Methods of Motivation at Work 

There are many methods that can be used to motivate staff. These can be divided into: 

• Financial methods – remuneration, bonus, commission, promotion and fringe benefits. 
• Non-financial methods – job rotation, job enrichment, autonomy. 

Financial Method of Motivation 

• Remuneration – is the money paid to employees for their work or services to an organisation. Remuneration is the money employees are paid in return for working in a business. Different roles in a business are rewarded with different levels of remuneration. For example, a company director might earn £100,000 per year whereas a data entry clerk might earn £18,000 per year. 
• Many employees are motivated by remuneration, and pay rises can often make employees feel more motivated. Many businesses offer regular yearly increases in remuneration to help increase motivation. 
• Time rate – Employees are paid for the exact time that they work at a set amount per hour or per day. The more hours or days an employee works the larger wage they will receive. 
• Piece-rate – Employees are paid per item they produce. The more productive an employee is, the higher the wage they will receive. This will encourage people to work harder and produce more. 
• Commission – Employees are paid a percentage of the value of their sales. Employees are encouraged to sell more as the higher their sales the more commission they will receive. Commission is usually given as a percentage of a sale or a specified amount of money per sale. 
• For example, if a salesperson sells a car, they might receive 25 to 30 percent of the profit as commission. Earning additional money is often a motivating factor for employees and generally makes them work harder. 
• Performance-related pay – Employees who reach a certain standard or achieve a certain target will be given a pay rise. 
• Bonus – Employees are paid an additional amount on top of their basic salary for achieving targets set by the organisation. 
• Promotion – If employees are able to see a clear promotion route available within an organisation they are more likely to work hard and be more motivated to succeed. 
• Fringe benefits – This is when extra benefits are given in addition to an employee’s wage or salary.

Fringe benefits can include: 

❖ gym membership 

❖ company car 

❖ health insurance 

❖ free childcare 

Non-Financial Method of Motivation 

➔ Job enrichment 

Employees are given greater responsibility or more demanding tasks to make their jobs more interesting and challenging. 

Job enrichment has a number of benefits, such as increased motivation, lower absence rates, increased productivity and higher staff retention. 

➔ Job rotation 

A member of staff is rotated or moved through different jobs within the organisation so they acquire a range of skills from each department or job role. This will make their job more interesting and challenging which can lead to more motivated employees. 

➔ Autonomy 

Autonomy refers to the degree to which employees are able to make decisions about their day-to-day roles. Having more autonomy means an employee has the ability to make more decisions about their role, whereas having less autonomy means an employee has limited decision-making responsibility. Having a high level of autonomy can be a significant motivator for employees as it can make them feel valued and trusted by their employer.