The Importance of Employee Motivation and Job Productivity

The notion of employee motivation has gained a significant amount of prominence within the modern business world and it is directly related to the aspect of the job productivity of the employees (Shields et al. 2015). Furthermore, the lacuna of the majority of the business enterprises of the modern era is to gain an enhanced amount of profit and the employees by virtue of being the building entities of these enterprises gain special prominence in this particular regard (Shields et al. 2015). Moreover, recent research works have suggested that the overall efficiency as well as the productivity of the diverse business enterprises depend on the motivational level and also the individual job productivity of the employees of the concerned organization (Aguenza and Som 2018). In this regard the various organizations are actively taking the help of the diverse kinds of motivational means so as to improve the job productivity and also the satisfaction level of the employees. The construct of reward and recognition becomes important in this particular regard and is being actively utilized by the various organizations for purpose of motivating the employees.

One of the most inherent desires of the human beings is to get recognized for their hard work as well as dedication towards the kind of job roles that they perform (Boxall, Hutchison and Wassenaar 2015). The machinery of reward and recognition is being constructed with the specific agenda to fulfill this particular desire of the human beings (Boxall, Hutchison and Wassenaar 2015). It is pertinent to note that the reward and recognition varies from organization to organization. For example, on the one hand there are organizations, which provide monetary rewards and other kinds of perks to the hard working employees who perform above the expectation of the concerned organization (Anitha 2014). On the other hand, there are organizations that provide designations and other kinds of benefits to the employees for their hard work. Lu et al. (2016) hold the viewpoint that the effective use of this machinery to motivate the workers can significantly improve the performance level of the employees. This report will discuss about the machinery of reward and recognition and its various related aspects in the particular light of the Hotel Atlas.

The Atlas Hotel is a 4 star hotel established in the year 2002 at Dushanbe, 2.3 Kilometer away from Dushanbe airport. It is one of the largest employees owned independent Hotel in of Tajikistan (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). The organization is reputed for providing hospitality service, accommodation, restaurant, and food services to the visitors from the different countries of the world (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). Hotel Atlas also established a new hotel chain in many other parts of Tajikistan (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). Every room has a flat-screen TV; some units include a seating area for guest’s convenience. Certain sections feature views of the either garden or city. All rooms are featured with a luxurious drawing room, bathroom and bedroom (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). The organization although had its humble beginnings in the Dushanbe is currently operational in more than 20 areas of Tajikistan (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). In addition to this, the organization currently employs more than 1,200 employees from the diverse countries of the world (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). Furthermore, the organization under discussion here is focusing on the various under developed areas in Tajikistan for the development of the prospects of their business in the recent times (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). It is pertinent to note that the organization under discussion here earns more than 60% of its annual revenue from the Dushanbe of Tajikistan and has various kinds of projects in the execution stage in this particular position (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015).

The Reward and Recognition System at Hotel Atlas

Hotel Atlas boosts of more than 1200 employees from the different nations and at the same time the various projects as well as the hospitality services that they provide depends on the cumulative work of these employees (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). Thus, it becomes all the important for the organization under discussion to motivate the employees in the best possible manner so that they are being able contribute in a positive manner towards the growth of the organization. Shields et al. (2015) hold the viewpoint that the effectiveness as well as the efficiency of a particular organization depends on the motivational level of the employees and their individual performance level. Thus, to motivate the employees in the most effective manner the organization under discussion here takes the help of the construct of reward and recognition. Psychologists are of the viewpoint that the construct of reward and recognition provides dual benefits to the organizations (Ramdhani, Ramdhani and Ainissyifa 2017). Firstly, by rewarding the hard working employees of the organization they enhance the level of extrinsic motivation of the employees and thereby help them to perform in a much better manner (Ramdhani, Ramdhani and Ainissyifa 2017). Secondly, this particular machinery had a considerable amount of impact on the below par performing employees of the organization as well since the employees get to know the perks and also the rewards that they would get if they perform as per the expectations of the organization (Kim and Holzer 2016). This has a positive impact on the below par performing employees of a particular organization and helps them to perform in a much better manner.

The organization Hotel Atlas has evolved its own system of reward and recognition to motivate the employees so that they perform in a much better manner. The reward management system that the organization under discussion here has evolved over the years not only provides monetary and other kinds of perks to the employees like short vacation trip tickets and others but at the same provides designation opportunities to the employees as well (Hameed, Ramzan and Zubair 2014). For example, it is seen that the organization under discussion here for the staffing of the management designations provides the opportunity to the hard working employees of their own organization rather than recruitment the candidates for the desired positions from outside (Gallus and Frey 2016). Due to economic conditions in 
the country and performance, hotel was not able to provide additional 
financial incentives to the staff in the form of bonuses, salary 
increase and rewarding. The effective use of these processes can help the concerned organization in a significant manner not only to improve the productivity level of the employees but also to gain a significant amount of success as well.

SWOT Analysis of the Reward Policy at Hotel Atlas

SWOT analysis is a framework, which offers the various organizations an idea about their competencies and the threats as well as the opportunities that galore that organization (Olubusayo 2016). A SWOT analysis of the reward policy of the organization under discussion here will provide insightful details about this particular policy of the organization under discussion here-

Strength	· The hotel has enough employee count to develop adequate human resource management system within the organizational structure · The compensation policy of the organization caters to the inherent desire of the employees to be benefitted for their health and security issues (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). · The salary structure has been designed in such a manner that not only the performing employees but also the below par performing employees of the organization would feel motivated to perform in a much more effective manner (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015).
Weakness	· The reward and recognition events are absent in this organization. · hotel was not able to provide additional financial incentives to the staff in the in terms of bonuses (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). · Staffs started looking for ways to  correct the situation often by planning to go for labor migration to  Russia
Opportunity	· Organization of reward and recognition sessions on a monthly basis ·  Providing additional perks and benefits
Threat	· At the time Tajik Simony was experiencing a significant devaluation due external economic factors, which drastically affected purchasing  power of hotel staff. · The employees find the long drawn out process of the reward and recognition system of the organization very tedious. · Tajik labor  market for trained and experience hospitality professionals is extremely limited

 

There are various business drivers for the reward policy, which is being followed by the organizations like Hotel Atlas and others for rewarding the hard work as well as the effort of the employees. For example, some of the most common drivers of the use of this particular policy are the need to improve the job productivity of the employees, enhancement of the engagement level among the employees, increasing the job satisfaction level of the employees, reducing the turnover of the employees and others (Clarke and Mahadi 2017). However, at the same time it is seen that there are various factors which affect the reward policy adopted by a particular organization like affordability, market position, brand or market image, benchmarking with the reward policy followed by the other organizations and others (Elnaga and Imran 2014). Osibanjo et al. (2014) are of the viewpoint that the kind of reward policy that a particular organization follows is directly related to the brand or the market image of that particular organization and thus the organizations often feel the need to match the standard industry trend followed by the various organizations. Thus, this is an important factor which the organization under discussion here follows for the formulation as well as execution of the reward policy that it follows within its framework.

Affordability is another factor which affects the reward policy followed by the organization Hotel Atlas (Popli and Rizvi 2016). For example, the organization has chalked the reward policy in such a manner that the rewards offered by it to the employees do not hamper its financial prospects in a significant manner (Popli and Rizvi 2016). In addition to this, the rewards are also being designed by the concerned organization as per the market or the brand image (Malik, Butt and Choi 2015). For example, if the concerned organization provides below par rewards to the employees then this can adversely affect the brand image or position of the organization in an adverse manner (Malik, Butt and Choi 2015). The cumulative effect of these factors have made the reward policy followed by the concerned organization not only an effective one but also as the one which helps it to improve the performance level of the employees.

Business Drivers for Reward Policy

There are two kinds of reward intelligences that are being used by the majority of the organizations of the present times including Hotel Atlas. The first one is the extrinsic rewards through the use of which the organizations provide various kinds of monetary rewards, designations and other kinds of perks or facilities to the employees (Haider et al. 2015). The second one is the intrinsic rewards wherein the organizations provide tries to enhance the job satisfaction level of the employees and also to motivate them intrinsically to improve their performance level (Haider et al. 2015). Furthermore, it is seen that the organization Hotel Atlastakes the help of the concept of reward intelligence to not only reward the performing employees but also the employees who have the desired talent or the potential to perform as per the expectations of the organization. This is important since many times it is seen that the organizations try to quantify the performance of the employees and thus some of the employees who actually contribute in a significant manner towards the growth of the organization fail to get the adequate rewards for their hard work. However, the organization Hotel Atlas takes this particular factor into consideration and has designed its reward policy in such a manner that almost all the deserving employees get their due.

Hotel Atlas for the process of providing rewards to the employees takes the help of diverse data sources for the collection of the desired data. For example, the organization under discussion here conducts yearly “reward and salary surveys” so as to know whether the employees are satisfied with the wages as well as the rewards that are being provided by the organization or not (Kvaløy, Nieken and Schöttner 2015). In addition to this, the organization at the same time takes the help of annual journals wherein the hard efforts of the deserving employees are not only highlighted but also appreciated (Yousaf et al. 2014). Furthermore, the organization at the same time conducts interviews with the employees who are leaving the organization and also the ones who are just joining it so as to know the expectations of the employees in an adequate manner (Yousaf et al. 2014). Moreover, the organization also takes the help of various kinds of consultancies and agencies to gain an insight about the expectations and the kind of rewards that the employees want.

Total rewards and its importance 

Total rewards refer to the entire package or the remuneration that a particular employee is entitled to if he or she performs as per the required standards and also the expectations of the organization (Massingham and Tam 2015). This provides an overview to the employees about the entire financial gains that they would be able to make in a fiscal year and is generally mentioned at the time of appointment by the HR managers (Massingham and Tam 2015). Furthermore, this is important since having a clear idea about the financial gains can motivate or help the employees to perform in a much more effective manner. In addition to these, in the particular context of the Hotel Atlasorganization it is seen that the concept of total reward is an essential factor, which guides the formulation as well as the implementation of the reward policy. However, for the effective use of this particular machinery it is seen that the organization Hotel Atlas provides not only the initial on-job training to the employees but also various kinds of advanced trainings so that the employees are not only being able to reap the benefits of the total reward system but at the same time able to perform as per the expectations of the concerned organization. In addition to this, it is seen that the organization provides flexible working opportunities to the employees so that they are being able to not only maximize their individual performance but also to add value to the concerned organization (Sparrow, Hird and Cooper 2015). Furthermore, Hotel Atlas along with the wages that the employees are entitled to also provides additional monetary benefits and other kinds of perks to the employees so that they are being able to reap the full benefits of the total reward system.

Importance of equity, fairness, consistency and transparency   

Factors Affecting the Reward Policy at Hotel Atlas

Yousaf et al. (2014) are of the viewpoint that the entities of importance of equity, fairness, consistency and transparency should be the guiding principles of the reward policy which is being followed by a particular organization and everyone should be entitled to the same kind of opportunities. Furthermore, it is seen that these are some of the most basic aspects of a good reward policy and at the same time creates the kind of culture within the organization wherein the employees are motivated to perform in a much more effective manner (Mone and London 2018). This is one of the main reasons why the reward policy of Hotel Atlas takes into effective consideration these factors for the reward policy that it is following for rewarding the efforts as well as the hard work of the employees. At the same time it is seen that the organization takes the help of meritocratic application system wherein the contribution made by the employees is taken into consideration rather than just the quantifiable data regarding the performance of the each of the employees. Furthermore, the reward policy of the concerned organization is at the same time influenced by the various national and international legislations like anti-discrimination, equality and others (Mone and London 2018). Moreover, the organization at the same time tries to reduce the gender pay gap within the framework of its workplace through the effective use of the reward policy which it follows (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). In addition to these, the reward policies of the Hotel Atlasare also intended to provide the opportunity to the employees so that they are being able to cover the minimum living wage requirement of theirs.

Foss et al. (2015) are of the viewpoint that both the extrinsic as well as the intrinsic rewards are important for the employees and thus the organizations should try to incorporate both of these rewards within the framework of the reward policy that they follow. Furthermore, it is seen that the majority of the organizations fail to take into effective consideration the aspect of intrinsic rewards and just focus of the extrinsic rewards (Šajeva 2014). Recent researches have shown that the use of just extrinsic helps the organizations to improve the performance of the employees on a short-term basis however the employees fail to retain this kind of motivation on a long term basis (Mone and London 2018). This is one of the main reasons why the organizations should try to focus on both the kinds of reward system and at the same time incorporate them within the reward policy that they follow.

Conclusion

Furthermore, the effective use of this particular kind of reward policy enables the concerned organization to not only improve the performance of the employees on a short term basis but also to sustain this particular performance on a long term basis as well (Bustamam, Teng and Abdullah 2014). This is important from the perspective of the concerned organization since it is likely to help it to attain a higher level of financial growth. In addition to this, this will at the same time help the concerned organization to enhance the individual contribution of the employees and thereby improve their overall performance.

The reward policy of Hotel Atlas is a two-step process wherein the employees are provided not only provided monetary benefits and other kinds of perks but also higher designations as well (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). For example, it is seen that the organization provides various kinds of monetary rewards and other kinds of perks to the employees who perform as per its expectation (Atlashoteldushanbe.com 2015). However, when a particular employee is being able to perform as per the expectations of the organization on a sustained long term basis and possesses the required skill sets for new designation then they are promoted to the higher management positions.  

Initial resources of the required changes would be involved mainly staff of the HR department, who would be able to spent time for brainstorming and research of available options. The procedure will also include meetings with HR professionals of other high-scale hotels in Dushanbe in order to exchange experiences and best practices.  After the management has singled out our options to the option of charging clients with addition fee for service, project was extended to the Sales, Finance and IT departments.

Line managers and their contribute to reward decision-making

The various line managers perhaps play the most important role in the process of the decision making regarding the rewards that are being provided to the employees. In the particular context of Hotel Atlas the line managers are imbued with the responsibility of the assessment of the performance of the employees (Lu et al. 2016). Furthermore, at the same time, they are required to give performance reviews and it is based on the reviews that the rewards are being provided to the employees (Lu et al. 2016). In addition to this, they are also imbued with the responsibility of judging the potential, talent, skill sets and important aspects of a particular employees and then deciding whether new designations should be provided to them or not (Gallus and Frey 2016). Moreover, they also need to decide the kind of non-monetary rewards as well as benefits that should be provided to the employees. Furthermore, they are also imbued with the role of assessing the kind or the nature of job roles that the employees and provided rewards to them based on this particular factor (Gallus and Frey 2016).

Examples of actions/initiatives

The line managers firstly need to refrain from quantifying the performance of the employees and at the same time need to acknowledge the employees who are although among the top performing employees of the organization yet contribute a significant value to the same (Kim and Holzer 2016). Proposed incentives scheme should allow addition of at least 10 percent of associates’ salaries monthly. In addition, such “bonus” should not bear any strain on budget of the organization. Furthermore, in the process of the project it was decided to tie up bonus program with obligatory training, i.e. stimulate a higher attendance during trainings. This is important since it will motivate them to improve their job productivity and will help them to get appreciation for the work that they are doing. Furthermore, the line managers at the same time need to inculcate an adequate organizational culture wherein the employees would not only be able to enhance the level of their engagement but also help each other to perform in a much better manner (Shields et al. 2015). These in short are two examples of initiatives that the line managers can take to improve the performance of the organization and also the reward policy of the concerned organization.

Conclusion 

To conclude, the concept of reward and recognition has become an indispensible part of the modern workplace and is being used extensively by the various organizations within the framework of their organization. Furthermore, it is seen that the effective use of this particular contrast provides various benefits not only to the organizations but also to the employees as well. One of the most important benefits that the effective usage of this particular policy provides to the various organizations is the fact that they help in the improvement of the individual job productivity of the employees and this in turn improves the overall productivity of the overall organization itself. However, at the same time it is seen that there are various factors that the organizations need to take into effective consideration for the formulation as well as the management of the reward policy that it is following like equality, fairness, transparency and others. Thus, it is seen that the effective use of this particular construct has not only help the various organizations to enhance the job satisfaction of the employees but at the same time to reduce the rate of attrition as well.

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