Motivation

This situation presented by the ancient story is similar to that of a comparative glass of water. Some people look at the glass optimistically as half full and others tend to look at it pessimistically as the glass half empty. I believe it is safe to say that people tend to look at many aspects of their lives in this aspect from uncontrollable events to family happenings to work situations.

                Several employees could all be presented with the same situation and perceive them very differently. As a unit clerk in a hospital, we sometimes would get “floated” to different hospital units because they were short staffed and needed help more than our regular unit. One unit that was not particularly pleasant to work in was B Unit. While I would get “bummed out” because I knew the day would be long and stressful, others would be thankful that they were able to just stay at work instead of getting sent home and not getting paid or having no option but to use vacation hours. When working at the bagel store, there were various jobs to be completed throughout the work day. Some of those tasks included washing dishes, seeding bagels, working the counter, and working the grill. Some people hated washing the dishes because they were alone while I loved the opportunity to have a short time to my own thoughts. While some looked at working the grill as an annoyance because it was repetitive and hot, others looked at it as an opportunity to not run around the store or as I did, make a challenge out of the task to make the best looking egg sandwiches and impress the boss because it gave me satisfaction to know she thought I was doing a good job.

                Many times, coworkers at the bagel store would get disgruntled because they were frustrated with their jobs. They did not enjoy working with an “annoying coworker” or repeat a task they had completed. Some would get annoyed when a customer wanted a lunch sandwich after the slicer was cleaned or a cream cheesed bagel after they wiped off the counter. While it didn’t always work, I tried to encourage my coworkers to think of it as a challenge with speed bumps to get work finished in time and the bagel store cleaned so we could get out on time after closing. I try getting them to realize that they have a job when others don’t and doing a repetitive procedure is better than not having anything to do.

                While these employees portrayed job dissatisfaction traits as described by Herzberg’s two-factor theory, I attempted to shed light on reasons to look at the job satisfaction traits. Co-worker relations were definitely an issue that was strongly felt amongst the staff and many felt that working conditions were not as high as desired; I was satisfied with my achievement and recognition by my boss. I know that all my coworkers would receive the same recognition if they made the effort to get the attention of the boss in a positive way.

Individual Behavior

     One thing I wish my most recent employer would understand is the connection between job satisfaction, rewarding the employee, and job performance. A happy/satisfied worker performs more efficiently and effectively than an unsatisfied employee. My recent employer did not see that rewarding the employee and acknowledging their good work would result in that employee feeling appreciated and good about him/herself. High self-esteem about one’s work results in stronger motivation and will to do better. Highly motivated personnel develop a loyalty and pride for the organization that he or she works for and should be strived for by the employer. Satisfaction, reward, and performance can be recognized as a continuing circle. Satisfaction leads to good performance, reward for good performance leads to satisfaction, and a strong performing & productive worker leads to a satisfied worker.

      My recent employer had in a sense, tunnel vision. She was so focused on staffing statistics and what the patient care statistics were, but not so concerned about what could be done to improve patient care. She did not recognize the hard work of the nurses she supervised and the supporting staff rather she only criticized flaws resulting in the entire unit doing the bare minimum, trying to avoid attention being drawn to any individual. If the employer instead acknowledged when a nurse made an effort to help her coworkers and create/perform a procedure for the benefit of patient care or the unit as a whole, then she would see the entire staff begin to work together with the main goal being to make steps towards unit improvement.

 

Leadership-Changing Careers

While many people would feel that someone needs to be “born” for a specific type of job, I disagree with this idea. Questioned by a professor was if a great football coach could be hired as a CEO of a large company and be equally successful? In my mind it is definitely possible. I think the better question is not if they are capable of being a successful leader but rather how committed they are to that specific task. If you set your mind to something and you work hard at it, then you can succeed in anything. It may be true that you need to have leadership skills but that is something that can be acquired with the right mindset and work ethic.

Marissa Ann Mayer, an American business executive, has proven to be successful in a change of organizations. Originally a key spokesperson for Google, she is now currently the CEO of Yahoo. Ranked 14 in Fortune Magazine for most powerful businesswomen in 2012, Ms. Mayer has proved that.

While people like Martha Stuart and Andrea Boccelli may not have been deemed “leaders” in their prior careers, I believe they are certainly influential now on many people whether it is Martha Stuart with her influential television role coming from a life as a stockbroker or Mr. Boccelli with his moving music who was at one point an attorney. Regardless of whether that leadership skill is apparent, those who work hard to change the path in which they are headed can succeed in what they choose. Good leaders take their leadership habits with them wherever they end up.
Mayer, Stuart, and Boccelli all express the four foundations of leadership. They had a vision of what they wanted, they developed traits that put them in a preferred position of power, and had a style unique to each of them. They are all successful leaders through their knowledge and acquired skills.

HRM Processes

                We have all, at one time, had a supervisor who we did not enjoy working with. You may have felt this person was a poor leader. Perhaps they did not take action to solve problems when they occurred or maybe you felt this person micromanaged the staff to an extreme level. Managers are held to a certain standard in the minds of each employee. My most recent employer was to the Catholic Health Services. I worked as a unit clerk in a private hospital. My direct supervisor, the Assistant Nurse Manager of the Intensive Care Unit, I feel, was a very poor boss who was not only hurting myself, but also my fellow employees, herself, and potentially every patient admitted to our unit.

                My assistant nurse manager, Ro, was more interested in the statistics on the paper in front of her than the quality of care and efficiency in the progress of the unit on a daily basis. Rather than taking report of the patient status of the entire unit as she was required in her job description at the beginning of shift, she would wait until the end and have each nurse write in their own report. The result of this was that certain nurses were getting a patient assignment that was deemed dangerous to those patients due to their acuity and the workload given to that nurse. Rather than walking through the unit during the shift, she remained in her office trying to change the work schedule to her personal preference. This created an issue down the line for many people including myself because complaints would be made by the alternate shift and instead of being able to come to an actual explanation, Ro pointed fingers. In the end, when she was being questioned about the behaviors of certain employees, she did not have an answer to give the Nurse Manager because she had not observed any herself. The result was false information and false accusations. My first serious incident was when Ro tried to write me up for many false accusations. I was given a piece of paper explaining all the things I was being accused of not doing on a regular basis and expected to sign it, resulting in the write up going on my record in human resources and preventing me from progressing to another position within the organization. After a long argument with Ro, I got nowhere. I refused to sign the paper and proceeded to go through a process to make a meeting with the nurse manager and make my case. I successfully got the write up removed but it was a very frustrating process.

                Using the HRM processes, I believe this situation could have been avoided on two bases. The first is by the assistant Nurse Manager, Ro, setting up critical incident techniques and a graphic rating scale to account for those under her supervision. These processes will allow her to have documentation describing the quality and quantity of work, attendance and punctuality of each employee along with his/her actual behavior in certain circumstances. Using the Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS), she will be able to measure performance results of each individual. By proceeding through these processes and also communicating her results to the individuals, Ro would be able to not only obtain actual information regarding the status of the employee but also would be able to improve that employee’s weak areas by sharing these concerns with the employee.

                I believe that a situation in which an assistant nurse manager like the one I am presenting can also be avoided with use of similar processes by the higher up manager. A multi-person comparison of Ro to other employees in her position with use of 360 degree feedback can convey to the Nurse Manager where the supervisor stands amongst the staff and how others in her position have been able to succeed beyond that of Ro.

                Not only do I believe these techniques can help to relieve some frustration shared by the staff, but I also believe that it is absolutely necessary in this type of business. Regardless of the success of the business, poor work processes can lead to loss of life in a hospital. Action by the Nurse Manager is necessary for the business chain and the safety of the patients in the intensive care unit.