The Impact of Motivation on Employee Productivity

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Normal individuals and groups in every human culture participate in a variety of labor tasks in order to make ends meet. The more people achieve their desired goals and objectives by performing one job or another, the more their interest will be piqued, and the more contributions they will make to promote their individual standards and, most importantly, to the growth and sustainability of the organizations where they work. Therefore, in order to attract the attention and support of employees, competent organizational managers or leaders typically utilize one form of motivational strategy or another in order to motivate their employees to achieve high productivity in the banking organization.

Motivation is the willingness to expend high amounts of effort toward organizational objectives, contingent upon the capacity to meet certain individual needs. In reality, motivation is a means of eliciting one’s or others’ best efforts in their job for you by recognizing their material or moral contributions. According to Obisi (2022), motivation is the willingness to work. According to his opinion, it is the act of stimulating someone or oneself in order to achieve a desired course of action, to push the button in order to achieve a desired response. Without proper motivation, no matter how knowledgeable and skilled an individual is, he or she will ultimately break down like an engine without oil (Obisi, 2022).

Motivation has thus far been identified as a vital instrument for organizational high productivity and the primary agent for achieving peace and harmony in both the public and private sectors of a nation’s economy. In the banking industry, for example, bank employees must be motivated to perform properly and contribute to the industry’s high production. People are naturally drawn to occupations with high employee satisfaction and avoid those with little or no motivating incentives. In reality, motivation plays a significant role in the lives of employees in every organization, whether it a corporate organization or the banking industries. Nevertheless, it is regrettable to note that the majority of companies owned by the government or private capitalists do not appear to pay much attention to the welfare of their employees, despite their awareness of the difficult roles motivation plays in the lives of their workers and the organization as a whole. The absence of motivation in any organization brings about friction between the management and the employees, who will perceive the administration to be exploitative, selfish, and inhumane (Onuoha, 2022).

More often than not, the relentless pursuit of anomalous profit diverts the focus of organizational managers from devising more effective methods of employee appreciation. Most businesses in the banking sector, such as Finbank Nigeria Plc, tend to be more concerned with maximizing profits by requiring their staff or workers to fulfill extremely high monthly marketing goals without providing matching motivation in terms of work incentives and fringe perks. Teachers and lecturers in some institutions, such as schools, engage in frequent strikes and industrial actions to protest their bosses’ blatant incompetence and lack of motivation (Osuoha, 2022).

Some people lose their employment if they are unfortunate enough not to match the outrageously set expectations. Even if the majority of employers appear to be better compensated, they have little time for themselves. Some socialites, in particular, find it tedious to be confined or exposed to the field for extremely long hours every day in the sake of marketing. This nevertheless appears to have a direct effect on the job performance of individual employees, particularly bank employees.

There is a need to improve and inspire the workforce through the provision of competitive compensation and enhanced benefits. This is essential because, despite the fact that management controls and oversees the actions of employees and business affairs, employees are the strength and support of any organization. Many organizations do not appear to have realized that motivating employees is less expensive and safer than treating them with scorn and disrespect. The more a worker’s satisfaction, the greater his or her commitment to the organization, and the less likely he or she is to seek employment elsewhere. Certainly, such uniformity would increase the efficiency of the employees and the income and profit of the bank or organization (Aikomu, 2022).

People are more prone to switch jobs if they are not well-cared for in terms of improved salary and pay in addition to strong welfare packages. Employers in the banking industry and other industries would be able to compete well with their rivals if they motivated their employees. Perhaps the banking sector’s management should be instructed on the necessity of placing a premium on their workers’ welfare. This would aid not only in improving the job performance of individual employees and the productivity of the organization, but also in fostering excellent relations between management and employees. This would surely bring about peace and harmony inside the banking system (Nlem, 2022).

 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

It appears to have become the norm in organizations to disregard the motivation of their employees by failing to provide suitable salaries and compensation as well as decent welfare packages. Due to their lengthy work hours at the office, managers sometimes lament not having enough time for their personal demands and duties. The problem appears to have been exacerbated by requiring every employee, works more than their required duties (Obisi 2022).

However, this destroys worker morale and lowers their performance, efficiency, and production. This study aims to determine whether or not motivation affects the productivity of employees. The study will also investigate why some managements have poor views regarding employee motivation.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The main objective of this study is to examine the impact of motivation on employee productivity. Precisely, other objectives of this study are:

i.          To find out whether motivation can enhance employees commitment.

ii.        To find out whether lack of motivation leads to poor employees commitment.

iii.      To examine the kinds of motivation employed by employers.

iv.      To determine the factors employers take into consideration when considering motivation.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following research questions will guide this study:

i.          Can motivation enhance employees commitment?

ii.        Does lack of motivation leads to poor employees commitment?

iii.      What are the kinds of motivation employed by employers?

iv.      What are the factors employers take into consideration when considering motivation?

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

Regarding the development of a positive attitude toward the motivation of employees, the study would be of great use to businesses in Nigeria. Additionally, the employees will benefit from the awareness that this study would have generated among organizational management, since their welfare would have been prioritized. As workers are expected to put up their best effort after being motivated, the organizational production would also grow, boosting the profit margin of the organization. In addition, the entire society would enjoy relative peace, as conflicts between employees and employers would have been reduced as a consequence of employees’ and employers’ better treatment.

 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study focuses on the impact of motivation on employee productivity. Precisely, this study focuses on finding out whether motivation can enhance employees commitment and finding out whether lack of motivation leads to poor employees commitment.

The study further focuses on examining the kinds of motivation employed by employers and determining the factors employers take into consideration when considering motivation.

Employees of selected companies in Port Harcourt will serve as enrolled participants for the survey of this study.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

Like in every human endeavour, the researcher encountered slight constraints while carrying out the study. Insufficient funds tend to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature, or information and in the process of data collection, which is why the researcher resorted to a limited choice of sample size. More so, the researcher simultaneously engaged in this study with other academic work. As a result, the amount of time spent on research will be reduced.

Moreover, the case study method utilized in the study posed some challenges to the investigator including the possibility of biases and poor judgment of issues. However, the investigator relied on respect for the general principles of procedures, justice, fairness, objectivity in observation and recording, and weighing of evidence to overcome the challenges.

 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Motivation: These are factors (familiarity, concern and driving force), which exist or are provided in a work situation either physically or psychologically which determine the input and productivity level of the worker.

Employee: A person employed for wages or salary, especially at non-executive level.