Required informationSkip to questionMotivating Employees Appletree Answers provides call centers and receptionist services. The company has grown to having 650 employees in 24 call centers in the United States and Puerto Rico. Like many companies today, Appletree Answers was faced with a growing problem of employee motivation which resulted in high levels of turnover. Using a variety of motivation theories and techniques, its founder, John Ratliff, has instituted many motivational techniques to help Appletree Answers and other companies with the same problem. Maintaining happy, productive, and motivated employees is a priority for most managers, supervisors, and businesses today. Many employees want to be happy in their jobs; however, many employees lack the motivation to do their jobs well. Motivation is an intrinsic desire to work towards a goal or objective; however, good managers have the ability to encourage and inspire employees to work hard and to feel good about the work they are doing. Assumptions about how employees feel about their jobs have led to several theories of motivation in the workplace today.  Determining the right theory to meet the employees’ desired external reward is the challenge for all managers and supervisors in today’s dynamic workplace. Click the ► button to watch the video. Then, answer the questions that follow. The theory of human motivation is often associated with _______, who believed that motivation arises from an unmet need.Multiple ChoiceAbraham MaslowVictor VroomElton MayoFrederick HerzbergFrederick Taylor

Employee turnover is a high cost of doing business. By investing in employee motivation programs, Appletree Answers was able to reduce _________ and increase _____________.Multiple Choiceemployee turnover; customer retentionemployee motivation; its return on investmentemployees’ self-esteem; salariesemployee dissatisfaction; securitythe number of employees; the number of call centers

Appletree Answers' employees had a different view of how management should motivate and encourage its employees.  To address the gap in perceptions, John Ratliff implementedMultiple Choicethe Dream On Program.call quotas.Theory X principles.time-motion studies.extra training.

Required informationSkip to questionMotivating Employees Beyond the Job Description This activity is important because as a manager, understanding how to manage human resources and motivate employees can be very difficult. The case describes a problem commonly faced by managers – overcoming the challenge of getting employees to do work beyond merely what is stated in the job description. The goal of this exercise is to demonstrate your understanding of the employee motivation and apply these concepts to a scenario frequently faced by managers. Read the case and then answer the questions that follow. Maria felt perplexed. She had recently stepped into a new role as mid-level manager for a candy manufacturing organization. She had been excited for the task at hand. The manager she replaced had been at the organization for a long time and had recently retired. His group had the lowest turnover in the entire company. The problem was that their overall group-level performance was also lower than the numbers reported in the rest of the organization. After a few months in her new position, Maria was starting to realize the scope of the challenge. The employees in the department had clear job descriptions. The job descriptions included some tasks that were easy to measure. For example, there were quantitative measures for the division regarding sales targets and quality expectations. However, the job descriptions also included some tasks that were more difficult to measure. For example, the employees in the department had statements like, “Train new employees”, “Streamline processes”, and “Report quality issues”. While these tasks were necessary to keep the department effective and efficient, it was difficult to hold any one employee accountable when these tasks were not completed. Maria had already tried several things. She had made some superficial changes in the department, like changing a reward and recognition program. The changes resulted in better behavior at first, but the employees returned to their regular behavior after a few days. Maria considered what she should do next to improve performance in the organization. Maria’s changes to the department only resulted in temporary changes in behavior. This is best explained by which of the following terms?Multiple ChoiceEquity TheoryExpectancy TheoryHerzberg's Two-Factor TheoryMaslow’s Hierarchy of NeedsThe Hawthorne Effect

Item1Part 1 of 51.4pointsReferencesItem 1Required informationRequired informationSkip to questionManager’s Hot Seat: Clearing Motivation for Takeoff In order to influence employee behavior in the workplace, organizations often set goals to incentivize certain actions. The intention of these goals is to motivate employees to behave in a way that promotes the organization’s strategy. However, goals sometimes fail to motivate—and can even demotivate—individuals in the workplace if they are not properly set. This activity is important because managers must know how to not only develop well-thought-out goals but also to properly execute on the plan in order to successfully motivate their workforce. The goal of this activity is to provide you with problem-solving skills when it comes to issues related to motivation. SkyBlue, a popular airline, is introducing a new incentive plan that rewards employees for hitting certain marks on mishandled baggage and on-time departures. An airline supervisor is introducing this incentive plan to his team, and is being met with resistance and skepticism. How does the manager in the video handle the rollout of the incentive plan? How would you?  Click the ► button to watch the video. Then, answer the questions that follow. Sophia mentions that $250 is not even 1 percent of her salary and she does not seem motivated by the amount of the bonus. Based on expectancy theory, Sophia’s lack of motivation can be attributed to which of the following?Multiple Choicedistributive justiceexpectancyvalenceinstrumentalityprocedural justice

Required informationSkip to questionWegman's Food Markets Wegman's Food Markets does all it can to create happy, successful environments for both its employees and its customers. Almost anyone is sure to enjoy an ethical atmosphere filled with good food, abundant choices, responsible employees, and respect. Review the three segments of the case and write your responses as instructed. Motivation is more than a tool that managers can use to foster employee loyalty and boost productivity. It is a process that affects all relationships within an organization and influences many areas such as pay, promotion, job design, training opportunities, and reporting relationships. Motivating employees to increase satisfaction and productivity is an important concern for organizations seeking to remain competitive in the global marketplace. Read the case below and answer the questions which follow. Ranking high within Fortune Magazine's "Best 100 Companies to Work for" for several years, Wegman's Food Markets is loved by employees and customers alike. The 80-store chain operates on an interesting and somewhat backwards motto: Employees first, customers second. Life is different at Wegman's. At many grocery stores, annual turnover rates can reach nearly 100 percent, whereas the turnover rate for full-time employees at Wegman's is only 6 percent. What makes Wegman's employees so happy? It's the fair salary and respect for each person as an individual. In addition, Wegman's offers competitive benefits, including scholarship opportunities, a Wegman's retirement plan in addition to a 401(k), adoption assistance, and numerous employee discounts. Employees at Wegman's are allowed to do whatever it takes to create customer satisfaction without having to go higher up for approval. In some cases, this has taken the form of cooking a woman's Thanksgiving Day turkey at the Wegman's store because the one she purchased wouldn't fit in her oven or sending a chef to a customer's home in response to an SOS. While this may seem a bit extreme, a Gallup poll suggests that people who are emotionally connected to their grocery stores spend up to 46 percent more. As proof, Wegman's received around 2,400 individual letters in one year in which the writers begged Wegman's to build stores in their areas. Even an ethical company, such as Wegman's, isn't without its share of issues and risks. In 2005, activists accused Wegman's of cruel animal treatment at their Wegman's Eggs Farm. The New York State police and the Wayne County District Attorney's office investigated the matter and acquitted Wegman's of any wrongdoing. In response, Wegman's hired Dr. Joy Mench, professor of animal science at the University of California at Davis, to consult with them on proper animal husbandry. The company also brings in a veterinarian from the Cornell University Poultry Diagnostic and Extension Service to monitor the health and well being of the hens. Which of the following of Wegman's motivating factors is an intrinsic motivator?Multiple Choicea sense of pride from meeting customer needsscholarship opportunitiesthe Wegman's retirement planadoption assistanceemployee discounts on groceries