Assessing the Role of Motivation on

Employee Performance

By

Shaheryar Khalid

Project paper submitted in partial

fulfillment of the requirements

for the degree of

Master of Business Administration

[name of university]

[year]

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Table of contents

CHAPTER 01: INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................. 2

1.1. Background of the Study .................................................................................................. 2

1.2. Problem Statement ........................................................................................................... 4

1.3. Study Purpose ................................................................................................................... 4

1.4. Study Significance............................................................................................................ 5

1.5. Research Questions .......................................................................................................... 5

1.6. Scope of the Study............................................................................................................ 5

1.7. Brief Description of Research Methodology ................................................................... 6

1.8. Limitation of the Study .................................................................................................... 6

1.9. Research Structure............................................................................................................ 6

1.10. Time scale ........................................................................................................................ 7

References ...................................................................................................................................... 9

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CHAPTER 01: INTRODUCTION

1.1. Background of the Study

In this modern era, the business and organizational operations all around the globe are

very tough and challenging, since they are evolving at a very rapid rate. The internal and external

factors are continuously evolving and varying, which is challenging the development of the

organizations and businesses in terms of revenue growth. For maintaining a reputable image in

the global or local market, the organizations have to maintain the rate of their growth and for this

they have to bring in all the resources (Cadwallader, Jarvis, Bitner, & Ostrom, 2010, pp.219-

239). Human, financial and physical resources are the three areas where every organization

should excel for ensuring a sustainable growth in the market. The management of the working

staff of organization is the main quest for the modern managers. The effective management of

employees require skillful handling of the thoughts, approach and sentiments, so that the highest

productivity levels can be achieved successfully by the effective utilization of the total work

force of the organization. For achieving full and profitable concentration of the employees, the

motivation factors are very important since the motivation of an employee towards its work can

bring the best results for any organization. The motivated staff of any organization is a precious

asset which is of immense value for the organization (O'Neil, & Drillings, 2012).

Motivation is referred to a desire of any individual for achieving something fruitful, by

putting in efforts. Motivation, according to many scholars, is one of the most vital elements of

performance. The individuals having the passion of becoming the high performers have the

desire and the energy combined in the form of high level of motivation through which they are

able to attain the objectives and goals they set for themselves (Sara, et al. 2004, pp. 381394).

Thus, employee motivation can be defined as a reflection of the level of energy, pledge, and

originality that the workers of an organization bring into account during their jobs. The levels of

motivation affect the behaviors of the employees in a great deal and thus the motivation level can

be directly related with the different levels of employee performance within any organization.

The major issue, as highlighted by many scholars is that most of the managements fail to

communicate the employees about what is expected of them (Cadwallader, Jarvis, Bitner, &

Ostrom, 2010, pp.219-239), which results in low levels of performance. In other cases, the

organizations fail to deliver their employees what they promise, which ultimately results in

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decreased levels of motivation among the employees. Therefore, it is the core responsibility of

the management to keep the motivation levels elevated among their employees (Gilbert,

Halliday, Heavey, & Murphy, 2011).

The fact that every individual has a different role in any organization makes this subject

more interesting. Thus means that there are several factors, over a wide range, which can affect

the motivation levels of employees within a certain working environment. For some,

acknowledgment and appreciation is all it takes to motivate them. For others, a material reward

is more important rather than just the exchange of appreciating words. Having a quality human

resource is very important for organizations in order to have a competitive advantage over the

others in the market (Phil, 2007 pp.109-111). A lack of motivation among the employees can

lead to devastating effects for an organization in terms of low output, less interest in the

organizational operations and intentional faulty work. All these factors prove to harm the

productivity of the organization and are detrimental to the success of the organization (Gilbert,

Halliday, Heavey, & Murphy, 2011).

The topic of employee motivation and its relation with the performance of the employees

themselves and the organization has been studied and researched quite comprehensively.

Halfway the twentieth century the initial motivational theories started to develop and the most

prominent of them were Maslows hierarchy of needs (1943), Herzbergs two-factor theory

(1959) and Vrooms expectancy theory (1964). These theories were related to the motivation of

an individual and the motivation of employees in specific. In the literature, motivation has been

defined many times and Herzberg (1959) defined employee motivation as the will to perform any

work. The scholars and theorists have agreed that the employee motivation can be classified into

two types: intrinsic and extrinsic (Bedeian, 1993). Staw states that Herzbergs Two-Factor

Theory (1959) helped in making this classification of the employee motivation. However, the

relatively recent years have focuses on the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.

The most important point here is that how these two types of employee motivation can

contribute in raising the levels of employees performance (Antoncic, & Antoncic, 2011, pp.589-

607). It is a fact that the relation between employee motivation and job performance has been

studied in the past, but adequate correlations have not been established. However, recent studies

have concluded about the positive correlation between these two (Oldham, Nottenburg, Kassner,

Ferris, Fedor, & Masters, 1982, pp.84-111). This relationship, between the employee motivation

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n and the performance of employee is studied in this thesis and the factors which increase the

motivation of the employees are also acutely discussed (Cruz, Prez, & Cantero, 2009, pp.478-

490).

1.2. Problem Statement

Effective employee management results in a competitive advantage by having a

motivated and enthusiastic workforce. The major problem in this context is to find out the factors

which are responsible for increasing and decreasing the motivation level of employees within an

organization, and that how these factors influence the performance of the employees within that

organization?

1.3. Study Purpose

The main reason behind choosing this topic is curiosity to know how an organization

motivates its employees. In todays recessionary period, organizations are reducing cost by

reducing number of employees. Employees who survive downsizing have burden of work load

on them. There must be some factors that motivate them in achieving the goals of the company

as they perform the job of two people.

There are some organizations that do not use motivational factors to motivate their staff.

They undermine the importance of involving employees and practicing good retention strategies.

Absence of motivational factors cause high turnover of employees and it also de-motivates and

reduces productivity of the employees. Understanding the concept of motivation and its

implication in an organization is very important. This research paper can be used as the guide to

understand the concept of motivation and to explore its different facets. Understanding

motivation and its different facets is imperative because it is this concept of motivation that helps

managers to drive their employees towards optimal performance. To create the quest of optimal

performance among employees a manger must know each and every detail about motivation,

when to provide