Motivation through Theory X&Y from a Project Management perspective

Developed by Marie Elly Ulricke Kristensen

Abstract

A project manager may have the necessary skills to guide a project team through various project stages and project life cycles, but team motivation is an essential element of a successful project . Through literature, it has been emphasised that the interpersonal skills needed to motivate a project team are one of the project manager’s most important assets .

The idea that a manager’s attitude has an impact on employee motivation was initially suggested by Douglas McGregor (1906-1964), Professor of Management at the MIT Sloan School of Management in the late 1930’s and 1940’s . In 1960, McGregor released the book, The Human Side of Enterprise, which proposed two theories by which mangers perceive and address employee motivation . The two antagonistic motivational methods are referred to as Theory X and Theory Y management, each of which assumes the manager’s role to focus on organising resources, including people, to best benefit the company . However, beyond this commonality, the two theories split corporate thinking into two camps in their embodiment of attitudes and assumptions .

Through analysis of Theory X&Y, main advantages and limitations to the management aspects are found and discussed according to the project manager’s role and goals within the project life cycle.

Main findings in this article:

• Theory X management approach hinders the satisfaction of higher-level needs because it does not acknowledge that those needs are relevant in the workplace .

• The workplace of the early twenty-first century, with its prominence of self-managed work teams and employee involvement programs, is essentially consonant with the perceptions of Theory Y .

• Criticism suggests that Theory Y style managers are engaged in a seductive form of manipulation, as the managers are still focusing on measures of productivity and the benefits to the company rather than measures of employee well-being .