Herzberg Two Factor Theory Essay

1) According to Herzberg’s two factor theory, there exists ‘hygiene factors’, extrinsic factors of a workplace that lead to either dissatisfaction or non-dissatisfaction, but not motivation. As well, there are motivation factors, intrinsically rewarding factors of a workplace that “[emphasize] factors associated with the work itself or with outcomes directly derived from it”. In raising the salary of his employees, Dan hoped that the extrinsic reward of a pay increase would lead to intrinsically beneficial opportunities for personal growth for his employees. The opportunities for personal growth should in turn further motivate employees in their job. When Dan chose to raise the salaries of his employees, he was “influenced by research showing

This can be explained using expectancy theory which states that “individuals act depending on whether their effort will lead to good performance, whether good performance will be followed by a given outcome, and whether the outcome is attractive to them.” The key relationship in expectancy theory that would explain customer’s frustration with Dan is the Performance-Reward Relationship, or Instrumentality, which is links the effort an individual will put into their work to an extrinsic reward. A customer and manager like Brian Canlis or Steve Duffield sees that Dan is offering a substantially high extrinsic reward, one that they cannot replicate. For instance, Steve states “We can’t afford to do that…employees are the biggest expense, and they need to manage those costs to survive.” Because these managers cannot match the expenses, the coefficient ‘I’ for instrumentality in the formula motivational force equates expectancy, instrumentality, and valence would become much lower, especially when comparing their organizational rewards to that of the employees of Gravity. This lower coefficient according to expectancy theory would demotivate employees in other firms, making managers’ jobs