Motivation+in+Manufacturing+World

__**INTRODUCTION:**__ I work in a global manufacturing company. We have over 120k people worldwide, with 17k in the US and 2500 here in Maryville, TN. I work in the Education & Development Department and function both as an Instructor and Curriculum Developer (amongst other jobs). I love what I do and find it challenging.

Learning about each of these theories is exciting for me. As a Curriculum Developer, I need to understand so much more about what motivates people to learn. As I build classes, I need to create engaging activities that provide meaningful and relevant learning opportunities.

As a strategic planning department member, I need to understand what motivates adult learners overall. What more can we, as a department, be doing to motivate our people in the learning environment? How limited are we when trying to motivate them to WANT to learn and grow? Why would some learners be so much more enthusiastic about our offerings, and other not? Is it us? What are we not thinking about/missing?

Those questions prompted me to take this class as an elective. I simply want to know more about adult motivation and how to apply what I learn to my manufacturing environment. I have approached each theory in that manner - what is this and how can I use it in my environment? I would like to share some of those ideas with you below.

__**EXPECTANCY-VALUE THEORY:**__ This theory really made me think about the adults I serve. They are working 6-7 days a week, with most of their days being 9-10 hours long. Some classes are mandatory, but these folks also volunteer/ask to attend classes as well. Is it just to get a break? I would honestly answer "no" in most cases. They come to class and work hard while there. What makes them want to do that? How do we get others to do that, too?

Expectancy is the whether they think they can "do it or not". Are there people in the company who fear taking a class because they don't think they can be successful? There are courses that require high level math skills. I have had many people tell me they won't take my statistics course because they feel like they will fail it. They go on to explain that they have GEDs or that they've never had algebra. Value is how much value the experience or outcome holds for the individual. In our classes, if it doesn't provide any value to them, why would they put themselves through the hassle?

A positive example (case study) for me is "James". James came into my Stats class and took the required pretest. At the first break, he called me aside and said he was going back to work because he couldn't do it. I talked with him and told him that he wasn't supposed to know it; it was my job to teach it to him before the end of the day. He went on to say he had dropped out of school and had recently taken his GED (and passed). That GED allowed him a job at the company. I asked him to give it a shot and convinced him that he should stay. He had made a 17 on his pretest. The average grade is only 23. After 8 hours of training on x-r and p-type control charts, he made an 87 on the final test.

Why did I choose this example? About two weeks after the class, James came by to talk to me. His father-in-law had been talking to him about going to Pellisssippi and taking some classes. James wanted to, but was afraid of the math. After taking the stats class and realizing he could do basic algebra, he had worked up the courage, applied to PSTCC and was accepted. He came by to tell me and to ask for tutoring (just in case he needed it). His expectancy level had dramatically increased. And, the value of obtaining that 2-yr degree would allow him to move to another area of the company that he really wanted to be involved in. Plus, the move would mean more money for his family. The happy ending - James completed his 2-yr program, moved into another department, is now a Group Leader and is now taking classes towards his BS.

__**GOAL THEORY:**__ Dr. Gary Latham, who has experimented on Dr. Locke's theories of goal theory, discussing the concept of Evidence-based management. This is a concept that is in use (whether by design or not) at my company. It is imperative to be seen as "evidence-based" in decision making. It is imperative to remove any chance of favoritism or partiality. Evidence-based motivation is the use of goals that are fair and consisent to motivate work and performance. The video below is discussion with Dr. Latham regarding what evidence-based managment is and he touches on the motivational aspect of "science-based, evidence-based" performance management. []

In my company, we live based on goals. We have production goals, associate goals, safety goals....and it goes on and on. However, the combination of goals and extrinsic motivation is a lethal combination. Setting both department and personal goals is an acceptable business practice. Many big businesses tie their goals into bonuses and rewards. Again, that is acceptable practice. However, using bonuses as a reward and a PUNISHMENT is not motivating. There needs to be (I think) more emphasis placed on the intrinsic motivation, self-efficacy and locus of control issues. If that is accomplished, then I think bonuses, etc. will go back to being a reward but not the motivational factor itself. The reward will be the accomplishment and individual growth. That is what sustains a company - not the hit and miss mentality of goal/reward/punishment.

__**INTRINSIC/EXTRINSIC MOTIVATION:**__ One of the biggest misconceptions (for many people, not just my company) is that everyone will work harder if the "carrot" is big enough. I seen so many new programs, etc. started at our company that fail miserably. Most of these programs have some "reward" attached to them. They are rolled out and touted as the next great thing. All the emphasis is on "do this for this reward". There is little attention paid to connecting the individuals emotionally to program. Even those who do buy into the rewards soon abandon the programs. The participation is usually short-lived. Why? Extrinsic motivation simply doesn't work with adults in a fast-paced, hard-working, manual labor type facility. They are so over-worked that they need to feel needed, appreciated and understood versus getting another $5 gift card for some participatory act.

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__**ATTRIBUTION THEORY:**__ One of the biggest issues that hinder personal growth (in my opinion) is the inability to take personal responsibility for one's actions. Attribution Theory focuses on personal and environmental factors. What do people attribute their success or failure to? The ability to assess why things worked or not, why one was successful at something or not is crucial to learning and growing. However, if one continues to blame failure on others, what chance is there for improvement? In my world, it sometime easier to blame others when promotions don't happen, when training isn't successful, when yearly evaluations don't go as planned. I see some of the "they are out to get me" in those cases. In the classroom, I see cases of attributing failure to lack of time, poor teachers back in high school, lack of support at home. Are those just excuses? Each of those does indeed impact one's ability to learn.....to a degree. I do agree that there has to be a certain amount of personal responsibility assumed and actions taken to remedy those situations. We offer "remedial" assistance if needed. We have courses in basic math, writing, etc. and we offer a variety of online sites for self-help.

I don't think we do a very good job of addressing or changing the behavior. We do recognize it when it occurs, but how exactly do we address it? My plan, of course, is to begin my campaign of recognition. Creating a motivation class will at least begin the process of informing and lead to some internalization. Even if it happens only in the class at first, thinking about and talking about how this happens and why will hopefully be eye-opening! __**ADULT MOTIVATION/INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC:**__ There are some theories that we did not cover in class and that apply to motivation in the adult/business world. I wanted to include a link to some of this. MASLOW [] HERZBERG [] ELTON MAYO [] WLODKOWSKI []

KNOWLES [] MCGREGOR XY THEORY [] J STACEY ADAMS []

__**CONCLUSION:**__ Overall, this class had done so much to change my perspective on motivation. Hearing each of these theories has helped me to really consider why someone is motivated or not. There is just so much more to consider than whether they WANT to or SHOULD do something. I have learned that there are deep historical/psychological factors that determine if someone will even try (exp-value). Whether they really want it or they think they can accomplish it will have a chuge impact on their motivation to try. I have also learned that goals are not as simple as business sometimes wants to make them. The difference between mastery and performance goals was a huge eye-opener for me. I think my company needs to focus more on mastery goals, but I do understand how hard that can be in a quota-driven environment. Modeling and self-efficacy are such an integral part of the whole motivation construct. Impacting someone's self-efficacy and modeling how to deal with every aspect of the business (and motivation) is imperative to our growth. Feeling that sense of I CAN DO THIS will keep our employees moving forward (which keeps the company moving forward). The final eye-opener for me was the attribution theory concept in itself. I had neve considered why people "blame" their failures on external factors or why they are able to attribute success/failure to themselves. The locus of control was fascinating and has made me think alot about how our culture may actually support the practice of "blame".

As I said, all of this has made me think very deeply about where to go next. I am currently building a motivation class. That will be my launch point. I hope to create as many eye-opening experiences for others as this class has created for me. I want to have those who attend my class walk away understanding people and their motivations in a new, deeper way. I think, once we establish that common understanding and dialogue, we can begin to change the day-to-day practices that cripple our motivation and morale. That is my hope and I THINK WE CAN DO IT!!!