Individualized approach to staff motivation

E.N. Shirokova, A.V. Kalinichenko

The problems of the tools search to encourage the company staff are of particular relevance. This is because the present methods of the staff encouraging and the tools that are used in motivational activity do not fully meet the rapidly changing requirements of employees (in terms of job satisfaction) as well as of entrepreneurs in general (from the perspective of the productivity of work and the efficiency of the staff activity in the enterprise).

If we consider these factors in more details, we can conclude that the micro-economic indicators of the country testify to the decrease in significance of nominal wages for employees motivation in connection with the rise in prices, which is expressed: in the low living standards of the population; reduction in interconnection between the material security of employees and the results of work. All this creates a lack of interest among workers, even a certain indifference to the rational employment and is reflected in the technical performance of the employee duties (in some cases there is an outflow of skilled workers to more promising companies, or even outside the country). This is a serious obstacle to the development of enterprises and the economy as a whole, especially in crisis economic phenomena. At the same time, the use of labor potential can not only stop the development of the enterprise, but also to give an impetus for crises overcoming and subsequent development.

Formulation of the problem

In this regard, the consideration of matters related to improving motivation in modern conditions is considered to be timely. In particular, one of the promising areas of motivational work is the study of the individual needs of employees and the degree of perception of the available tools for stimulation.

Literature review

By solving the tasks, first of all, it is necessary to focus on the instruments of labor motivation. Dozens of years were spent on their research, organization and practical application. Many of scientists, such as A. Mas- lou [1], D. MakKlelland [2], F. Hercberg [3], M. Mes- kon [4] and etc, conducted research in the field of employee motivation not only on the assumption of human needs, but also taking into consideration the psychological, moral, social and cultural influence of the environment. Therefore, today, the task of searching for a fundamentally new incentives to increase human performance is quite complex, and the questions of their optimal combination based on personal characteristics of the employee remain unresolved.

Aim of research

Considering the relevance of the proposed research direction, a promising way to increase the degree of motivation should become the development of a system of selection of individual incentives for each employee.

Description of the study

This study was conducted in Ukrainian University of Railway Transport. Performed to determine degree of influence on the efficiency of individual needs staff motivation. The basis for investigations became the results of scientists' research in the field personnel management. The significance of investigations is to desire to work out recommendations for the use of the mechanism of formation motivation of work tools on the basis their degree of individualization.

Statement of the main results of the study

On this occasion, SA Shapiro, in his book «Staff motivation and encouraging», wrote: «The encouraging of work - is, primarily, the external motivation, the element of the labor situation affecting human behavior in the workplace, the material covering of staff motivation. At the same time it carries the immaterial load, which allows a worker to realize himself as a person and an employee at the same time» [5].

The author wrote that «when the incentives run through the psychology and consciousness of the people and are converted, they become internal incentive or motive causes of employee behavior. Motives are conscious incentives. The motive and the incentive do not always agree with each other, but there is no «Chinese walls» between them. They are two sides, two systems of impact on the employee, the motivation to certain actions. Therefore, stimulating effect on the staff is directed mainly at strengthening of the employees functioning and the motivation influence - at enhancing of professional and personal development of employees. It is important to distinguish between the stimulating and the motivational mechanisms of the employees the management behavior, to realize the importance of their interaction and mutual enrichment» [5].

In our opinion, a very important element in this case is the estimation of the possibility of a real application and effectiveness of these mechanisms. Therefore, the analysis of the motivational tools according to their degree of individualization was carried out [6-8].

Thus, the wages, standardized within the enterprise, has a low labor motivation and marginally consider specific features of the employee; at the same time, wages in the form of piece-wage has a greater degree of individualization and thus increasingly encourages worker.

Supplements can also be considered on two levels of individualization, namely: the surcharges of the compensatory nature cause little motivation, because the organization of work with the presence of the working conditions, which require compensation, minimizes the individualization as it is only a means of equating labor to the minimum requirements, that are regulated by legislation and are mandatory for all employers in respect of all employees without exception; additional payments of stimulating character are highly motivated and reveal the individual characteristics of the worker, depending on his professionalism.

Awards of any kinds and forms of payment allow good enough to individualize the employee's career and have a high motivational result, but in case if they are appointed for specific labor achievements (not paid consistently to all employees) and reliably determined.

Allowances, as well as awards, may have a significant effect in boosting worker since they may have even more of the labor individualization than awards, due to their personal appointment for concrete results.

Improving working conditions has a low individualization since it is a kind of obligation for the company to maintain the prestige of work and retain qualified staff.

Career opportunity has a high degree of individualization, as it allows to detect the unique abilities of the worker and to evaluate them appropriately, thus causing the rivalry in the team and contributing to the development of the enterprise.

Moral incentive is not inferior to the degree of awarding individualization; it has a positive effect, and most importantly does not require substantial financial costs.

The development of an organizational culture influences the motivation of staff, depending on the form of its formation. Thus, in the case of a rigid administrative form of management organizational culture has a negative motivation, by necessity of submission to certain strict rules. Conversely, the formation of a cohesive team, inspired by a common corporate culture can have a sufficient degree of individualization, as it satisfies the human need for social interaction and personal cultural development. However, this tool of motivation over is not significant as compared with others.

Social guarantees have insufficient individualization of work at motivating of employees; on the strength of this obligation is an element of state guarantees.

The possibility of additional Social Security has more of labor individualization than the Social Guarantees as it can be assigned individually for certain labor achievements.

Taking into account the considered tools, the authors carried out the improvement of the systematization of tools for labor motivation in terms of individualization, which is provided in Table 1 and shown in Fig. 1.

Table 1/ Systematization of tools for labor motivation (developed by the authors)

Developed by the authors

Fig. 1. Relationship of motivation levels according to the degree of individualization

It should be noted that this is only the previous stage in the formation of mechanism of workers stimulation, which should include the basic steps and recommendations for their implementation in the enterprise management system, development of labor potential and staff motivation. The purpose of formation of motivational mechanism is the development of such approaches and systems of incentives for workers, which would allow the best way to choose the motivational tools for each employee based on his personal priorities, and such recommendations for the manager or personnel service, which would allow implementing an individualized approach to labor motivation adequately.

Thus, according to the authors, the mechanism of individual motivation should include the following steps: analysis of the level of motivation in the company and the results of work, which provides for the definition of the relationship between the incentive instruments, the level and quality of their application and the performance of labor productivity; definition of the purpose of the motivational activities of the enterprise; approval of the necessary results of an individualized approach to staff motivation; the selection of the most appropriate and possible for usage motivational techniques and tools; definition of individual needs and characteristics of workers, taking into consideration the professional, personal (psychological), external criteria of the personalized evaluation; the selection of the most appropriate tools for a particular employee; provision of an adequate period, a individualized by instrument type, their recruitment and the specifics of perception for each employee that will be determined with the required mode, according to which the individual incentives will be used; the establishment of possible obstacles to the implementation of selected tools of motivational management, as well as errors in the determination of these tools with the development of recommendations for their leveling, that can help to make the incentive system more flexible and adaptive; analysis of the results of the staff; motivation tools adjustment according to the parameters, namely: According to the list, by maturity, based on the results, in accordance with the possible further expansion, etc [9-11].

Conclusions

Thus, the developed scientific recommendations on the formation of mechanism of labor motivation in the company is an element of scientific innovation, which will allow to form a competence-based approach to human resource management, organization of work and motivation on the basis of individualization, which in turn, will connect a personal and entrepreneurial interest due to such selection of incentive instruments that will ensure the realization of the needs of enterprises in certain development indicators, with the help of the motivated staff. This could have economic benefits as a result of increased productivity, optimizing the number of employees; reduce wasteful spending, development of productive capacities. The development of methodology for assessing the economic impact of the proposed measures is important to validate scientific positions and it puts forward a perspective of further research.

References