Motivating Technical Professionals Today: To Thrive, Scientists and Engineers Need an Ambidextrous Environment That Can Support Motivational Dualism
2005; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 48; Issue: 6 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
1930-0166
Autores Tópico(s)Technology Assessment and Management
ResumoMost managers would readily acknowledge that while the benefits of motivation are clear, it is often a very difficult process to manage and understand. While the presence of motivation does not guarantee high performance or success, its absence seems to result in longterm problems. Strongly motivated employees and project teams push themselves to overachieve, stretching their thinking and working arduously to accomplish considerably more than even brighter and more technically competent peers. In fact, as technical leaders gain experience, they soon realize just how important it is to have the kind of excitement that motivates people to be creative and move their innovative ideas and advances more quickly through the organization. Motivation--Is There a Secret? In trying to influence the efforts of technical professionals, many of management's concerns lie in this broad area of motivation. But what exactly is the secret to having motivated employees? While there is no shortage of specific models and frameworks, it is generally recognized that a person's true commitment and motivation come from the intrinsic nature of the work he or she is asked to do. Put simply, people in general, and technical professionals in particular, like to do neat things--to boldly go where no man has gone before. If technical employees believe their work is challenging and innovative, provides the opportunity for recognition, growth and advancement, and gives them the freedom for independent action, they will strive to meet the demands of the job independent of its degree of difficulty. While extrinsic factors like salary, benefits, security, and working conditions are also important, decades of research convincingly show that they do not instill the kind of commitment and excitement needed in creative work environments where employees are expected to stretch their thinking, push their ideas, and persevere to solve tough, unyielding problems. The degree of motivational potential of any specific job is dramatically influenced by how the person views the assignment on which he or she is working at that time, including how tasks, information, reward, and decision-making processes are organized and managed. Even in situations of high pressure and unrealistic demands, RD it is much more difficult to work with someone who is less capable or less motivated. And since technical abilities are rarely uniformly distributed among project team members, professionals need to learn how to work and interact with others on either end of this distribution. If not, the R&D professional is likely to end up working apart rather than interdependently, which in turn can lead to the silos that characterize far too many cross-functional projects. …
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