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Learning Objectives:

Understand the difference and commonalities in
the way work motivation is understood in India
and abroad

Appreciate the challenge against
encouragement of intrinsic motivation at work

Present the factors that negatively affect work
motivation among Indian work force

Explain approaches available to managers for
creating a more motivating work context

Work Motivation is a set of energetic forces that
originates both within as well as beyond an
individual’s being, to initiate work-related
behaviour, and to determine its form, direction,
intensity, and duration

Concept of needs is so central to motivation that
any attempt to create and support work motivation
cannot neglect to understand the nature of needs
for their satisfaction at the work place

Influenced by the tradition, the Indian view of life does
say that life is made of contrasts – the opposite, eitheror ends. It calls them dualities that we should accept,
face and transcend during the process of self-discovery

Needs-Appetite or Desire?
 Satisfaction of a need is necessary for psychological health
because the mind is then free to explore ‘higher’ areas of
other needs. Thus of real importance is not the
consequences of the strength of needs for different
individuals, but the consequences of the extent to which
individuals are able to satisfy their needs within social
environments.

Self actualization – Merger of the doer and done
 A person whose self actualization need is triggered, feels
discontented and restless until that person finds what he/she
‘can be, must be’

The role of powerful learning experience in springing to
higher needs
 When the consciousness processes a learning experience, a
negative or painful part of it is turned constructively in pushing
the person towards the highest possible state of being, where
there is no returning to lower needs, unquenched desires do
not distract and nothing less than the best, no compromises or
short cuts are acceptable. This consciousness is almost spiritual
and goes far beyond work attitudes and work motivation

Need for Social Achievement (in comparison with nAch for
individual achievement)
 The social group or the community is at the center of
achievement, not the individual. Even the goals and efforts are
collective.

P-I Motive
 Relates with the need for Pioneering-Innovating, relevant
against the changing socio-economic backdrop of India
 Useful in identifying people who can drive the change and
through its development, change and modernize the whole
system where they work

Extension motive
 The need to be helpful and relevant to others, including to the
society in a selfless manner or even sacrificing one’s own
interests in favor of larger goals

Clearly communicated standards of excellence

Search for opportunities for change and innovation

Genuine interest in development of people

Preventing hierarchy to become a barrier

Creation of trusting relationships and facilitation of
team orientation

What if the organisations are not ready to
unleash the intrinsic motivation of employees?
 Use contingent rewards and constructive task
feedback for developing the feeling of personal
competence and stronger self efficacy
 Utilize the insights from spiritual and positive thinking
on work in general and organisational behaviour in
specific
 Encourage more internalization and emotional
alignment through managing work culture,
socialization and long term rewards
Employee
Identification as a
bridge
between
Extrinsic
and
Intrinsic
motivation

Workplace Spirituality
 Bringing spirituality into the workplace is one
approach to encouraging intrinsic motivation and
enriched work life for the people in it.
 Dimensions of Workplace Spirituality includes –
meaningful work, community and alignment with
organisational values

Creating Optimal Experience or “Flow”
 An optimal experience or Flow is understood as a
state where “… action follows upon action
according to an internal logic that seems to need
no conscious intervention by the actor

Positive OB
 The study and application of positive oriented human
resource strengths and psychological capacities that
can be measured, developed and effectively managed
for performance improvement in today’s workplace
 People believing in positive OB hold the opinion that
sufficient attention needs to be given to strengths and
positive aspects of OB, explaining not only the worst
but also some of the best aspects of life
 Luthans identified five positive elements in the
approach to OB currently: Confidence, Hope,
Optimism, Subjective well-being and emotional
intelligence