Mcdonald’s and Motivation Essay Example

keeping is poor.

Usually, they are uncooperative and resistant to change. (Brooks, I, 2006). Theories of motivation: There is several motivation theories, some of them are as follows: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs: It is represented in a form of a pyramid. Basic needs are at the base of the pyramid, and the person fights to move upwards through the hierarchy each time one need is satisfied.

In order for the company to motivate people, it has to give them the opportunity to satisfy their needs and fulfil their goals for them to behave in ways it desires. Brooks, I, 2006). Those needs are: •Physiological needs: they are the needs that have to be satisfied regularly such as drinking water and eating food for survival. People are motivated to satisfy these needs, and the consumption of products related to these needs is high.

.(Mckenna, E, 2000). •Safety needs: they consist of physical, emotional and job securities. When there is uncertainty about continued employment with the organisation, security needs are aroused.

Equally, safety needs are aroused when there is a threat of health and safety hazards. .(Mckenna, E, 2000). Affiliation needs: they came higher than safety needs.

They are the needs to have social contacts, belong to a group, to have friends and love. In this context, people are motivated to buy products that meet with the social approval of others. Affiliation needs are vital motivators of behaviour at work where there is a need to belong to a group to make friends and be accepted by colleagues. Not satisfying security and social needs could lead to undesirable behaviour such as resistance to change and unwillingness to

cooperate in order to defeat the achievement of organisational goals. .(Mckenna, E, 2000).

Esteem needs: it consists of self-esteem and esteem from others. Self-esteem is the need for self-respect and self-confidence, the need of achievement, the need to be somewhat independent at work, the need to acquire knowledge and competence. Esteem from others is the need for recognition of performance and appreciation by colleagues for contribution at work and the need to have a good self image, status and power. .(Mckenna, E, 2000).

•Self-actualisation: it is the highest in the hierarchy of needs. It is the self-fulfilment as a result of achievement by successfully accomplishing a task. .(Mckenna, E, 2000).

However, Maslow recognised that this was not a fixed hierarchy as, in some cases, higher needs may be satisfied before lower needs. There are lots of difficulties in applying this theory to the work place because it was not intended to do so. People are different, and therefore, the value of certain needs vary for each person. Research has suggested that some people continue to strive for status even after satisfying this need and do not proceed to the next level of the hierarchy. For this reason, it could be said that satisfaction does not necessarily lead to motivation or improved work performance.

There is neither a link between job attitudes and job performance, nor the link between job satisfaction and performance. However, there is a connection between job satisfaction and staff turnover, absenteeism and physical and mental health problems. Moreover, this theory could apply to one nation but not the other because of different values placed on different needs. (Brooks, I, 2006).

Theory X and theory

Y: McGregor (1960), suggests two views of humans, that is Theory X and theory Y. Theory X is the idea people are lazy by nature and reluctant to work.For them to put and effort, they must be manipulated, frightened or bribed. In contrast, theory Y is an optimistic standpoint of people. This perception is likely to be held by managers who believe in providing motivational devices.

Theory Y sees work as natural, and if people are passive or reluctant in their job, then it is due to their previous experiences in other organisations rather than because of some natural human weakness. McGregor believes that there larger number of people than generally believed who are capable and willing to contribute towards the resolution of organisational problems. Mckenna, E, 2000). Examples of these theories in McDonald’s: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs: according to an insider, McDonald’s is like a training school, which means that as soon as the individual joins the company , they start sitting tests in order to move up the ladder from a low level employee up to a manager and so on. This motivates people because they see that they can be promoted and therefore they start thinking about job security and the status that come with the promotion. Also, most people working for McDonald’s are young.

At that age, they only think about earning money to go out and have fun, and the more they grow up, the more they would want to earn more than the mere minimum wage. For this reason, they are motivated to stay in McDonald’s and move up the hierarchy and may be work in the head office rather

than staying as a low level employee. Theory X and theory Y: in terms of theory X, and according to an employee at McDonald’s, managers at McDonald’s harshly tell incompetent employees off either for absenteeism, lateness or poor performance in order to motivate them to improve.On the other side of the coin, and in terms of theory Y, managers use a much more positive approach when dealing with competent employee because they need them for the future, they motivate them by telling them that it may take longer for them to move up the management hierarchy. Bibliography •Brooks, I, 2006, Organisational behaviour, Individuals, Groups and organisation, Harlow, Pearson Education Limited.

•McKenna, E, 2000, Business psychology and organisational behaviour, East Sussex, Psychology Press Ltd