Maslow‘s Hierarchy of Needs, Motivation in the workplace

Summary / Abstract

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs (MHN) is a broadly accepted model and theory for understanding what motivates people through what needs they have. Maslow arranges the needs in a hierarchy in order of importance. This means that a higher level of need cannot be fulfilled unless all the needs of lower levels are satisfied[1]. In his theory motivation is derived from a lack of fulfillment of one need, and which ever level of need is deprived the most, will become what dominates the motivation of the employee[2]. Furthermore Maslow claims this model to be generally applicable for any type of employee in any type of work or workplace. This article will go through Maslow’s different levels of hierarchical needs, and how it relates to motivation of employees in a project, program, or portfolio (PPP). Here it will be gone through how it can improve output and quality of the work an employee does, and their commitment to the cause (I. E. the purpose of the project, for example the desired socio-economic benefits of an infrastructure project). The application of the model and theory will be gone through followed by it's limitations, and a discussion of it's pros and cons will be carried out based on the knowledge presented in the preceding chapters. This should then give a better understanding of how a manager, whether the manager manages portfolios, programs, or projects, can improve the team's efforts and results by giving the proper motivation and covering the fundamental needs of the employee.

Content

  •Maslow's Theory and Relevance in Project, Program, and Portfolio Management
      -Maslow's Motivational Theory and Hierarchical Needs Model
      -In Relevance to PPP-management, and a deeper dive into project teams

  •Application 
      -How different level of needs apply to project team members
      -How they might be satisfied, and spark motivation

  •Limitations 
      -Critiques of the Theory
      -How it effects the applications of the theory

  •Discussion
      -What are the benefits of this application?
      -what are the consequences of this application?
      -How can the consequences be mitigated?

  •Refrences

Maslow's Theory and Relevance in Project, Program, and Portfolio Management

Maslow's model consists traditionally of five levels of different types of needs. Since the model is a hierarchy, then the first level of needs must be fulfilled before the second level can be unlocked. Below the five levels are explained generally in order from lowest to highest level.

The physiological needs are the first level. These consists of the need for water, food, sleep and shelter, making it the most fundamental of the needs, and applies to most living organisms. The second level are the safety needs, i.e. Protection from any dangers or threads. This could be the thread of loosing a new job, or being infected by a dangerous disease. The third level are social needs. The need for love, belonging, friendship, and acceptance amongst peers are very fundamental needs for social creatures such as humans. The fourth level is called the Ego needs. These are split into two categories. A need for independence or autonomy and needs for self-esteem or self-worth. The first category are needs for achievement, adequacy, and freedom, where the second category are needs for Status, recognition, and prestige [1]. The fifth level is the level for self actualization needs. This is the need to live up to ones full potential, and to continue self development. Some might refer to this as fulfilling ones destiny [2].

From this model two postulates are worth highlighting. the first postulate is: "a satisfied need is not a motivator of behavior." [1] "To the extent that lower order needs become satisfied, the next higher-order level of needs becomes the most prepotent determinant of behavior" [1] This means that if an organization or a manager within that organization wants to have a high potential for motivating their employees, they must also incorporate high levels of satisfaction (i.e. high level of needs fulfilled). To put this into the context of project, program, and portfolio management, the 5 levels will be explained further.

Note for edit: How does it apply to PPP, then say from here on out focus on project management, but applies equally for the others

A fundamental competency of any project manager is leadership of people[3], where motivation plays a vital role, and a fundamental responsibility of the project manager is what the team produces[3]. If the members of the team are not motivated to deliver high quality work, than a project failure is almost inevitable, therefore it is highly important for a manager to be able to motivate the team in order to steer it towards success[4]. A project team will consist of different people in different stages of life and possibly in different areas of the world. These are factors that often put people on different levels of the Needs Pyramid, as needs for esteem and self actualization becomes more important as people mature[1], where for a newly educated engineer high salaries might be more motivating. Therefore it is important to be familiar with all levels of the pyramid. Below they will be gone through with focus on how they relate to PPP specifically:

The physiological needs are in the modern society merely a question of wages. High enough wages will allow team members to be able to afford food, shelter, and water. So to motivate people who are struggling with fulfilling their physiological needs, the most effective way would probably be to increase their wages, but money alone will not be a sufficient motivator[2]. To achieve truly motivated employees higher levels must be satisfied. A different solution is needed to motivate people who are concerned about their safety. For instance if a project manager is worried that the projects he is responsible for in the program might be determined because of to much uncertainty, than a way to motivate him, could be for the program manager to make risk management a priority for those project. Given that the further risk management does not reveal critical risks for the projects, than the project manager would have obtained less uncertainty, and a stronger believe that the projects can be carried out, and through that motivate him to keep working. A more common example might be that a team member is worried about the results from a recently finished status report. Here a simple solutions could merely be for the manager to provide constructive feedback, and clearly communicate what is expected of the employee, and where help and knowledge can be obtained if needed.

The third level is the need for love. If the over all team performance is poor, than it might be because the team development has not been optimal. It is important to strengthen team work in the team through building trust amongst members, communicate openly and effectively, and create opportunities for team building[4]. This will help to develop the team better, and will improve the people skills, technical competencies, and overall team environment and project performance of the team[4]. To conclude; A PPP-manager is able to create stronger teams, better motivation, and higher project performance, by being aware of the need for love.

A skilled project manager might have had the feeling of being overlooked, or unrecognized for the hard work he does for his organization. In other words, the project manager has a need for esteem and recognition, and often this will bring the thought to mind: "Is any one noticing, what I am doing, and is it even worth doing it, if no one sees me?". If a project manager truly feels this way, then he might be much less inclined to actually use his skills and create good quality projects. It is therefore stressed how important acknowledgement and rewards are for motivation[4]. If the project manager is rewarded for his hard work, than he is much more inclined to continue working hard. Here rewards would not necessarily be of mainly monetary value, also promotions, or honorary titles (for example "project manager of the month") might do the trick, to show the employees that they are appreciated.

Any project team will consist of individuals working together adding their individual expertise to the process to achieve a higher goal (the purpose of the project). Since the individuals of a team have different expertises, it makes sense to also assign them different roles and responsibilities within the project. A project where the goal is to design a high tech 3D printer for private persons to use in their homes the roles could be, but are not limited to an R&D specialist, a mechanical engineer, an electrical engineer, and a software specialist. Now it would not make much sense to make the electrical engineer responsible for making a beautiful design feature, nor have the software specialist analyze the flow of material through the nozzle of the printer head. Obviously assigning people to do tasks they are not qualified for makes for lousy work results, but also (and possibly because of) it makes for lousy motivation. Self actualization is the need for self fulfilment. The need to become everything a person strives for. There fore if a person is a software specialist, it will make sense to motivate him or her through challenging and exciting software tasks, to make him or her feel self actualized.

Applications

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is said to be applicable for all people, as the needs it concerns should be so fundamental to the human psyche that all people will experience them through a life time. So if it applies to all, then how should one apply it, and where? The needs hierarchy has been applied within many fields and with many purposes. The hierarchy of needs have informed and inspired literature concerning development, dispute resolutions, terrorism, even corporate reputation and business management[2]. So how does it apply to project management?

For instance are lower level needs, something to consider already when hiring choosing people for a project. Level of salary, pension, and insurances are ways to cover an employees lower levels. Also supportive and constructive communication through out the project period will make the employees feel that their job position is more secure and that they are appreciated by the workplace[4]. The middle layer is the social needs. To create employee job satisfaction it is important to apply tools as team building. It will create trust amongst the members of the team, and help them get through the stages of team development[4]. Achieving the sense of belonging to the team will contribute to an employees commitment to the team members and their common mission to execute a successful project. The higher level needs for Esteem are greatly contributed through positive and open communication with the team members. Rewarding the team when milestones are reached are an important tool, and a good occasion to gather the team for social and more fun experiences together, that does not necessarily revolve around work. This level of need is also important to consider when hiring new people. If a person expresses ambitions towards promotions and titles in a job interview, then this person wont be satisfied stuck in the same position for years on end. To optimally motivate this employee, than he or she should work on tasks that will bring him or her on the path to the sought after promotions and titles. Others might be very satisfied staying in a specific region of responsibility, as this region might be where they feel self actualized. So how can a manager offer the possibility of self actualization? When trying to achieve the highest level of job satisfaction and motivation for the employees of the project team, your team members must feel like their work matters and has purpose. It must be fulfilling, and give them a sense of pride in their work. This may be maintained by asking the members what they want to learn from the project, why they want to to work on it, and how they hope to grow from it. These individual goals can then be supported through their area of responsibility and the tasks they are to solve through out the project period. According to Maslow people are in constant development and strive to grow and mature. This personal development is crucial if the team members are to feel optimally motivated to work on a project, and according to Maslow it is these people, who have satisfied their need for self actualization, from whom you can expect the fullest and healthiest creativity[2]. Maslow calls these people basically satisfied people, and it can be claimed that these people also can inspire others in the project, and in that sense let their motivation rub of on those they work with[5].

Limitations

The following section will go through some of the critiques of Maslow, and how it may limit the applications of the model. This is based on the information found in the Book "Employee Motivation In Saudi Arabia; An investigation Into the Higher Education Sector" by R.H.M. Fallatah and J. Syed, chapter 2: "A Critical Review of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs".

One of the main critic points of Maslow's theory is about how a deprivation of a need makes it a dominant need, and that a need left unsatisfied will remain dominant (i.e. the longer you starve the more dominant the need for food becomes till it consumes you). This is also called the deprivation/domination proposition. However, several studies have failed to find empirical evidence for this aspect of the theory. How ever some studies has found support or partial support for the claim. On study showed that the greater a satisfaction of a need, the greater a decline in the strength of that need, which gives partial support to the proposition. An other study that found support for the deprivation/domination proposition, was one conducted on students by measuring prior attainment of a need, the intention of satisfying the need, and the importance of the need [2].

Skriv om self actualization need complex includer 6 level som counter...............

Refrences

[1] Pardee, L. (1990) Motivation Theories of Maslow, Herzberger, McGregor & McClelland. A literature Review of Selected Theories dealing with job satisfaction and motivation. 1-24

"A literature review of some of the most relevant theories dealing with job satisfaction and motivation, including Maslow, Herzberger, and McGregor and McClelland

[2] Fallatah, R., & Syed, J. (2017). Employee Motivation in Saudi Arabia. An Investigation Into the Higher Education Sector., 19-59.

"A critical review of Maslow's theory and model, containing a literary review of different theories and how Maslow has contributed and affected other theorists and the field in general."

[3] Project Management Institute, Inc. (2017) Project Management: A guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK guide), 51-69.

"A guide of the competencies, skills, and tasks of a project manager."

[4] Project Management Institute, Inc. (2017) Project Management: A guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK guide), 307-359.

"A guide to resource management in PPP, including team development"

[5] https://www.engagementmultiplier.com/resources/applying-maslows-hierarchy-needs-engagement-growth/ (18/02/2021)

"An article on applications of Maslow's model and theory within an organization, and how it contributes to employee motivation and productivity"

[6] https://challengingcoaching.co.uk/maslows-6th-level/

"A short description of a sixth level of the Needs Hierarchy. A contribution to the theory made late in Maslow's life, that describes what may motivate self-actualized individuals. This level consists of intrinsic values."