Hackman & Oldham’s Job
Characteristics Model
Core Dimensions
Skill Variety
Task Identity
Task Signif.
Psychological States
Meaningfulness
of Work
Autonomy
Responsibility
for outcomes
Feedback
Knowledge of
Results
Outcomes
High intrinsic
motivation
High job perormance
High job satisfaction
Low absentee
ism & turnover
Moderating Variables for the
Job Characteristics Model
• Growth need strength
– job is a vehicle for personal growth, sense of
achievement, avenue for feeling success
• Knowledge and skills
• Satisfaction with extrinsic aspects of
work
Motivating Potential Score
Skill Variety +Task Identity+Task Significance
3
MPS
=
X
Autonomy
X
Feedback
Implementing Concepts for the
Job Characteristics Model
• Combine tasks: Effects skill variety, task
identity, & task significance
• Group tasks into natural work units:
Effects task significance and task identity
• Give workers contact with customers:
Effects skill variety, autonomy, feedback
• Vertically load jobs: Effects autonomy
• Open feedback channels: Effects
feedback
Designing Jobs for Teams
• Team has to be an identifiable group,
doing a specified piece of work, and be
self-managing
• Key behaviors: Ask for ideas, give
suggestions,. listen to others, share
information, help others
• Manager’s role: Make alterations needed
for effective group performance, consult
Goals That Motivate
•
•
•
•
Specific Goals
Difficult Goals
Goal Acceptance
Goal Feedback
Why Goals Motivate
• Mobilize energy in relation to goal
• Focus attention towards goals attainment
• Encourages setting of action plans or
strategies for goal attainment
• Encourages persistence until goal is
attained
Enhancing Goal Acceptance
• Participation
• Rewards
• Supportiveness
Incentives for Individuals
• For Executives
– Compensation tied to achieving strategic
goals
• For Lower Level Employees
– Tied to performance: bonuses, commissions,
piecework
Incentives for Groups
•
•
•
•
Team incentives
Profit sharing
Gain sharing
Stock options
Where Pay Fails to Motivate
• Bonuses or merit pay is too small
• Non-existent link between pay and
performance
• Performance appraisal is done poorly
• Effect of unions
• Adaptation problems
Effective Reward Systems
• Set high goals for performance
• Develop accurate ways to measure
performance
• Train supervisors in performance
appraisal
• Link pay to performance
• Make increases noticeable and
meaningful
Backwards & Forwards
• Summing up: Examined how Hackman’s
& Oldhams Job characteristics Model
can be used to redesign jobs to engage
motivation; studied how and why goals
setting works & looked at ways to use pay
as a motivator
• Next time we begin our study of groups in
the organization looking at how they
function and the role of cohesiveness