chp 8: motivation: from concepts to applications

The Job Characteristics Model (JCM)

a model proposing that any job can be described in terms of five core job dimensions: skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback

skill variety

the degree to  which a job requires a variety of activities using different skills or talents

task identity

the degree to which a job requires completion of a whole and identifiable piece of work

task significance

the degree to which a job has a substantial impact on the lives or work of other people

autonomy

the degree to which a job provides substantial freedom and discretion to the individual in scheduling the work and in determining the procedure to be used in carrying it out

feedback

the degree to which carrying out the work activities required by a job results in the individual obtaining direct and clear information about the effectiveness of the individual’s performance

job rotation

the periodic shifting of an employee from one task to another

job enrichment

adding high-level responsibilities to a job to increase intrinsic motivation

relational job design

obstructing jobs to employees see the positive difference they can make in the lives of others directly through their work

variable-pay program

a pay plan that bases a portion or all of an employee’s pay on some individual and/or organizational measure of performance

telecommuting

working from home or anywhere else the employee chooses that is outside the physical workplace

piece-rate pay plan

a pay plan in which workers are paid a fixed sum for each unit of production completed

profit-sharing plan

an organization-wide program that distributes compensation based on some established formula designed around a company’s profitability

employee stock ownership plan (ESOP)

a company-established benefits plan in which employees acquire stock, often at below-market prices, as part of their benefits

employee recognition program

a plan to encourage specific employee behaviors by formally appreciating specific employee contributions

participative management

a process in which subordinates share a significant degree of decision-making power with their immediate supervisors

representative participation

a system in which workers participate in organizational decision making through a small group of representative employees

merit-based pay plan

a pay plan based on performance appraisal ratings