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Enjoying Your Work Richard Brislin |
Good morale differs
from high motivationQuestion: I served on the panel reviewing the yearly evaluations of employees in the organization where I serve as a vice president. One employee was judged to be highly motivated but to possess little morale. Another was said to have morale but little motivation. I think that both employees make important contributions to the organization. What exactly is the different between these two terms?
Answer: Motivation and morale refer to different types of behaviors that people bring to their organizations. The distinction lies in the difference between individuals and the groups to which they belong. Motivation refers to the individual's reactions in the workplace. If people set goals and strive to achieve them, then they are motivated. The goals can reflect their individual interests. Some people have the goal of bringing in the most clients to a business. Some want to provide the best customer service to a relatively small number of clients. Other people want to keep current in their areas of expertise and so buy technical manuals and take evening university courses. Success in meeting these goals leads to reputations such as, "This employee works hard and can be depended upon to achieve carefully set goals."
Morale refers to people's relation to the organization as a whole and to co-workers. There are always factors beyond any one individual when morale is discussed, and the other factor always involves other people in the organization. People with high morale are proud to work for an organization. When they discuss themselves, they talk enthusiastically about the place where they work. They have positive feelings about co-workers and respect the contributions that others make to the organization. They are willing to make personal sacrifices for the good of the organization.
If people are highly motivated but show little morale, they benefit their organization through their hard work but not by their contributions to the projects initiated by others. If they have high morale but low motivation, they benefit their organizations by self-sacrificing efforts. They put emphasis on their contributions to their organizations and not to their individual careers. Some people can be high in both. They are hard-working, ambitious and want the organization's highest-paying jobs. These same people can be cooperative in the workplace, can show respect for others and can demonstrate pride in their organizations.
The distinction is especially important today. Some people are emphasizing employability rather than employment. They are giving attention to their own skills and are always ready to find a job given the range of contributions that they can offer a company. They are motivated to have good careers but feel no special attachment to any one organization. Such people are influenced by their personal experiences, with sudden downsizings imposed by companies that preached but did not practice loyalty to employees. Many motivated employees will work hard for an organization but will always "have suitcases packed" in the form of cutting-edge skills and good networks that they offer to the job market.
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The purpose of this column is to increase understanding of human behavior as it has an impact on the workplace. Given the amount of time people spend at work, job satisfaction should ideally be high and it should contribute to general life happiness. Enjoyment can increase as people learn more about workplace psychology, communication, and group influences.
Richard Brislin is a professor in the College of Business Administration, University of Hawaii. He can be reached through the College Relations Office: cro@cba.hawaii.edu