Management Assignment (500 words)

MGT210 Assignment 1: Instructions

You will find reflections from an HR manager and an employee on Millennials’ motivation and engagement in the workplace below. Use these reflections as a starting point for your Assignment 1. Notice the different views and assumptions in the two diaries. These can cause issues in the relationship between Millennials and their employers.

Assume that both the HR manager and the employee belong to the same organisation. Your focus in this assignment should be on exploring employees’ motivation, or to be specific motivation of Millennial employees. Write a report assuming that managers of this organisation are your target audience with a purpose to increase their understanding on what motivates Millennials, and what they need to do differently in the organisation to attract, motivate, and retain Millennials.

As indicated in the Subject Outline, your report should address the following:

• Discuss and apply the concept of job satisfaction to Millennial employees

• Apply Vroom's expectancy theory OR Adam's equity theory to gain further understanding of the Millennial employee’s motivation.

• Apply McClelland's acquired needs OR Herzberg's two factor theory to gain further understanding of the Millennial employee’s motivation.

• Analyse the psychological contract between the organisation and the Millennial employees

• Identify three recommendations that managers can use and apply to improve the motivation of Millennial employees (use any extrinsic and intrinsic motivators of your choice)

Employees’ Reflections

HR professional’s diary

A current theme for organisations, including my own is how we engage and motivate Millennials as the new generation, in place of baby boomers who seek to retire. Reflecting on generational difference, it is intimated that Millennials may be motivated by interesting work rather than money as previous generations.  However, in my own organisation, simply providing more interesting work is not necessarily warranted nor achievable. Therefore, consideration has been given to engaging and motivating Millennials through the implementation of flexible work arrangements, use of modern technology and social media, lifestyle incentives and more. 

Consideration is also given to the use of performance reviews as a motivational tool.  Setting specific, measurable and achievable tasks can provide a platform to enhance both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards.  Providing opportunities to act in and be paid for higher duties, assists increased social stature and possibly securing a promotion. Maintaining and/or improving motivation in these ways helps achieve performance goals and aids retention of staff.  

While there is hierarchical backing and a need to provide opportunities for employees to increase motivation in my workplace, attempts to implement processes are often flawed by a lack of underpinning knowledge, training, high workloads and/or simply failing to use the available processes.

Because of this, employees believe there is lack of equity and or justice within the organisation and employees often lose interest in the workplace.  They appear demotivated and their intrinsic and extrinsic motivators no longer seem achievable, why put in the effort for little or no reward.  This reduction of effort often leads to performance concerns, fulfilling a managers’ sometimes misguided belief that they have a “poor performer” rather than untapped motivation.

Millennial employee’s diary

Recently I have questioned whether there was a conscious effort made by management towards understanding my motivation in the workplace.  If management took the time to understand what motivates their employees, they would become aware that my need for achievement is high as I value personal responsibility and being rewarded for challenging tasks.  At the same time I am motivated altruistically towards working in environments that foster relationships that enable me to make a difference within an ethical culture. My psychological contract and therefore my moral motivation diminished as management did not understand what motivated me. Furthermore, witnessing situations whereby management condoned unethical behaviours and made myself and others feel demoralised had the effect of reducing higher level needs such as confidence and a sense of value that culminated in a further loss of motivation. Furthermore, extrinsic motivators such as pay did not transcend my views or dilute the moral viewpoint as there were no intrinsic motivators.  I have now left the organisation and am looking for a new job to fulfil my motivational needs.