Motivation - Human Resources Interview Questions & Answers

Explain Employee Motivation. Motivation can be defined as the enthusiasm of an employee which causes him to take actions at work.

Which non-monetary factors do you think help in building up the motivation level of employees? Following are some of the effective ways to motivate employees: i.) Respectful treatment ii.) Recognising the individual and performance iii.) Training iv.) Regular performance and behavioural feedback v.) Clear communication from the management vi.) Involvement in activities that desire responsibility vii.) Challenges viii.) Clearly defined goals and plan of action

What kind of work culture do you think increases the motivation level of an employee? Following are some of the characteristics of the culture that increases motivation level of an employee: i.) Suggestions and feedback from the employees are heard ii.) Employees are well informed about the things affecting them iii.) Communication among the team members and with the superiors is open in nature iv.) Employees are trusted and treated with respect v.) Employees work and deliver as a team vi.) Employees see a path to grow and are regular trained for development

Explain Taylor's theory of motivation. Frederick Taylor put forward a theory about worker’s motivation. Its main features are: i.) Workers do not enjoy work. ii.) They need constant supervision iii.) They are motivated mainly by the “salary”

What are the main points of Mayo's theory of motivation? Mayo’s theory believes that money is not the only motivation for workers. They are highly motivated by factors like: i.) Communication between them and managers ii.) More involvement of manager in their work life iii.) Working in teams

How is Mayo's theory different from Taylor's theory of motivation? i.) Taylor’s theory focuses on the negative aspect of a worker’s behaviour while Mayo’s theory focuses on positive aspects. ii.) Taylor’s theory treats money as the biggest motivation while Mayo’s theory lays more emphasis on non-monetary factors.

Explain Maslow's theory of hierarchy of needs. Do you think it applies in real life? - Maslow’s theory of hierarchy of needs believes that each individual has some needs arranged in hierarchical order. Only when a lower need is satisfied, does the higher need come into picture. - Thus the incentives offered to the workers at each level have to be different. These needs are classified as grouped as below: Level 1 – Basic needs – Food, clothes, shelter Level 2 – Safety needs – Security and protection Level 3 – Social needs Level 4 – Esteem needs Level 5 – Self actualization

What is Herzberg's theory of motivation? Herzberg came out with two-factor theory of motivation which believed that there are certain factors which enthuse motivation in workers while others de- motivate them. The factors demotivating the workers are called the hygiene factors. Motivators are the factors that give satisfaction. For e.g. - Recognition - Challenges - Responsibility The other set of factors are hygiene factors – their presence doesn’t motivate the employees but their absence surely de-motivates them. For e.g. – - Work conditions - Salary - Job security etc.

Who proposed theory X and Y of motivation? What were the major differences between X and Y observations? Theory X and Y of motivation was proposed by Douglas McGregor. The major difference between these theories are: - Theory X takes a negative view of the employees while the Theory Y takes a positive view. - Theory X believes that employees are lazy and do not like work while Theory Y believes that employees enjoy work. - Theory X believes that money is the only motivation for work while Theory Y believes that the satisfaction that employees achieve after doing a work well is a bigger motivation. - Theory X believes in doing the business in an authoritarian way while Theory Y tries to remove the barriers employees find in the way of their work.