Define the motivation theory-define each of its key elements

Assignment Help Operation Management
Reference no: EM131708883

Three months ago, Mr. Price, 31, announced he was setting a new minimum salary of $70,000 at his Seattle credit card processing firm,Gravity Payments, and slashing his own million-dollar pay package to do it. He wasn’t thinking about the current political clamor over low wages or the growing gap between rich and poor, he said. He was just thinking of the 120 people who worked for him and, let’s be honest, a bit of free publicity. The idea struck him when a friend shared her worries about paying both her rent and student loans on a $40,000 salary.

A few customers, dismayed by what they viewed as a political statement, withdrew their business. Others, anticipating a fee increase — despite repeated assurances to the contrary — also left. While dozens of new clients, inspired by Mr. Price’s announcement, were signing up, those accounts will not start paying off for at least another year. To handle the flood, he has already had to hire a dozen additional employees; now at a significantly higher cost.

Two of Mr. Price’s most valued employees quit, spurred in part by their view that it was unfair to double the pay of some new hires while the longest-serving staff members got small or no raises. Some friends and associates in Seattle’s close-knit entrepreneurial network were also piqued that Mr. Price’s action made them look stingy in front of their own employees.

Then potentially the worst blow of all: Less than two weeks after the announcement, Mr. Price’s older brother and Gravity co-founder, Lucas Price, citing longstanding differences, filed a lawsuit that potentially threatened the company’s very existence. With legal bills quickly mounting and most of his own paycheck and last year’s $2.2 million in profits plowed into the salary increases, Dan Price said, “We don’t have a margin of error to pay those legal fees.”

In addition to providing the devices and software that merchants use when a customer whips out a credit card, Gravity makes sure the money shifts securely and quickly among buyer, bank and business.

Maisey McMaster was one of the believers. She joined the company five years ago and worked her way up to financial manager, putting in long hours that left little time for her husband and extended family. She helped calculate whether the firm could afford to gradually raise everyone’s salary to $70,000 over a three-year period, and was initially swept up in the excitement. But the more she thought about it, the more the details gnawed at her.

“He gave raises to people who have the least skills and are the least equipped to do the job, and the ones who were taking on the most didn’t get much of a bump,” she said. To her, a fairer proposal would have been to give smaller increases with the opportunity to earn a future raise with more experience.

A couple of days after the announcement, she decided to talk to Mr. Price.

“He treated me as if I was being selfish and only thinking about myself,” she said. “That really hurt me. I was talking about not only me, but about everyone in my position.”

Already approaching burnout from the relentless pace, she decided to quit.

The new pay scale also helped push Grant Moran, 29, Gravity’s web developer, to leave. “I had a lot of mixed emotions,” he said. His own salary was bumped up to $50,000 from $41,000 (the first stage of the raise), but the policy was nevertheless disconcerting. “Now the people who were just clocking in and out were making the same as me,” he complained. “It shackles high performers to less motivated team members.”

Mr. Moran also fretted that the extra money could over time become too enticing to give up, keeping him from his primary goal of further developing his web skills and moving to a digital company.

And the attention was vexing. “I was kind of uncomfortable and didn’t like having my wage advertised so publicly and so blatantly,” he said, echoing a sentiment of several Gravity staff members. “It changed perspectives and expectations of you, whether it’s the amount you tip on a cup of coffee that day or family and friends now calling you for a loan.”

Several employees who stayed, while exhilarated by the raises, say they now feel a lot of pressure. “Am I doing my job well enough to deserve this?” said Stephanie Brooks, 23, who joined Gravity as an administrative assistant two months before the wage increase. “I didn’t earn it.”

Lucas, who lives in Seattle, declined to be interviewed but wrote in an email: “Dan has taken millions of dollars out of the company for himself while denying me the benefits of the ownership of my shares, and otherwise favoring his own interests as the majority shareholder over my interests.” He said his complaints predated the pay raises.

For now, at least, Mr. Price has undoubtedly made an immediate difference in the lives of many of his employees. José Garcia, 30, who supervises an equipment team, was able to afford to move into the city and replace the worn tires on his car. Ms. Ortiz, who was briefly homeless as a child, can now visit her family in Burlington, Vt. Cody Boorman, 22, who handles operations out of his eastern Washington home, said he and his wife finally felt financially secure enough to start a family.

a) The article provides a good example of which of the following motivation theories:

Expectancy theory

Goal setting theory

Equity theory

Psychological empowerment

b) Define the motivation theory and define each of its key elements.

c) Using evidence from the article and the elements of the motivation theory you selected, explain why some people quit working at Gravity.

Reference no: EM131708883

Questions Cloud

Similarities between descriptive and and inferential statics : What are the similarities between descriptive and and inferential statics?
Explain employer liability for employee acts : Explain employer liability for employee acts (vicarious liability) to three people you know and ask them if that is a good or bad idea and why?
Guilty of hiring and harboring illegal aliens : What argument would you make that Tipton and Seferi were guilty of hiring and harboring illegal aliens?
Businesses maintain a high level of visibility : Why is it important that businesses maintain a high level of visibility on search engine results pages?
Define the motivation theory-define each of its key elements : Define the motivation theory and define each of its key elements. Using evidence from the article and the elements of the motivation theory you selected,
Federal government and the state governments : Which of the following is true regarding the division of powers between the federal government and the state governments?
What are the two major project closure categories : What are the two major project closure categories? And what do you do in those categories?
Consider different values in their suppliers countries : Should U.S. companies consider different values in their suppliers' countries?
Using the concepts from process strategy : Using the concepts from process strategy, explain ... Why you believe major automobile manufacturers do not make ambulances?

Reviews

Write a Review

Operation Management Questions & Answers

  Book review - the goal

Operations Management is about a book review. Title of the book is "Goal". This book has been written by Dr. Eliyahu Goldartt. The book has been appreciated by many as one of those books which offers an insight into the operations and strategic capac..

  Operational plan in hospitality enterprise

Operational plan pertaining to a hospitality enterprise is given in detail in the solution. The operational plan is an important plan or preparation which gives guidelines regarding the role and responsibilities of each and every operation at all lev..

  Managing operations and information

Recognise the importance of a strategic approach to the development and deployment of organisational information systems. Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of databases and their integration to the organisation's overall information mana..

  A make-or-buy analysis

An analysis of the holding costs, including the appropriate annual holding cost rate.

  Evolution and contributor of operations management

Briefly explain Evolution and contributor of Operations management.

  Functions and responsibilities of an operations manager

A number of drivers of change have transformed the roles, functions and responsibilities of an operations manager over recent years. These drivers have not only been based on technological innovations but also on the need for organisations to develop..

  Compute the optimal order quantity

Compute the Optimal Order quantity of DVD players. Determine the appropriate reorder point.

  Relationship to operations practice in the organisation

Evaluate problems in operations and identify approaches to overcoming them. Critically evaluate operating plans and identify areas for improvement. Justify, implement and evaluate changes to operations in line with modern approaches.

  A make or buy analysis

Develop a report for Figi Fabricating that will address the question of whether the company should continue to purchase the part from the supplier or begin to produce the part itself.

  Prepare a staffing plan

Prepare a staffing plan showing the change of your unit from medical/surgical staffing to oncology staffing.

  Leadership styles in different organizations

Ccompare the effectiveness of different leadership styles in different organizations

  Risk management tools and models

Be able to understand the concept of risk, roles and responsibilities for risk management and risk management tools and models.

Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd