tasks must be assigned to Tom so that he develops interest in his work and does not waste his time in other activities (Jerome 2013). The incentive schemes and policies must be made clear to Tom so that he feels motivated to work and achieve targets. If Tom achieves a single level of need, then he will get motivated to move to another level in the hierarchy. In the given case study, Harriet is an experienced and well skilled project manager but is not giving much effort to carry out her work. One reason can be that she was not praised and given recognition for her previous efforts and achievements.  Harriet can be offered new kinds of tasks and can be asked to participate in generating innovative ideas so that she is able to meet the self esteem and self-actualization needs. Tom needs to be motivated to achieve the first three levels of needs and Harriet must be motivated to achieve the last two levels of needs.

2) Herzberg’s Theory: This theory discusses two such factors called motivation and hygiene factors. Hygiene factors can be considered to be the components of dissatisfaction (Ozguner and Ozguner 2014). Salary, job security and company policy can be considered to be the hygiene factors. Non-fulfilment of any of these needs will cause dissatisfaction among the employees and demotivate them (Yusoff, Kian and Idris 2013). Motivation factors are responsibility, recognition, promotion, advancement opportunity and growth. In order to motivate Tom and Harriet, the dissatisfaction factors must be eliminated and the motivation factors must be created. Challenging work and responsibility will be able to motivate Tom. The other team members must try to build good inter-personal relationship with Tom. The other hygiene factors must be fulfilled so that Tom does not feel disinterested in his work. The motivation factors that will be effective in case of Harriet are recognition, growth and status. Harriet must be given considerable recognition for her experience and skills. This will motivate Harriet to take interest in her work and she will be motivated to use her skills to help in the success of the project.

Herzberg’s Theory

Figure 2: Herzberg’s Theory

(Source: Yusoff, Kian and Idris 2013, p.19)

3)  Vroom’s Expectancy Theory: Expectancy theory deals around three main factors like valence, expectancy and instrumentality. According to this theory, people will give their efforts based on their perception of the probability of receiving desired outcomes (Yung Chou and Pearson 2012). The first stage of outcome is based on performance of the employees. The second stage of outcome is based on the external or extrinsic benefits that are given to the employees (HemaMalini and Washington 2014). The expectations of the employees are turned into motivation. This theory explains the importance of employee perception. It helps the project managers to get an insight into the needs and perception of the employees (Parijat and Bagga 2014). Expectancy theory can be used to understand the perceptions and concerns of Tom and Harriet. The concerns of Tom and Harriet must be addressed and time must be taken to understand the reason for their disinterest in work. Proper communication must be done to make them understand that they will be benefitted from the work they do. Tom must be assigned such works in which he is interested in and he must be told about the benefits of doing his job in an efficient manner. Harriet is an experienced project manner and she must be given recognition for motivation. She did not seem to be showing dedication towards her work may be because the organization was not being able to fulfil her expectation. Harriet’s concerns must be addressed and understood for fulfilling her expectations. If she understands that the work she is doing will lead her to success and help her achieve personal goals then she will get motivated to work. Motivated employees will play a significant role in the success of the project.    

Figure 3: Vroom’s Expectancy Model

(Source: Yung Chou and Pearson 2012, p.1171)

4) Reinforcement Theory: This theory states that behaviour of an individual is related to the consequences. It says that if a particular behaviour of an individual is followed by a positive outcome or consequence then it tends to take place again (Barto 2013). This theory does not concentrate on the internal feelings of an individual. It is more focused on the actions that are taken after a particular behaviour of an individual. Harriet must be praised for her specific achievements immediately. She must be rewarded for the positive actions that she takes and negative reinforcement must be applied because of her absenteeism. This will encourage her to repeat the positive actions and motivate her to contribute to the success of the project (Wei and Yazdanifard 2014). Tom must be encouraged to come to office early and must be immediately praised for showing positive behaviour. This will motivate Tom as well as Harriet to repeat their positive actions and behaviours and lead to the success of project.

Vroom’s Expectancy Theory

Figure 4:  Reinforcement Theory

(Source: Barto 2013, p.19)

5) Scientific Management: This theory states that the efficiency of activities must be maximized and this can be achieved through subsequent analysis, recording and measurement. According to this theory, workers must be matched to their jobs and they must be trained before carrying out their work (Tadajewski and Jones 2012). This theory says that monetary rewards will play a major role in motivating the employees. Tom must be trained and his role must be based on his capabilities. This will help to motivate him. According to this theory, Harriet can be motivated through monetary rewards.

Leadership can be considered to be a process that helps an executive to direct, influence and guide the work and behaviour of the organizational people towards the achievement of goals that are specific depending on the situation (Alghazo and Al-Anazi 2016). Leadership is a capability and quality of influencing and inducing the subordinates and group of people to work with zeal and confidence. Leadership qualities can persuade others to achieve defined objectives in an enthusiastic manner. Leaders have a different charm and personality that help them to create a positive impact on the people and help them to succeed and grow in life (Buble, Juras, and Mati? 2014). Two broad categories of leaders are transformational and transactional leaders. Transactional leaders are task-oriented. They promote compliance with the organizational objectives and encourage performance through rewards (Chaudhry and Javed 2012). Transformational leaders focus on the motivation of the employees. These leaders bring vision of the near future and create a proper plan for achieving the vision. These types of leaders try to enhance the capabilities of the employees. There are various leadership styles as discussed below:

1) Autocratic style: This style is followed by such leaders who prefer to give order and want everyone to follow their orders with obedience. They make the policies and plans on their own without taking the suggestion of others (Northouse 2015). They give orders without explaining the reason. They believe in dictatorship. They are only responsible for giving direction to the subordinates (Rast III, Hogg and Giessner 2013). They have an authoritarian nature. They do not believe in giving recognition to the employees and team members. Employees feel inferior and do not perform well under this kind of leadership style.

2) Democratic style: Leaders who follow this style is considered to be the best kind of leaders theoretically. They believe in asking their group for opinions. The leader does not believe in giving orders or dictating the group (Bhatti et al. 2012). Democratic leaders believe in taking suggestions from others. The group under this kind of leader is free to make decisions in a democratic manner.

Role of Leadership and Communication Process in Motivation

3) Participative style: This style is followed by such leaders who encourage their team members and employees to participate in decision making processes. The participative leader considers the opinions of all the team members and takes the best decision by making use of this information (McCleskey 2014). Participative leaders always keep the group informed about the decision which they are going to make and give them the reason for taking such decisions. It has been seen that participative leadership has huge positive effect on the performance of the employees.

Leadership has a significant impact on employee motivation. There is no particular leadership style that can be applied in every situation. The leadership style should match the objective of the team (Naile and Selesho 2014).  Autocratic leadership style does not involve the employees in any decision making process. These kinds of leaders are less creative and like dictating. This kind of leadership plays an effective role when quick decisions are needed to be taken (Bhatti et al 2012). This kind of leadership style demotivates the employees and their performance level decreases. Employees get involved in repetitive tasks and lose their creativity. This style brings restriction in the workplace communication as well as socialization. Autocratic leadership style decreases the productivity of the project team. Democratic leadership promotes responsibility sharing in the organization (Buble, Juras and Mati? 2014). They do not make any decision without considering the opinions of the employees. Democratic leadership style motivates the employees and helps to improve the productivity of the project team. This is creative method of solving complex issues. Participative leadership has proved to be unproductive in achieving short term targets and goals (Gonos and Gallo 2013).  Here the employees are encourages to play a major role in the process of decision making. There is effective communication in the organization. This type of leadership style leads to motivated, more skilled and satisfied employees. It creates an optimistic work environment and promotes creativity. This is time consuming process and is highly effective in achieving long term goals.

Autocratic leadership is effective in case of new and inexperienced employees. It has been seen in the case study that Tom is an inexperience new employee. Autocratic leadership style should be applied in order to motivate him to work (Buble, Juras and Mati? 2014). This will help to increase his productivity and help in the success of the project. Participative leadership should be applied in case of Harriet, who is an experienced project manager. She should be given the opportunity to make crucial decisions regarding the project and give innovative solutions. Participative leadership styles will be able to motivate Harriet and improve her skills and productivity (Alghazo and Al-Anazi 2016).  Top performers of an organization are motivated through participative leadership style. Participative as well as transformational leadership styles are more likely to motivate employees and create a social atmosphere in the workplace. Participative leadership style will improve the process and effectiveness of communication in the organization. Effective communication will increase the level of motivation among the employees. Motivation and employee productivity are correlated.

Different Stages of Project Management

Conclusion

This report concludes that highly motivated employees will give better performance and contribute in the success of the project. This report has used several motivation theories to find out the ways to motivate Tom and Harriet. It has discussed about the Maslow’s need of motivation, Herzberg’s two-factor theory, reinforcement theory as well as scientific management theory. This report has also discussed about the autocratic, democratic as well as participative leadership styles. Participative leadership style is found out to be the most effective style and helps to motivate the employees. It can be concluded from this report that Tom can be motivated by using the autocratic leadership style as he is new and inexperience. Harriet is an experienced and well skilled employee, and participative leadership style will help to motivate her. This report also said that positive reinforcement can be used for encouraging positive behaviour and motivating the employees. Project can achieve success by eliminating the dissatisfaction factors and by maximizing the motivational factors in the organizations. Status, responsibility, recognition and promotion will be able to motivate the employees and the team members to perform better and this will lead to the success of the projects. This report gave an overview of how motivation can be developed and the role played by various leadership styles and communication process in the motivation process and also to achieve project success.

1) Tom is a new graduate and has little work experience. He can be motivated by providing lucrative incentives and rewards for good performance. He must be encouraged to participate in effective business processes of the organization so that he finds interest in his work. He must be given challenging tasks so that he gains experience.

2) Harriet is an experienced project manager and she can be motivated through recognitions and personal growth. Harriet can be given more responsibilities so that she works hard.  Participative leadership style should be applied for motivating Harriet. 

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