Chapter 6: Motivating Employees

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts, theories, and methods of employee motivation from Chapter 6.

Motivation

The reasons why employees want to work hard and work effectively for a business.

High productivity

Increased output per worker that helps keep average costs low and increase profits.

Low labour turnover

A benefit where loyal employees are less likely to leave, reducing the high costs of recruitment.

Low absenteeism

An advantage of a well-motivated workforce where employees are less likely to have unexpected absences.

F.W Taylor

The theorist associated with Scientific Management who believed workers are motivated primarily by money, known as the "economic man".

Piece-rate system

A payment system supported by F.W Taylor where workers are paid based on the number of items they produce.

Abraham Maslow

The theorist who stated that human needs are arranged in a hierarchy.

Frederick Herzberg

The theorist who developed the two-factor theory involving hygiene factors and motivators.

Hygiene factors

External factors such as pay, working conditions, and company policy that cause dissatisfaction if they are poor.

Motivators

Internal factors such as achievement, recognition, and the work itself that truly satisfy and motivate employees to work harder.

Wages

Financial rewards usually paid weekly to manual workers on a regular basis.

Time Rate

A method of payment where employees are paid by the hour for the time worked.

Salaries

Payments typically made to office staff that are paid monthly into a bank account rather than in cash.

Bonus

An additional payment above basic pay given for good work, which a business may decide to pay to an individual worker.

Commission

A financial reward often paid to sales staff consisting of a percentage of the value of goods sold.

Profit Sharing

A system where employees receive a share of the company's profits, encouraging them to work toward the overall success of the business.

Fringe benefit

Non-financial rewards or perks, such as a company car or expense account, provided in addition to regular financial compensation.

Job rotation

A non-financial motivation method where workers swap tasks for limited periods to avoid boredom.

Job enrichment

The practice of adding tasks that require higher skills or more responsibility to make the work more challenging.

Teamworking

Organizing workers into groups and giving them responsibility for a particular process.

Training

The process of improving skills to make a worker feel more valued and improve their promotion prospects.

Opportunities for promotion

The chance to move to a higher-level job, providing the worker with status and recognition.