Inspiring Commitment and Motivation

The question put to groups of staff to learn what actually motivates them. What management actions do they respond to positively? What caused or helped them to be more motivated to do a good job? The qualitative research carried out at eight high performing organisations, six in the public sector and two in the private sector, revealed no difference between the public and private sector sites - when it comes to motivating staff the issues are common to both sectors.

The common requirements for a highly motivated workforce identified in this work are:
a strategic framework that includes an inspirational vision, transparent
values, effective performance measures and HR functions that are central
to the business; a supportive culture, that provides for delegation, recognition and
effective communication within a friendly informal environment in which
people are respected and supported; a strong emphasis on line managers’ interpersonal skills, their ability to feel connected to the leadership, values and direction and consistent action to translate and communicate this to their staff.

These factors do not work in isolation and at all the sites senior managers were
seen by staff at all levels to be accessible and visibly to practise what they preached.

“They’ll watch what you do, not what you say.”

Motivated employees do not appear by chance and there are real costs for organisations that fail to motivate their staff. This report recommends that organisations need to assess:

the motivation (and morale) of their staff regularly, and to act on the findings; the people management skill of their managers regularly, and act on the findings. Public services, in common with the private sector, face a challenging improvement agenda, to which they must respond if they are to provide the high-quality services that users demand. It is a truism that most organisations claim to value their people as their greatest asset. But it is less clear how to turn good intentions into the reality of committed employees who are performing to the best of their abilities. All the organisations involved in the research place a premium on highly motivated staff as a key to their success. The research identified the things that motivate staff at these organisations, and how these organisations have sought to build and maintain the commitment of their staff.

The links between motivation and performance are complex, and easier to assert than to prove with precision. But there was universal agreement among senior managers and staff that highly motivated staff will offer the extra effort upon which effective public service delivery often depends. People want to take responsibility for their work to ‘make a difference’, ‘achieve something’. This echoes the findings of other recent research in this area, which demonstrates a strong link between organisational commitment, work satisfaction and effort.1

The need to manage change effectively, in response to a range of Government reforms is one of the major demands on public services. This is a challenge for the public sector. As one senior executive pointed out, ‘…in the public sector there is a corporate history, people have been in post longer and have been through all the hoops before, they have become cynical to change and therefore it is harder to grab their heart as well as their mind.’ The research indicated that change can be delivered most effectively with well motivated staff who are constructive, flexible, creative and who work as a team.


‘We introduced best value ‘hit squads’. They are litter pickers who go out to an area to clean it up in one go. We have had the (best value) inspectors in and they went out to see one of these squads. They said they had never seen litter pickers more proud and motivated than this lot…They saw themselves as specialists do, the ‘best value’ team going out doing a special job. The only thing that has changed is the way they operate and their title, they still pick litter. What made the difference was that the squads were acknowledged to be something different and something special.’ Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council

What motivates people at work?
The Panel’s research focused on how employees can be motivated so that they
focus their efforts in ways which enhance the performance of the organisation
overall.

It is therefore about how organisations can:
win the commitment of employees;
channel that commitment in ways that serve the needs of the
organisation, its customers, and staff, by encouraging risk taking,
innovation and learning; and
recognise that commitment to ensure a virtuous circle of commitment,
high performance, and improved service outcomes.


The work identifies the common principles that should be at the core of strategies to improve motivation. But perhaps most powerfully, the research reveals a fundamental conviction that people will deliver if you enthuse, coach, support and listen to them. People are central to improved productivity, better customer service, and rising to the challenge of modernisation.

What motivates staff?

Staff Emphasised
’Relationships’
Delegation
Recognition
‘Making a difference’
Communication
Clear direction
Participation


Senior Executives Emphasized
Recognition
Delegation
Communication
Career development
‘Making a difference’
Participation
Learning and development

Most of these terms are self-explanatory. ‘Delegation’ refers to staff autonomy to experiment and innovate in carrying out work tasks, and the mutual trust that this implies. ‘Recognition’ refers to both formal and informal acknowledgement of staff effort, and celebration and praise of achievements. ‘Making a difference’ was variously used to describe notions of making a contribution to the community, providing high standards of service to users, and taking pride in the organisation’s social or commercial role. ‘Communication’ refers to how effectively communication channels allow a two-way dialogue between managers and staff. ‘Participation’ describes the extent to which staff felt able to influence decisions affecting them or the organisation. The presence or absence of a ‘public service ethos’ unique to the public sector, and its implications for public service management, has been the subject of much discussion in this area. This research did not specifically try to identify this. But it did find evidence of the importance to staff of feeling that they could ‘make a difference’ – often expressed as a desire to serve the community. This supports other research in this area which found similar evidence, including the Public Management Foundation’s report Wasted Values (1999), Hackney Press, London.

There was strong consensus within these two groups across all the organizations involved. What motivates staff in central government is also emphasised by staff in local authorities, as well as in private sector organisations. But two issues were emphasised by staff that were not mentioned at all by senior executives. Relationships refers to a range of ‘soft’ management issues, including treating staff with courtesy and respect, and developing an informal friendly workplace atmosphere, ‘walking the talk’. ‘Clear direction’ refers to the extent to which staff have a sense of the organisation’s aspirations and goals.

Almost all staff from across the research sites emphasised how demotivating it would be to have a manager who didn’t, for example, treat them with respect, listen to their views, and encourage a positive working environment – elements of the kind of relationship that appear to act as the most important motivator for employees. By contrast, senior executives stressed that line management plays a crucial role in translating strategies to boost motivation into practice. Pay was rarely mentioned at all by staff as a motivator. Indeed, public sector staff frequently pointed out that they were not ‘in it for the money’. It cannot be inferred from this that pay and benefits are unimportant in motivating staff. Pay is clearly part of the basic contract between employers and employees. Perceptions of unfairness in basic pay levels were mentioned as a big potential demotivator, for example. What this does suggest is that pay and benefits form one part of a much broader range of measures to build and maintain staff motivation. This should include attention to developing more positive interpersonal behaviours, greater staff autonomy and the development of line management capacity.

The ‘demotivators’ most often mentioned included:
- having little or no control over the way in which they work;
- being treated in an impersonal, remote way;
- a lack of recognition and praise for individuals’ contribution;
- poor internal communications;
- resource shortages;
- negative press, bad image;
- concerns about pay and benefits; and
- weak line management.





1 Conway, N. & Guest, D. (2000) The Psychological Contract in the Public Sector, Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.
2 See for example Foster, A. (2000) Customers in the Driving Seat, Public Service Productivity Panel (PSPP).

Source: www.h-treasury.gov.uk




Survey of civil society organisations’ governance arrangements

To be effective in promoting beneficial change, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) must have rigorous procedures in place for transparency and accountability purposes. In addition, in order for CSOs to advocate for better governance, we would expect them to conform to good governance practices themselves. Our expectations for what comprises good governance in the CSO sector are largely drawn from ACEVO et al. 1 (2005), which sets out a code of best practice.
A survey was carried out on the corporate governance of the 18 CSOs who hold Partnership Programme Agreements (PPAs) with DFID. We asked for information regarding roles and responsibilities, recruitment, board representation and monitoring arrangements.

The 16 CSOs which responded to the survey are: Action Aid, Action on Disability and Development, International HIV/AIDS Alliance, Care International UK, Christian Aid, Catholic Institute for International Relations, International Service, Overseas Development Institute, Oxfam, Panos, Practical Action, Save the Children UK, Skillshare International, Voluntary Service Overseas, Water Aid and WWF-UK. Skills, roles, responsibilities and recruitment


Key points:
􀂃 11 respondents provided documents detailing roles and responsibilities of the Board of Trustees
􀂃 14 Boards met at least quarterly, and most met regularly with the Chief Executive, but fewer consulted regularly with staff
􀂃 A range of skills and experience are represented on the majority of Boards of trustees
􀂃 Nearly all organisations stated they had a strategy for recruitment of new Board members, and all organisations surveyed had at least one measure in place to promote open recruitment
􀂃 Fewer than half of organisations have a code of ethics or code of conduct, on-going
training for existing members, or provide experienced mentoring to new members
􀂃 9 organisations had no developing country representation on their board, although a minority of organisations had a significant proportion of such members.

Survey results: Skills, roles and responsibilities, and recruitment
Frequency (of a possible 16 CSOs)
How Boards meet roles and responsibilities:
Through regular meetings with sub-committees 16
Through regular meetings 15
Through receiving regular performance monitoring reports 15
Through regular meetings with the chief executive 15
Through regular meetings with staff 5
How sub-committees meet roles and responsibilities:
Through regular meetings 15
Through receiving regular performance monitoring reports 14
Through regular meetings with the chief executive 9
Through regular meetings with staff 8
Skills and experience represented on the Boards:
Strategic leadership, management 16
Finance 15
Direct knowledge of beneficiary group 14
Governance, human resources & diversity 14
Measures taken by the Board to ensure open recruitment:
Role profile setting out the skills and knowledge required 15
Interview with panel 9
Diversity monitoring 9
Consistent criteria for evaluating candidates 8
Advertising in a wide range of publications 7
Involvement of an external expert 0
Arrangements to ensure members understand responsibilities/ functions:
Briefings/information pack/statement of responsibilities 16
Conflicts of interest policy 12
Formal induction process including training 12
Code of ethics or code of conduct 7
Ongoing training for existing members 6
Experienced mentor provided to new members


1 ACEVO, Charity trustee Networks, ICSA, NCVO (2005) “Good Governance: A code for the voluntary and community sector,” NCVO on behalf of the National Hub of Expertise in Governance. A good source of information on good governance practice in non-profit organisations is http://www.npgoodpractice.org/Governance




LIVLIHOOD

Land policy must respond to population growth and economic development. As cities expand and non-agricultural economies grow the pressure to convert land to new uses increases. Land policies and land institutions need to keep pace, establishing an equitable basis for investment and land development, whilst ensuring that poor people gain new livelihood opportunities and that their rights are protected.

Land institutions are a vital element of effective governance. Where they are weak, the rights of the poor are particularly at risk. Well functioning property rights and land institutions underpin economic development and help reduce corruption and social conflict. Efficient land administration that is accessible to ordinary people and recognises the complexity of land rights on the ground is crucial. The legal recognition of informal land rights is a powerful tool for social inclusion. Land markets must help the poor gain access to land. Land use planning needs to be democratic in order to mediate effectively between competing interests amongst land users.

Land reform is a long-term process that requires sustained support. It is an issue of central political importance and considerable sensitivity. Governments need to win support for reform through broad-based consultative processes. For their part, donors should avoid stand alone, technically driven land programmes and work instead with Governments through poverty reduction strategies and co-ordinated sector-wide approaches.

A rights-based approach to land translates into advocacy and representation of the poor in land management. The idea is strongly supported that land is a key factor in poverty reduction. If people have uncertain rights to their land, they have little incentive to invest in or conserve it. However, if the Millennium Development Goals are to be achieved rights must be converted into livelihood opportunities. Land policy and reform need to be considered in the wider context of poor people’s productivity and livelihoods, provision of services (health, education, advice, technologies) and access to markets.




 Security of tenure, whether the right to occupy a room or to develop a plot of land, plays a large part in determining access to basic infrastructure, services, employment opportunities and credit.
 People who are safe from eviction feel secure to improve their homes and neighbourhoods.
 The legal recognition of extra-legal settlements and enterprises of the poor are powerful tools for social inclusion, and an essential basis for establishing the rule of law and more socially legitimate government in urban areas.
 Urban planning strategies provide an important means of enabling poor people to live close to their sources of livelihood
 Participatory planning can strengthen the confidence in the development process and property rights, and help to direct investment to areas where it will be of greatest social benefit.


Source:
Oxfam GB, Issues we work on, Livlihood, 2006
S. Johnson and B. Rogaly, Microfinance and poverty reduction, Oxfam and Actionaid, London, 1997
DFID Urban Strategy, DFID 2001
BETTER LIVELIHOODS FOR POOR PEOPLE:THE ROLE OF LAND POLICY, DFID 2003


Poverty analysis

Widening the scope of assessment of poverty, little is found on acknowledgment and documentation about people fallen poor out of sudden loss or adversities which is distinct from suffering regular and persistent deprivation. The argument is to study tolerance and coping mechanism of those poor that in the past experienced higher standards of living and suffer additionally from falling in poverty and the humiliation that it entails. Since poverty can not be irrespective to societal standards, there are remarks about the sense of deprivation or unhappiness caused by poverty that is greatly influenced by average societal standards. But increasingly these individual’s sense of belonging to a particular class and income come under question.

“Factors like “aspiration” and the standards adopted in defining one’s own condition plays a role in differentiating the classes more than the “poverty itself”’(Booth). In this respect their aspiration equals the trauma of their loss. The focus is on the analysis of difficulties to adapt unprecedented condition of loosing social status in addition to suffering from poverty itself. The causes of loss range from natural or manmade disasters, heavy debts, long term unemployment, severe sickness, loss of legal battles, and state-grounded loss of rights, as well as political and revolution that shuffles social fabrics where past noble poor rub better offs from their assets and continue to claim for more seizure, causing insecure environment.

In terms of rhetoric of social exclusion, those referred to as excluded are people not protected by the welfare state and are considered social misfits. But those misfits are marked out as mentally and physically handicapped, the aged and invalid, drug users, delinquents, suicidal people and so on. None defines this type of poor fallen in poverty due to sudden loss who might never recover.

Although the term ‘exclusion’ has been extended to include the rise in long term and recurrent unemployment, as well as the growing instability of social relations, since it has been recognised that employment is not just about income, but also about social networks, and a sense of self-worth and that the unemployed were ‘excluded’ from participation in the normal activities of society.

The similarity to engagement in class struggle is misleading since these deprived individuals are strangers in their new outfit and their mental capacity and past experiences do not match imposed condition to adapt for survival among underclassed. Particularities of strain imposed on this category of poor to integrate and adapt to the new arrangement and manage their social relation should be studied. They have to cope with precarious changes in their consumption, saving, social, political activities.