It will state heir absence and why this will affect the overall performance of the workforce. Secondly, effective communication will be explained and why this is an important part of any organization. The barriers to effective communication will be described here and how they are to be overcome. Next, this report will take into account the benefits of training and development and why this is important for both organization and workforce. It will also indicate what training needs have been identified within this particular organization.
Lastly, there will be recommendations in the form of an action plan which will aileron to the specific needs of the company and deal with any issues that have been identified in the previous writings of this report. The final report will be presented on the 9 March 2014. Motivation The Motivational Issues These are the identifiable issues that have been listed from the case study: I. Immediately noticeable the full time workers to agency workers ratio is tilted towards the agency workers, with 90 full time staff and 140 agency workers.
This in itself does not necessarily mean there is an issue, however, the fact that they are treated similarly does. They are allowed to use the staff shop and they re both involved in communication meetings and given lunch vouchers. Staff incentives are usually exclusive to permanent staff only. Also there are some long term agency workers that have been working there for ten years. Agency staff are usually only used to fill short term positions or seasonal work, there is the odd occasion that a company will use an agency to determine whether or not an employee is suitable for the job and then decide to take them on permanently.
Also because they are treated relatively similarly the agency staff may feel that they do not need to work as hard as the full time staff because they can lose heir jobs at any time. When employees feel they are treated fairly, they can feel motivated, but when they are treated unfairly they can feel unmotivated. So this needs to be looked at further within the company. II. One of the bigger motivational issues is the threat of closure because of financial problems and not meeting set targets.
Employees are expected to reach targets that an automated distribution centre would meet, however, with pallet height of only three high this means that they will have no motivation to meet the targets. This will mean that all of a sudden the employees have no job security. Ill. The equipment at this warehouse needs updating. At the moment the pallet height is three high and nothing is automated. A more modern facility would be equipped with automating warehousing and very narrow aisle racking.
The workers here will have to work twice as hard for longer to achieve maximum productivity because as previously stated the pallet height is only three whereas an automated system would achieve eight. IV. Operating on a shift cycle means working unsociable hours, therefore finding the right work life balance for their employees will improve their motivation. Some employees will work thirty six hours and some will work forty eight hours weeks, averaging out to a forty hour week. After working a twelve hour day there isn’t much room for anything else in their lives. V.
Lack of interest in staff is another motivational issue. This means that staff can feel undervalued and not work to their full potential. More communication and training would be beneficial to help employees get the most out of their work and help the organization improve the productivity for their workers. Future Motivational Issues If nothing is done to combat the motivational issues previously stated then it mess likely that they will continue to be issues in the future. Below is a list that consists of the motivational factors that will still cause problems at a later date: I.
The potential motivational issues mainly consist of the threat of closure by the parent company because of financial issues and not meeting targets. Employees are expected to raise lead times and improve delivery accuracy, this is not going to happen unless the employee skill base is raised and the equipment standard is raised or new, economical equipment is installed II. Also there is a future motivational issue if nothing is done to update he current way of working at this distribution centre. Automation would undoubtedly make things easier on the employees and raise motivation and moral levels.
This would also mean that the existing employees would need training in order to run the new systems or new qualified and more experienced employees would need to be recruited. Either way the distribution centre would benefit from a more productive workforce. Ill. The lack of communication is also going to present a problem in the future if it is not addressed in the present. Staff appraisals on all levels and other meetings such as shift changeovers are a good way to keep the flow of communication going ensuring that all staff are always in the loop and can adapt and communicate any changes. ] IV. Motivational Theories The motivational theories in Appendix 2 and 3 will explain the factors that can affect an employee’s motivation. How Mason’s Theory relates to the Distribution Centre This information will show how the distribution centre can be related to Mascots Theory. Looking at the esteem needs first because it is very rare for an employee or individual to reach self-actualization, there is no indication that the distribution enter has a recognition system for its employees. There is also no mention of promotion from within.
The result of this is there is no reason that employees would overly apply themselves to their work because there is no appreciation to be gained from it. Recognition is very important to some employees and the higher the praise or chance of climbing the hierarchy the harder some employees will work. The esteem needs at the moment are not being met. Secondly, the love needs are also not mentioned. This implies that not only do the employees have an unbalance work – life ratio but there is no attempt o develop relationships within the workplace.
Employment can be lonely and monotonous for some employees without social interaction. The only social interaction these employees are getting at the moment is with the other employees on their shift pattern, because there is no mention of a rotation on the shift system the set shifts don’t get to interact with each other. There is very little of these needs being met. Safety needs are partially covered in regards to employees needing routine and order, the shift pattern means that each employee knows when they are meant to be in work and can adjust their home life accordingly.
However, without proper training there is a higher risk of accidents. Increasing the training of these individuals can lead to less risk. Finally, the physiological needs are the last item that can be attributed to the distribution centre. Job security comes under this category because of the threat of closure there is none and because of the poor skill base there is no occupational security either. Whether the distribution centre closed or even downsized the employees at the distribution centre would be unable to provide food and basic essentials for their families.
These needs at the moment are being et, for the permanent workers, because they do have a wage coming in and can provide themselves and their families with the basic essentials. As for the agency workers, even though these needs are being met there is always the question when you work for an agency of ‘for how long? How Herrings theory relates to the distribution centre The information set out below will explain how each factor in the theory relates to the issues in the distribution centre.
Hygiene Factors Supervision Levels – this seems to coincide with the new shift pattern of a four cycle shift because there have been four new team leaders appointed. This indicates that there is adequate supervision. Company Policies – there is no mention of any policies in place, there is also no mention of any training on these policies i. E. Health and safety policy, recruitment policy or grievance procedures. Status – the only employees that will have any status at this distribution centre are the team leaders and management. There no way for a shop floor worker to gain any status.
Job Security – at the moment employees jobs are at risk because of the threat of closure from the parent company. Salary – it has been mentioned that the salary is above the local average for the area, this is called an efficiency wage, meaning that the firm pays higher than normal wages in order to increase their productivity. Adapted from http://vi. %’ . Economically. Org/blob/glossary/efficiency-wage-theory/(2014). Although this might not continue to be the case if the skill set of the employees remains low. Working Conditions – the working conditions here are made harder because of the lack of automation and very narrow aisle racking.
Coupled with the pressure of meeting targets, it indicates an unproductive culture. Relationship with Management – there seems to be very little opportunity to eave any sort of relationship with management because of the shift cycle. There is very little communication here. Motivators Work – the work at the moment is arduous, a constant battle to hit targets with basic, if any, equipment. The pressure to reduce lead times and delivery accuracy along with raising the kepi’s means that employees have a lot more to worry about than just completing their jobs.
Achievement – at the moment there is no way for an employee to feel they have achieved something whilst doing their work. Reward & Recognition – there is no reward scheme in place here, therefore, no hence to gain recognition for a good job done. Personal Growth – as there is no training mentioned here it would be up to the employee to ascertain their own training needs and pursue them outside of work. Additional Responsibility – the team leaders are the only employees with additional responsibilities, possibly even too many. Advancement – as with the other factors, there is no mention of the ability to advance within this business.
Communication Communication is a vital part of any organization and is essentially absent from the distribution centre. The Transactional Model Please see appendix 4 for a picture and definition of this model. The Importance of Effective Communication Communication is vital to achieve a coordinated, productive workforce. It is also essential when trying to build a positive relationship with another individual. People communicate in a variety of different ways so it is important that the message being sent is clear and audience appropriate.
It can cause confusion and misunderstandings if it is not. This is disastrous in a workplace because employees will not complete their work properly, on time and to the expected standard. The sender of a message can be thought of as rude, inappropriate or even unintelligent if their message is not received in the correct context. This leads to lower levels of productivity. “Business owners and managers also need to understand the role of communication in employee motivation, as it can sometimes be the most basic communication errors that lead to employee dissatisfaction”.
G. N. Root, Demand Media Role of Communication in Employee Motivation (2014) Other forms of communication such as electronic, telephone and written should follow the same rules as face to face and verbal communication. Body language s not always present so it is important to use appropriate tone of voice, wording, timing and good judgment. The portrayal of feeling is often misunderstood such as the difference between sympathy and empathy. To make sure that an organization is up to date with their communication needs some will employ a communications officer.
Effective communication should be coupled with effective listening skills to create an ideal environment for conveying verbal messages. To show how an organization would apply effective communication, please see Appendix 5 The Barriers to Effective Communication within the Distribution Centre Within the organization a few issues regarding communication has been identified. Shift Pattern Due to office hours for management and administration and a three week shift pattern for the rest of the workforce, there was very little chance to communicate with each other.
Even though it was looked at and changes implemented, only the core workers were put onto the shift pattern which allows them to communicate more often with management. Performance Management In this area, the lack of appraisals means there is no communication between manager and team leaders, team leaders and shop floor workers. Constructive feedback from others is essential to workplace atmosphere, motivation, training and culture. Skill Base The skill base of the employees was found to be poor, this could mean that team leaders needed to be more involved with the staff in order to communicate their training needs back to management.
Competitive Pressure The fact that it takes seven days from order to delivery when a competitor takes three shows a possible lack of communication between departments. C Training Training is essentially organized learning activities that provide information and instruction which is aimed at improving performance by either the attainment of a higher skill set or the learning of new ones. Armstrong, (2003), p. (549) wrote “Training is the use of systematic and planned instruction and development activities to promote learning. The Importance of Training There are many reasons why training is not only necessary but also vital to an organization and its workforce. Predominantly an organization should have training and development policies in place to ensure that it can achieve its human resource development strategy. This further ensures that its workforce can meet its present and future needs’ Usually a firm will identify its training needs, firstly as a whole then it will look at the training needs of individual departments within the organization and lastly it will look at the training needs of its employees.
The reason for this structure is it is a very effective way of identifying the relevant training and development programs available. Adapted from A handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. (2003) A very good model according to Michael Armstrong in his book A Handbook of Human Resource Practice, of training evaluation and implementation is presented in Appendix 6 Benefits of Training for the Employee Training and development for employees brings numerous benefits. It can mean the difference between knowing what should be done and knowing what an employee can do.
Training and development can increase competence levels and enhance skills; also knowing that these opportunities are available enables employees to obtain higher job satisfaction. Then there is a chance of promotion and progress within their organization. This is also linked to better employee motivation. Adapted from A Handbook of Human Resource Practice, M. Armstrong (2003) Job training also shows employees that their organization is willing to invest in TTS people and this inspires commitment from its workforce. Company specific training can raise employee’s professional levels and employability.
This gives employees occupational security in an age of very little job security. Adapted from Management and Organizational behavior, L. J. Mullions (2013) Benefits of Training for an Organization Some of the obvious benefits are an improvement of performance and output because of a diverse and multi-skilled workforce. This can also lead to increased speed of production and increased quality, meaning fewer mistakes and fewer accidents. Also there is a higher level of service provided to customers, which could lead to a higher reputation, possibly resulting in higher profit.
CLC Training Needs within the Distribution Centre The skill base was mainly felt to be poor; this indicates that there is very little or no training available. This also suggests that there may be a wide skills gap between supervisors/management and shop floor workers. There are no effective suggestions in the case study about how the organization can raise the professional level of the shop floor workers.
