This paper examines job redesign and workplace rewards at General Motors, drawing on the perspective of a frontline shift supervisor in a manufacturing plant. It analyzes intrinsic and extrinsic motivation strategies used to engage hourly employees, including the Global Manufacturing System (GMS), the Ideas for Excellence cash reward program, mandatory job rotation, and team-based business planning. The paper also addresses the challenges posed by union influence on traditional incentive structures and discusses how GM has moved away from an adversarial management culture toward collaborative, team-centered approaches that improve productivity, safety, efficiency, and employee commitment.
Every year, organizations face great challenges in attracting and retaining a motivated, high-quality, and productive workforce. This makes it necessary for firms to constantly engage in job redesign as well as workplace rewards assessment activities (Slocum, 2004; Ugboro, 2006). Organizations are therefore forced to seek new and improved ways of keeping their workforce satisfied at all levels so as to harness higher levels of productivity and innovation. They must ensure that the workforce is happy and well motivated. One of the real challenges affecting companies is a lack of employee motivation, which in turn leads to poor job performance, low productivity, and reduced output.
This paper conducts a workplace rewards assessment and job redesign analysis of General Motors Inc., from the perspective of a shift and frontline supervisor in one of its manufacturing plants. The purpose of this study is to help facilitate a transformation away from the traditional "us against them" mentality that has historically existed between management and the workforce. At General Motors, the main motivational challenges are experienced by hourly employees. Intrinsic as well as extrinsic motivation have been critically analyzed, and their understanding has resulted in major changes in how different organizations are managed (Lei, 2010; Hayenga and Corpus, 2010).
Several techniques exist for motivating employees. Remuneration rate is one such technique. Other factors include recognition, achievement, added responsibility, and the maintenance of strong communication. As a consequence of union influence, it is extremely difficult to provide traditional monetary incentives to hourly employees. Recognition was, however, noted to work best at General Motors. This is typically achieved by acknowledging outstanding employees through the award of gift certificates.
As a supervisor, time is regularly spent with employees to listen to their concerns — both professional and personal. This goes a long way in ensuring that hourly employees are well motivated to carry out their duties without undue stress. The outcome has been a motivated workforce that is dedicated to the missions and objectives of the company.
Over the last couple of decades, considerable effort has been directed toward utilizing the hourly workforce effectively through intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation is defined as a person's need to feel pride and competency for something, as indicated in the work of McCullagh (2005). Employees who are intrinsically motivated perform better not for external rewards, but for the satisfaction and pleasure they derive from doing their jobs. Weinberg and Gould (2003) identified three types of intrinsic motivation: knowledge, accomplishment, and stimulation.
Intrinsic motivation by virtue of knowledge occurs when employees participate due to the pleasure and satisfaction they achieve from learning, acquiring new practical knowledge, and studying something new in the manufacturing process. At General Motors, this includes learning how to fit motor vehicle headlamps, tires, bonnets, vehicle electronics, and dashboards.
Intrinsic motivation by accomplishment at General Motors is achieved when employees participate in activities due to the pleasure and satisfaction of mastering various motor vehicle assembly skills — for example, the ability to fit 20 bonnets per day.
Intrinsic motivation by virtue of stimulation occurs when employees engage in activities because of the sensations involved, such as excitement and heightened alertness. At General Motors, this form of intrinsic motivation is experienced primarily by employees who test-drive completely assembled vehicles and by the Quality Assurance crew.
At General Motors, intrinsic motivation has been further advanced through partnership with the union via agreements aimed at changing and streamlining how business is conducted. These agreements help managers find better ways of motivating staff and promoting a relaxed and open atmosphere among hourly employees.
General Motors has also made efforts to utilize its workforce effectively through the adoption and implementation of a special system called the Global Manufacturing System (GMS). The GMS is a handbook that outlines how every part of the company is to carry out its core business functions. Should an organizational unit be deemed noncompliant with a minimum level of 90 percent, it is likely that the unit would be closed.
"External reward systems and innovation incentives"
"Job rotation benefits and team leader selection"
"Team-level business plans and bi-weekly performance reviews"
General Motors has effectively succeeded in motivating its employees by encouraging and rewarding innovation while appropriately redesigning workplace processes so as to ensure an increase in the level of job performance and efficiency. The corporation has gained considerable benefits through the involvement of all organizational functions at every level. The hourly workforce has helped relieve pressure from supervisors and plant managers. All of these initiatives are directed at realizing the corporation's goals and objectives while ensuring harmony between workers and management.
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