Staff Motivation
English Department, Huzhou TeachersCollege
Objectives
1) To enable students to talk about motivation
at work.
2) To practise one-minute talk on business
topics.
3) To learn to solve practical problems
Tasks and Schemes
1. Reading on page 78.
2. Oral practice.

1.

2.
Reading on page 78.
Meeting the company’s motivational challenge.
面对公司激励挑战
Adrian Furnham discuses the thorny issue of
putting motivational techniques into practice.
Difficult to handle; causing
trouble or worry. 棘手的
Of the person staying in the company but
his mind fleeing out of it.
3. We have all seen the ‘quit-but-stay’ employees who
have severed their psychological contact with the
organization.
Separate or disjoin
到处都可以见到人在公司心在外的员工，他们
在心理上早已断绝了与公司的联系。
4. They firmly park their brains and their enthusiasm for
life in the staff car park in the morning, reengaging
them with gusto 30 seconds after the official end of
work time.
vigorous and enthusiastic
enjoyment
 每天早晨，他们又义无反顾地把自己的聪明才智
和对生活的热情同车子一道停放在员工停车场，
而规定下班时间一到，不出30秒，他们便立刻又
容光焕发，精力充沛。
5. However, they shrewdly avoid doing
anything that warrants dismissal and are
content to keep their heads down, doing the
minimum and volunteering nothing.
Clever in
judgments精明
Having no desire to
progress and be promoted
6. The less intrinsically interesting the work, the more
needs to be done to make it acceptable: job
enrichment, job rotation and job sharing.
Transfer one’s job in turns
一件工作本身越是乏味，越是需要采取诸如丰富工作
内容、岗位轮换制及工作分摊等措施使之变得易于接
受。
7. You do not have to organize outdoor assault courses.
野外突击培训课程，是培养团队精神的一种形式
8. Pay people what they are worth. Consider such factors
as market forces, predatory competitors and the
contribution each individual makes.
Concerned with or living by or as
if by robbery and seizing the
property of others
根据各人体现的劳动价值给予报酬。要考虑市场劳力
供求、掠夺性竞争对手以及员工的各自贡献等诸多因
素。
To preserve forever; caused to be
remembered for ever.
9. We get the perpetuation of incompetence.
于是，不称职的情况便长久存
在，积重难返。

1.
Oral Practice:
What is the writer’s attitude to motivational techniques
according to the information in the text? Do you share this
attitude?
The writer is skeptical. He sees so-called ‘new’ motivational
techniques as old ideas repackaged. He also questions
whether these techniques are ever put into practice
successfully.
2. Managers assume that the goals of employees
are those of the company. Do you agree? Why
or why not?
1) Agree / why
 The employees’ interests are in line with those
of the company.
 The employees’ goals, such as improved
benefits / pay rise / career development / more
bonus / good opportunities of promotion, are
based on the company’s goals to maximize
profitability, to improve overall strength of the
labour forces, to achieve good sales, to
continue company growth, etc.
2) Disagree / why not
 The employees’ interests may not be in line with those
of the company.
 The employees’ goals may be short-term and practical.
e.g. higher salary, better benefits, better working
conditions, quicker promotion (internal recruitment),
etc.
 While those of the company are long-term and
integrated. E.g. steady and sustainable growth of the
company, increase of market share, better quality of
the labour forces (outside recruitment), maximization
of profitability, increase of capital accumulation and
project investment, etc.
3. Motivation stems from job satisfaction and not
financial reward. Do you agree? Why or why not?
1) Agree / why
 Job satisfaction is the pleasure one feels when
one does the job.
 It is something spiritual.
 To do a meaningful job, to be happy at work and
to be recognized are more important.
 When one is secured with basic material life, he
would be in need of spiritual satisfaction.
 Many people are motivated by a rich and
interesting, job or by their interest in certain job
rather than in only financial reward.
2)





Disagree / why not
Everything in modern society is based on money.
Financial reward provides the basis of job satisfaction.
Financial reward is more tangible.
Spiritual satisfaction is guaranteed by material security.
Business success is measured in terms of the money
one earns.
 Without financial reward, there is no talking about
motivation.
3) Agree / disagree
 That depends on
whether you are
practical-minded or
spiritual-minded.
 Motivations stems
from
both
job
satisfaction
and
financial reward.
Assignment:
try to complete the Findings
and Recommendations section
or the report on page 80 by
summarizing the grievances of
the Terrain employees.
Thank U 4 your attendance!
writing task: complete the Findings and Recommendations
section or the report on page 80 by summarizing the grievances
of the Terrain employees.
Findings
A number of employees clearly suffer from a lack of motivation
as a
result of dissatisfaction in one or more areas of their work. The
key
findings are outlined below:
Staff feel undervalued by the company, both on a financial and a
personal level. It is generally felt that the company’s competitors
offer higher levels of remuneration. The perception that managers
are unappreciative of staff efforts is particularly noticeable in the
Sales Department.
Certain employees feel under-challenged. The company is clearly
not exploiting the potential of its human resources.
There appears to be a breakdown of communication in the
Production Department. The confusion and resultant ill-feeling
towards managers has the potential to disrupt production.
Recommendations
We strongly recommend the following measures:
An evaluation of job profiles throughout the
company to assess whether skills could be utilized
more efficiently.
A review of the current salary structure involving
comparison with similar organizations.
It is also essential to investigate and take action
regarding communication in the Production.