Question

Kwesi Amoako of Unilever

What is it you dream of when you’re young? Kwesi Amoako, chief executive of Unilever, posed the question…He is sitting in his shirt sleeves… behind a massive desk in his rooftop office in Tema’s Industrial Area.

I’ll tell you’, says Kwesi, before I have a chance to answer. ‘Having a flashy car, a sexy girlfriend and a house in the country. And this’, he continues, pulling out a book of photos of his new home, a 10 bedroomed mansion set in 22 acres of countryside… ‘is my boyhood dream realised.’

If he has realised his dreams, will the hunger go? ‘No’, he says, ‘that’s the brilliance of it. ‘Because since he took on (the new house) he’s personally more in debt than he’s ever been. He has to keep earning more money, making Unilever a huge success, to pay off his mountainous mortgage (Adapted: The Davidson Interview, Management Today January 2011, p.40)

Questions

a. Discuss the assertion that, ‘Mr Amoako only comes to work for money. Drawing from lessons, concepts, and theories leant from organisational behaviour.

b. Explain five (5) steps Mr Amoako can take to arouse and sustain his subordinates’ commitment to help achieve a huge success.

Answer 1

l. Discuss the assertion that, ‘Mr Amoako only comes to work for money. Drawing from lessons, concepts, and theories leant from organisational behaviour.

Answer:  Mr Amoako's statement can be discussed with the help of lessons in organizational behavior related to reward systems in an organization. Following concepts such as extrinsic and intrinsic motivation and money and motivation are explained in this regard

Extrinsic and Intrinsic Rewards

The rewards that employees can receive in exchange for their contributions of time and effort can be classified as either extrinsic or intrinsic rewards. Extrinsic rewards are administered externally—that is, by someone else (usually organization). Examples of extrinsic rewards include wages and salary, fringe benefits, promotions, and recognition of work by others.

Intrinsic rewards are described as “self-administered” rewards, because engaging in the task itself leads to their receipt. For example feelings of task accomplishment, autonomy, and personal growth and development in a particular job.

It is important to keep in mind that because extrinsic rewards are administered by sources external to the individual, their effectiveness depends on accurate monitoring, evaluating, and administration.For example, an individual may perform well on a task, but unless there is a way for that to be noticed, evaluated, recorded, and rewarded within a reasonable time frame, an extrinsic reward may not have a impact.

Intrinsic rewards are a function of self-monitoring, self-evaluation, and administration; these rewards often are less costly and more effectively administered. For example, even if no one else notices or rewards a person for superior performance on a task, one can still reward yourself with a mental appreciation on the back for a job well done or a sense of satisfaction for overcoming a challenge.

Money and Motivation:

A debate among managers focuses on the issue of whether money is a primary motivator or not. Some say that most behavior in organizational settings is motivated by money , whereas others say that money is only one of many factors that motivate performance. But it is true that money can have important motivational consequences for many people in many situations. In fact, money is important functions in work settings.

Reference: R. L. Opsahl and M. D. Dunnette, “The Role of Financial Compensation in Industrial Motivation,” Psychological Bulletin Vol. 66, 1966, pp. 94–96.

Intrinsic Motivation include (1) a goal or incentive,

(2) a source of satisfaction,

(3) A gaining other desired outcomes,

(4) a standard of comparison for self-worth, and

(5) a conditional reinforcerment where its receipt is depends upon a certain level of performance.

The effectiveness of pay as a motivator varies considerably. Sometimes there seems to be an almost direct relationship between pay and effort, whereas at other times no such relationship is found.

There are variables , such as.

• Trust levels between managers and subordinates must be high.
• Individual performance must be able to be accurately measured.
• Pay rewards to high performers must be substantially higher than those to poor performers.
• Few, if any, negative consequences for good performance must be perceived.

Under these conditions, a climate or culture is created in which employees have reason to believe that significant performance-reward contingencies truly exist. Given this perception (and assuming the reward is valued), we would expect performance to be increased.

b. Explain five (5) steps Mr Amoako can take to arouse and sustain his subordinates’ commitment to help achieve a huge success.

5 important Steps Mr. Amoako can take to Improve Employee Engagement

How do managers know who is engaged? Their team should have following characteristics

• One should know what is expected of him/her and their work quality.

• One should have the resources and training to thrive in a particular job role.

• one should have the opportunity to do what is the best – every day.

• One should frequently receive recognition, praise and constructive criticism.

• Ine should trust his/her manager and believe they have my best interests in mind.

• One should clearly understand the mission and purpose and how he or she is contributing.

• One should know about  the opportunities to learn and grow both personally and professionally.

The steps for improving engagement are not difficult, they must be prioritized.

Now, what are the 5 steps:

Step 1 – Puting employees  in the right job role

Getting the right people on the task and make sure they are in the right roles. This means that all talent acquisition and retention strategies have to be aligned with meeting company goals.

Step 2 – Giving employees the training

No manager or leader can expect to build a culture of trust and accountability without setting the team up for success.

Providing the proper training and development while removing obstacles

Step 3 – Giving employees meaningful work

Engaged employees are doing meaningful work and have a clear understanding of how they contribute to the company’s mission, purpose and strategic objectives. If employer can not sort those details out quickly, employees will leave.

Step 4 – Taking reviews often

Relying on mid-year reviews is not a great idea. Employees need regular feedback, which of course leads to faster course correction and reduces waste. Use both formal and informal check-in strategies .

Step 5 – Frequent discussions about job responsibilities

Successful managers are transparent in their approach to improving employee engagement. Managers talk about it with their teams . They hold “state of engagement” meetings and “engage” everyone in the discussion for decision making and solving problems, or during conflicting situations