Reinforcement and Employees Essay Example for Free

Reinforcement and Employees EssayQ3. What tools does Walmart engage to motivate employees? How might a lack of motivation affect associates and how should managers respond? Give me a W Give me an A Give me an L Give me a squiggly Give me an M Give an A Give me an R Give me a T Whats that spell? Walmart Whose Walmart is it? Its my Walmart Whos number one? The customer Always The good snips continue at Walmart, and so do hard work and achievement. For many employees, seeing peers rewarded for a job puff up done proves highly motivational. Executives at Walmart refer to the company as one big family. There ar no grunts or gophers no employee, no matter how new, is thought of as low person on the totem. According to the companys open door constitution, each associates are pull aheadd to speak freely, carry on concerns, and express ideas for improving daily operations. In return, they can expect managers to treat all discussions fairly with an open mind. The policy is right out of Waltons playbook. Listen to your associates, Walton urged. Theyre the best idea generators.The founders wisdom is routinely reaffirmed finished the oft-repeated quote that nonhing constructive happens in Bentonville a reference to Walton headquarters. In Waltons grass roots ethic, local employees are the ones most likely to adduce fresh ideas. unity significant way managers can meet higher motivational needs is to shift power down from the top of organization and share it with employees to en equal to(p) them to achieve goals. Empowerment is power sharing, the delegation of power or authority to subordinates in an organization. Increasing employee motivation for task accomplishment beca use of goods and services people ameliorate their own effectiveness, choosing how to do a task and using their creativity. Empowerment is one way managers promote self- reinforcer and self- efficacy, as defined in the discussion of affable learning.Empowering employees involves givi ng them four elements that enable them to act more freely accomplish their jobs information knowledge, power, and rewards. First of all, employees put one across information about company deed. In companies where employees are fully empowered, all employees acquire access to all financial and operational information. Secondly, employees feel knowledge and skills to contribute to company goals. Companies use training programs and separate cultivation tools to cooperate people acquire the knowledge and skills they need to contribute to organizational performance. The third motivation is employees have the power to make substantive decision. Empowered employees have the authority to directly influence work procedures and organizational performance, such as through quality circles or self- directed work teams. And last but not least, employees are rewarded based on company performance. Organizations that empower workers often reward them based on the results shown in the companys bottom line. Organizations may in like manner use other motivational compensation programs described in Exhibit 16.8 to tie employee efforts to company performance.Exhibit 16.8Many of todays organizations are implementing sanction programs, but they are empowering workers to varying degrees. At some companies, empowerment office encouraging workers idea while managers retain final authority for decisions at others it core giving employees almost complete freedom and power to make decisions and exercise initiative and imagination. Current methods of empowerment fall along a continuum, as illustrated in exhibit 16.9 . The continuum runs from posture in which front- line workers have almost no discretion, such as on a traditional assembly line, to full empowerment, where workers even off bulgeicipate in formulating organizational strategy.Exhibit 16.9Perhaps the most important liaisons managers can do to enhance organizational communication and dialogue can encourage people to communicate honestly with one another. Subordinates leave behind feel free to transmit prejudicious as well as corroborative message to managers without fear of retribution. Efforts to develop interpersonal skills among employees can also foster openness, honesty, and trust. Second, managers should develop and use formal communication channels in all direction. Scandinavian Designs uses two newsletters to reaching employees. Dana Holding Corporation developed the Here a Thought board- called a HAT rack- to get ideas and feedback from workers. Other techniques include direct mail, bulletin boards, blogs, and employee surveys. Third, managers should encourage the use of multiple channels including both formal and informal communications. Multiple communication channels include written directives, face- to- face discussions, and the grapevine. For example, managers at GMs Packard electric plant use multimedia, including a monthly newspaper, frequent meeting of employees teams and an electronic news display in the cafeteria. Sending messages through multiple channels increases the likeliness that they lead be properly received.Fourth, the structure should fit communication needs. An organization can be designed to use teams, task forces, project managers, or matrix structure as needed to facilitate the horizontal flow of information for coordination and problem solving. Structure should also reflect information need. When team or subdivision task are difficult, a decentralized structure should be implemented to encourage discussion and participation. Empowerment is the routine of distributing decision-making power throughout an organization. It is a process which enables employees to invest personal work goals, make minor decisions and to solve conflicts by using their personal authority. Team Bonuses, in situations in which employees should cooperate with each other and isolating employee performance is more difficult, companies are increasingly resor ting to tying employee pay to team performance. For example, in 2007, Wal-Mart gave bonuses to around 80% of their associates based on store performance. If employees have a reasonable ability to influence their teams performance level, these programs may be effective.One way Wal-Mart facilitates respect for an individual is through an open-door policy that allows employees of all levels to communicate with managers in higher levels of the company. This open-door policy is also a way of keeping unions from forming in the company. The philosophy is that when employees have avenues for expressing their complaints and problems, there will be no reason to have union representatives (Cray, 2000 Slater, 2003). However, people may question how effective this policy is, because employees still attempt to form unions. Walton also believed in the brilliance of having a clear flow of communication with his workers, claiming that the more information they received the harder they would work f or him. The more they know, the more theyll understand, he said. The more they understand, the more theyll care. Once they care, theres no stopping them. To Walton, the free flow of information surrounded by him and his workers demonstrated the trust and respect he had for them. Without that trust, Walton felt he could not succeed. teaching is power, and the gain you get from empowering your associates more than offsets the risk of informing your competitor, he said.For Walton, the bottom line was to appreciate his workers and to make them feel valued. He knew that a paycheck and course options alone would not guarantee loyalty or hard work. Instead, he agnise the importance of making sure his workers knew they were appreciated. Nothing else can quite taciturnity for a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise, he said. Theyre absolutely free and worth a fortune. By having motivated and loyal employees, Walton could then use them as his secret weapon. The folks on t he front lines the ones who actually talk to the customer are the only ones who really know whats going on out there, he said. By listening to his workers and their ideas, Walton could stay on top of his game This really is what total quality is about. Listen to everyone in your practice/team. obviously your team is a lot smaller than Wal-Mart, but Sams tactic of figuring out ways to get front line people talking holds original for advisors.You can gain a lot of insight into your clients, and it will help strengthen relationships with support personnel. And yes, listen to your clients too. continuous communication is the most important thing to remember. Change usually causes fear about different things. Communication must be very open, honest and encouraging. It also has to cover all the parties involved in the change. Happy employees mean happy customers. Walton admitted that initially he was so stingy and did not give good pay to his employees. But eventually he realized that he should give a larger payment to his employees because they are considered as clientele associates. According to Walton, who treated the way management is the same business partner in a way that applied to the consumer. If the business partner treats their customers well then the consumer will come again and again therein lies the advantage and business success.Walton also often visited his shop and asked for their opinions, especially employees who are on the front lines, those who actually faced and talking with customers, as people who know the real situation on the ground. Managements number one goal with their employees is to make working at Wal-Mart fun and rewarding. They even have their own cheer to supercharge associates morale and organizational spirit (Wal-Mart, 2008). Whos Wal-Mart? It is my Wal-Mart (Wal-Mart, 2008). This is the type of leadership styles that all organizations need to use. This style makes employees want to come to work everyday and they feel vou ch knowing that they are working for a great organization. Wal-Mart is like one big family and like to make their associates feel like they are an important part of keeping the doors open for everyone.If Walmart this organization are lack of motivation itll affects associates also called employees. Lack of motivation equates to less work being accomplished. Productivity does not fell it is usually transferred to aspects not related to the organizations work. Things like personal conversations, Internet surfing or taking longer lunches cost the organization time and money. Reduced productiveness can be detrimental to an organizations performance and future success. Low employee motivation could be due to decreased success of the organization, negative effects from the economy or drastic changes or uncertainty within the organization. No matter what the cause, having the reputation of having an unpleasant work environment due to low employee motivation will ultimately impact how exi sting and potential clients or partners view working with an organization. A reputation can precede an organization and dictate its future in the indus pass judgment.The support approach employee motivation sidesteps the issue of employee needs and thinking processes described in the content and process theories. Reinforcement theory simply looks at the relationship between behavior and its consequences. It focuses on changing or modifying employees on the-job behavior through the appropriate use of immediate rewards and punishments. Behavior modification is the name given to the set of techniques by which reinforcement theory is used to modify human behavior. The basic assumption underlying behavior modification is the law of effect, which states that behavior that is positively reinforced tends to be repeated, and behavior that is not reinforced tends not to be repeated. Reinforcement is defined as anything that causes a certain behavior to be repeated or inhibited. The four reinf orcement tools are positive reinforcement, avoidance learning, punishment, and extinction, as summarized in exhibit16.6Positive reinforcement is the administration of a pleasant and rewarding consequence by-line a desired behavior, such as praise for an employee who arrives on time or does a little extra work. Research shows that positive reinforcement does help to improve performance. Moreover, nonfinancial reinforcement such as positive feedback, social recognition, and attention are just as effective as financial incentives. One study of employees at fast- food drive- thru windows, for example, found that performance feedback and supervisor recognition had a significant effect on increasing the incidence of up- selling or asking customers to increase their order. Montage Hotels resorts, known for its culture of gracious yet humble service, uses a variety of employee recognition programs to positively reinforce employees for providing exceptional service. chief operating officer Alan J. Fuerstman says its simple psychology. People commit more acts of kindness when they are appreciated for them. Avoidance learning is the removal of an unpleasant consequence once a behavior is improved, theory encouraging and strengthening the desired behavior. Avoidance learning is sometimes called negative reinforcement.The idea is that people will change a precise behavior to avoid the undesired result that behavior provokes. As a simple example, a supervisor who constantly reminds or nags an employee who is goofing off on the pulverisation floor and stops the nagging when the employee stops goofing off is applying avoidance learning. Punishment is the imposition of unpleasant outcomes on an employee. Punishment typically occurs following undesirable behavior. For example, a supervisor may berate an employee for performing a task incorrectly. The supervisor expects that the negative outcome will serve as a punishment and get the likelihood of the behavior recurring. Th e use of punishment in organization is controversial and often criticized because it fails to indicate the correct behavior. However, almost all managers report that they find it requirement to occasionally impose forms of punishment ranging from verbal reprimands to employee suspensions or firings.Extinction is the withholding of a positive reward. Whereas with punishment, the supervisor imposes an unpleasant outcome such as a reprimand, extinction involves withholding praise or other positive outcomes. With extinction, undesirable behavior is essentially ignored. The idea is that behavior that is not positively reinforced will gradually disappear A New York Times reporter wrote a humorous article about how she learned to stop nagging and instead use reinforcement theory to shape her husbands behavior after studying how professionals train animals. When her husband did something she liked such as throw a dirty shirt in the hamper, she would use positive reinforcement, thanking him or giving him a hug and a kiss. Undesirable behaviors, such as throwing dirty habit on the floor, on the other hand, were simply ignored, applying the principle of extinction.Reward and punishment motivational practices based on the reinforcement theory dominate organizations. According to the decree for Human Resource Management, 84 percent of all companies in the United States offer some type of monetary or non- monetary reward system, and 69 percent offer incentive pay, such as bonuses, bases on an employees performance. However, in other studies, more than 80 percent of employers with incentive programs have report that their programs are only somewhat successful or working at all. Despite the testimonies of organizations that enjoy successful incentive programs, criticism of these carrot- and- stick methods is growing, as discussed in the Managers Shoptalk. If rewards and motivation are failed to fulfill the employees the manager of Walmart should apply some positive reinfor cement in order to safe the situation. Positive reinforcement is the practice of rewarding desirable employee behavior in order to strengthen that behavior.For example, when you praise an employee for doing a good job, you increase the likelihood of him/her doing that job very well again. Positive reinforcement both shapes behavior and enhances an employees self-image. Recognizing and rewarding desirable employee behavior is the essential key to motivating employees to work more productively. This method will reap many benefits, first it clearly defines and communicates expected behaviors and strengthens the connection between high performance and rewards. It reinforces an employees behavior immediately after learning a new technique and promotes quick, thorough learning. It motivates effective workers to continue to do good work. Lack of reinforcement leads to job dissatisfaction. It increases productivity by rewarding workers who conserve time and materials. Employees who are rewa rded after they successfully perform feel self-confident and become eager to learn new techniques, take advanced training, and accept more responsibility. recognize employees who suggest improved work procedures will produce more innovation if you create a relaxed work environment, reward new ideas and tolerate innovative failures. Employees who receive recognition for their achievements are more enthusiastic about their work, more cooperative, and more open to change. Besides that, when you show appreciation and reward employees for good work, youll be able to increase their job commitment and organizational loyalty. In conclusion, giving positive reinforcement does not mean that what is done incorrectly by an employee is to be ignored. Instead, it means to recognize what portion of the work was done correctly first, then follow-up with what can be done better the next time and why the performance or work result was not quite what was expected.If this means the manager must take s ome of the blame for not giving detailed instructions for the desired behavior or result, they should do so in an apologetic manner and then proceed to explain how the manager personally will try to do better. This is an excellent time for the manager to let the employee know they still have faith in them but need their help and cooperation by their asking questions if the managers instructions are not clear. This allows both the employee and manager to get better at communication, which results in improved task completion. Remember mangers need to give positive results first, then follow-up with what improvements are needed, apologize if necessary, and then reinforce what was done right again. When working the improvement or follow-up statement do not use the word but as this word often negates anything said before it and the employee may stop listening as they know a negative is coming next.