In the late 1950s, Frederick Herzberg, considered by many to be a pioneer in motivation theory, interviewed a group of employees to find out what made them satisfied and dissatisfied on the job. He asked the employees two questions:
- Think about a time when you felt really good at your job. Why did you feel that way?
- Think about a time when you felt really bad about your job. Why did you feel that way?
From these interviews, Herzberg went on to develop his theory: “The Herzberg-two-factor theory” which consists in the belief of two dimension of job satisfaction:
Hygiene factors, are factors that must be present in the workplace to prevent job dissatisfaction. Such as:
- working conditions. The environment where people work has a big effect on their level of pride for themselves and for the work they are doing;
- salary. Salary is not a motivator for employees, but they want to be paid fairly;
- interpersonal relations. Part of the satisfaction of being employed is the social contact it brings, so allows employees an amount of time for socialization.
Motivators, are the factors that influence a person to increase their efforts. Such as:
- the work itself. Most important to employee motivation is helping believe that the work they are doing is important and that the task they are doing is meaningful;
- achievement. Employees must feel that they have reached important goals;
- recognition. All the individuals of an organization want to be recognized for their achievements on the job.
Alberto Garbi 3G
