CHAPTER 8

STAFFING
Introduction
After deciding on the type of organization structure that will best serve the interest of the
business firm, the next step that will have to be made is to fill the identified positions with the
most qualified persons available.
Business organizations are very sensitive to whatever staffing errors are made. Placing the
wrong person in a highly specialized position like quality control, for instance, may bring enough
damage to the firm to cause its bankruptcy. Yet, this refers to a single error in staffing.

Many of the reasons leading to business failure could be traced to errors in staffing.
Accidents involving millions of pesos could be the result of hiring an accident-prone person. A
salesperson whose real interest is not in sales may unwittingly push loyal customers to patronize
the company’s competitors. Hiring an unqualified person may cause demoralization among
employees who have been serving the company well.

There is no doubt that effective staffing places the company on a competitive stance.
Effective staffing may not make a company number one among competitors, but ineffective
staffing will make the company’s survival highly improbable.

WHAT IS STAFFING?

The manager must be concerned with putting the right persons in various positions within
his area of concern. Although some of the important aspects of staffing may be delegated to the
human resources department, the manager assumes a great responsibility in assuring that the
right persons are assigned to positions that fit their qualification.

Staffing may be defined as a management function that determines human resources needs,
recruits, selects, trains, and develops human resources for jobs created by an organization.

Staffing is undertaken to match people with jobs so that the realization of the
organization’s objective will be facilitated.

THE STAFFING PROCEDURE

 The staffing process consists if the following series of steps:
1. Human resources Planning. The planned output of any organization will require a
systematic deployment of human resources at various levels. To be able to do it, the
manager will have to involve himself with human resource planning. This will be done in
conjunction with the efforts of the human resource officer, that is, if the company has
one.
Human resource planning may involve the following activities:
a. Forecasting – is an assessment of future human resource needs of the organization in
relation to its current capabilities.
b. Programming – means of translating the forecasted human resource needs to
personnel objective goals.
c. Evaluation and Control – refers to monitoring human resource action plans and
evaluating their success.
The forecasting of manpower may be undertaken using any of the following
quantitative method:
a. Times Series Methods – use historical data to develop forecasts.
b. Explanatory or Casual Models – are attempts to identify the major variable that
are related to or have caused particular past conditions and then use current
measures of these variables to predict future conditions.
 Regression models
 Econometric Models – refer to a system of regression equations estimated
rom past time-series data and used to show the effect of various
independent variables on various dependent variables.
 Leading Indicators- refer to time that anticipates business cycle turns.
c. Monitoring Methods – provide early warning signals of significant changes in
established patterns and relationships so that the manager can assess the likely
impact and plan responses if required.
2. Recruitment. When the different positions had been identified a necessary and the
decision to fill them with persons had been made, the next logical step is recruitment.
Recruitment refers to attracting qualified persons to apply for vacant positions in the
company so that those who are best suited to serve the company may be selected.
Sources of Applicants. When management wants to fill certain vacancies, the
following sources may be tapped:
a. The Organization’s Current Employees. Some of the organization’s current
employees may be qualified to occupy positions higher than the ones they are
occupying. They should be considered.
b. Newspaper Advertising. Newspapers are good sources of applicants. There
are at least three major daily newspapers distributed throughout the
Philippines. Readership appears to be highest during Sundays.
c. Schools. These are the places where potential employees may be asked to
apply. Representatives of companies may interview applicants inside
 campuses. Job fairs organized by the placement offices of universities in
cooperation with some companies have become common.
d. Referrals from Employees. Current employees sometimes recommend
relatives and friend who may be qualified.
e. Recruitment Firms. These are companies organized specifically to assist
client firms in recruiting qualified persons. Advertisements of recruitment
firms are regular features of the advertising sections of major newspapers.
Most of them specialize in recruiting applicants for executive positions.
f. Competitors. These are useful sources of qualified but underutilized
personnel. The recruiting firm has the advantage of hiring personnel who may
have been previously trained by competitors.
For entry-level personnel, the manager will likely rely on newspaper
advertising, schools, and referrals. When recruiting managers, the reliable
source are current employees, recruitment firms, and competitors.
3. Selection. This refers to the act of choosing from those that are available the individuals
most likely to succeed on the job. A requisite for effective selection is the preparation of
a list indicating that an adequate pool of candidates is available. The purpose of selection
is to evaluate each candidate and to pick the most suited for the position available.
Selection procedures may be simple or complicated depending on the costs of a
wrong decision. If the management picks the wrong person and the subsequent effect to
organization is negligible, then the selection process is made simple. This is true in the
case labors where a review of their applications is done. Within a few days or even a few
hours, the applicants are informed of the decision.
When the position under consideration involves special skills like an airplane
pilot, a more elaborate selection process is undertaken.

Ways of Determining the Qualifications of a Job Candidate. The available means

for determining the qualifications of candidates are the following:
 Application Blanks. The application blank provides information information about a
person’s characteristics such as age, marital status, address, educational background,
experience, and special interests. After reading the application blank, the evaluator will
have some basin on whether or not to proceed further in evaluating the applicant.
 References. Those written by previous employers, co-workers, teachers, club officers,
etc., about a person are called references. Such statements may provide some vital
information on the character of the applicant.
 Interviews. Information may be gathered in an interview by asking a series of relevant
questions to the job candidate.
 Testing. This involves an evaluation of the future behavior or performance of an
individual.
Types of Tests. There are various types of results. They may be classified as follows:
a. Psychological Test – is an objective, standard measure of a sample behavior of the
individual. Is further classified as follows:
 i. Aptitude test – measures a person’s capacity or potential ability to
learn.
ii. Performance Test – measures a person’s current knowledge of s
subject.
iii. Personality Test – measures personality traits such as dominance,
sociability, and conformity.
iv. Interest Test – measures a person’s interest in various fields of work.
b. Physical Examination – is done to assess the applicant’s physical health is adequate
to meet the job requirements.
4. Induction and Orientation. After as applicant is finally selected and subsequently hired,
the next steps undertaken are induction and orientation.
In induction, the new employee is provided with the necessary information about the
company. His duties, responsibilities, and benefits are relayed to him. Personnel and
health forms are filled out, and passes are issued. The company history, its product and
services, and the organization structure are explained to the new employee.
In orientation, the new employee is introduced to the immediate working environment
and co-workers. Location, rules, equipment, procedures, training plans, and performance
expectations are discussed. The new employee also undergoes the “socialization process”
by pairing him with an experienced employee and having a one-on-one discussion with
the manager.
5. Training and Development. If the newly-hired employee is assessed to be lacking the
necessary skills required by the job, training becomes a necessity.
Training refers to the learning that is provided in order to improve job performance.
Training programs may be classified into the following:
a. Training Programs for Non-Managers. This type of training is directed to non-
managers to increase knowledge and skill to perform a particular job. The four
methods under this type are:
 On-the-job Training. The trainee is placed in an actual work situation under the direction
of his immediate supervisor, who acts as trainer. This situation motivates strongly the
trainee to learn.
 Vestibule School. The trainee is placed in a situation almost exactly as the work
environment. It duplicates the job, as well as the required machinery and materials.
Employees are gained on the proper methods and safety procedures before they are
allowed to work in a department.
 Apprenticeship Program. A combination of on-the-job training and experience with
classroom instruction in particular subjects are provided to trainees.
 Special Courses. Those that provide more emphasis on education rather than training.
Examples are those which concern specific uses of computers like computer-aided
design, bidding procedures, and producing a commercial advertisement.
b. Training Program for Managers. The training needs of managers may be classified
into four areas: decision-making skills’ interpersonal skills, job knowledge, and
organizational knowledge.
 The decision-making skills of the manager may be enhanced through any of the
following methods of training:
 In-Basket. The trainee is provided with a set of notes, messages, telephone calls, letters
and reports, all pertaining to a given company situation within a given period of 1 or 2
hours.
 Management Games. A training method where trainees are placed in a simulated
situation and are required to make an ongoing series of decisions about that situation.
 Case studies. This presents actual situations in organizations and enables one to examine
successful and unsuccessful operations. Case studies emphasize the manager’s
environment, improve communication skills offer rewards in solving problems, possess
the quality of illustration, and establish concrete reference points for connecting theory
with practice.
The interpersonal competence of the manager, may be developed through any of the
following methods:
 Role-playing. In this method, the trainees are assigned roles to play in a given case
incident. They are provided with a script or a description of a given problem and of the
key persons they are to play. The purpose of this method is to improve the skill of the
trainee’s inhuman relations supervision and leadership.
 Behavior Modeling. It attempts to influence the trainee by showing model persons
behaving effectively in a problem situation. The trainee is expected to adapt the behavior
of the model and use it effectively in some instances later on.
 Sensitivity Training. Under this method awareness and sensitivity to behavioral patterns
of oneself are developed.
 Transactional Analysis. This method intend to help individuals not only understand
themselves and others but also to improve their interpersonal communication skills. This
is actually the study of social transactions between people so as to develop improved
communication and human relationships.
In acquiring knowledge about the actual job the manager is currently holding, the
following methods are useful:
 On-the-job Experience. It provides valuable opportunities for the trainee to learn various
skills while actually engaged in the performance pf a job.
 Coaching. This method requires a senior manager to assist a lower-level manager by
teaching him the needed skills and generally providing direction, advice, and helpful
criticism. The senior manager must be skilled himself and have the ability to educate;
otherwise, the method will be ineffective.
 Understudy. Under this method, a manager works as assistant to a higher-level manager
and participates in planning and other managerial functions until he is ready to assume
such position himself. Once in a while, the assistant is allowed to take over.
In the attempt to increase the trainee’s knowledge of the total organization, exposure to
information and events outside of his immediate job is made. In this regard, the following
methods are useful:
  Position Rotation. Under this method, the manager is given assignments in a variety of
departments. The purpose is to expose him in different functions of the organization.
 Multiple Management. This method is premised on the idea that junior executives must
be provided with means to prepare them for higher management position. To achieve
this, a junior board of directors is created consisting junior executives as members. The
board is given the authority to discuss problems that the senior board could discuss. The
members are encouraged to take a broad business outlook rather than concentrating on
their specialized lines of work.
6. Performance Appraisal. It is the measurement of employee performance. The purposes of
performance appraisal are as follows:
a. To influence, in a positive manner, employee performance and development;
b. To determine merit pay increase;
c. To plan for future performance goals;
d. To determine training and development needs; and
e. To assess the promotion potential of employees.
Ways of Appraising Performance. An employee’s performance may be measured using any of
the following methods:
a. Rating Scale Method. Each trait or characteristic to be rated is represented by a line on
which the rater indicates the degree to which the individual possesses the trait or
characteristic.
b. Essay Method. The evaluator in this method composes statements that best describe the
person evaluated.
c. Management by Objectives Method. Specific goals are set collaboratively for the
organization as a whole, for various subunits, and for each individual member.
Individuals are then evaluated on the basis of how well they achieved the results specified
by the goals.
d. Assessment Center Method. One is evaluated by persons other than the immediate
superior. This method is used for evaluating managers.
e. Checklist Method. The evaluator checks statement on a list that are deemed to
characterize an employee’s behavior or performance.
f. Work Standards Method. Standards are set for realistic worker output and later on used in
evaluating the performance on non-managerial employees.
g. Ranking Method. Each evaluator arranges employees’ names in rank order from the best
to poorest.
h. Critical-Incident Method. The evaluators recalls and writes down specific incidents that
indicate the employee’s performance. A critical incident refers to the specific instance of
inferior or superior performance of the employee.
7. Employment Decisions. After evaluating the performance of employees, the management
will now be ready to make employment decisions. These may consist of the following:
a. Monetary Rewards – are given o employees whose performance is at par or above
standard requirements.
 b. Promotion – refers to the movement by a person into a position of higher pay and
greater responsibilities and which is given as a reward for competence and ambition.
c. Transfer – is the movement of a person to a different job at the same time or similar
level of responsibility in the organization. Transfers are made to provide growth
opportunities for the person involved or to get rid of poorly performing employees.
d. Demotion – is a movement from one position to another which has less pay or
responsibility attached to it. Demotion is used as a form of punishment or as a
temporary measure to keep an employee until he is offered a higher position.
8. Separation. It is either a voluntary or involuntary termination of an employee’s services.
In the case of a made voluntary termination, the organization’s management must find
out the real reason. If the presence of a defect in the organization is determined,
corrective action is necessary.
Involuntary separation (or termination) is the last option that the management
exercise when an employee’s performance is poor. This is usually made after training efforts fail
to produce positive results.
COMPENSATING EMPLOYEES
One of the important aspects of staffing is employee compensation. Certain factors
determine the salary or wages paid to employees. These are the following:
1. Performance. The achievement of the organization’s objectives will depend on the individual
and collective performance of its employees. Hence, it is only right to compensate them
according to their ability to contribute to the attainment of goals. When an individual’s output is
better than the others, this should be recognized and he should be provided a higher pay rate.
There are instances, however, when it is difficult to measure an individual’s performance. An
example is when an employee’s job is to assist in assembling products. In this case, the
performance of the team where the individual belongs is measured.
2. The Relative Worth of Each Job. The compensation of the individual employee may also be
determined according to the relative worth of each job. To determine a job’s relative worth, job
evaluation is undertaken. This activity allows the organization to rank jobs and determine their
hierarchy of importance across all jobs in the organization. Up-to-date descriptions and job
specifications are used tools of job evaluation.
Job description represents the written summary of a job as an identifiable
organizational unit. Job specification is a statement of qualifications such as education prior
experience, and skill required for s person to perform a given job.
Methods of Job Evaluation. There are several methods used in evaluating jobs, these
are the following:
a. The point method, which requires the evaluators to quantify the value of the elements of a
job. Points are assigned to the degrees of various compensable factors required to do the
job. This is done using job descriptions and interviews as bases. Examples of
compensable factors are: skill required, physical and mental effort needed, degree of
 dangerous or unpleasant working conditions involved, and amount of responsibility
involved in the job. The objective is to determine the total points for the job evaluated.
b. The comparison method, which uses a factory-by-factor comparison and as a result, a
factor comparison scale is used. To evaluate the jobs, the five factors are used as bases
foe comparison: responsibility, skills, physical effort, mental effort, and working
conditions.
c. The classification or grading method, wherein jobs are grouped together in sets of grades
or classification, such as clerical or managerial. Jobs within each individual sets are
ranked in a job-to-standard comparison.
d. The ranking method, wherein the evaluator assigns ranks to jobs from the simplest to the
most challenging. This method is most convenient for small organizations since they
have fewer jobs than the larger ones.
3. Labor Market Conditions and Prevailing Wage Rates. Some jobs may be similar with
other jobs in terms of difficulty, responsibility and other factors. Some of them, however,
will be paid higher rates because of bigger demand for them. Companies in dire need of
certain skills will pay premium rates if these skills are not readily available. Nursing jobs are
good examples of the effect of demand on wages paid to certain types of jobs.
4 Types of Pay System Used. Differences in pay among similar jobs in and out of the
company depend on the type of pay system adapted. Wages may vary because of seniority,
company productivity, and profit-sharing considerations.
Seniority reflects loyalty to the company as well as experience. Improvement in
company productivity makes production more efficient, and therefore, less expensive. When
the company makes profits, employees are sometimes provided opportunities for sharing.
EMPLOYEE HEALTH AND SAFETY
A requisite to organizational productivity is the maintenance health and safety.
Employees who are healthy and who feel safe in their places of work can contribute
immensely to the achievement of the organization’s objectives. This is made possible when
management is concerned with the following:
 Organizational work environment, including air, water, and noise pollution;
 Other health hazards work area; and
 The safety of the equipment used.
To address such concerns, the following are usually undertaken:
 Installation of accident prevention programs; and
 Elimination of health hazards in the works areas.
EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
Peace and harmony in the workplace is a requisite for efficiency in production. This
happens when employees consider their relationship with the organization as worthwhile. As
such, employee or labor relations constitute an important aspect of management’s concerns.
 The organization must be able to manage employee relations, which are sometimes made in
cooperation with unions. This is not to downgrade the importance of managing employee
relations in a nonunionized situation.
Employee relations are characterized by concerns on managing and administrating the
union contract, grievance, compensation, work rules, and other issues.

Chapter 9
Communicating
INTRODUCTION
People organize themselves into groups to facilitate the achievement of objectives. The
synchronization of activities will make the organization more effective and efficient. This may
be made possible, however, if each member knows exactly what his responsibilities are, where
and when his actions will be required, and how intense his actions should be.
Proper understanding of responsibilities is a function of effective communication. A
person will perform according to what he perceives to be his role and the right perception of
roles happens with sufficient motivation. The success of efforts to motivate, however, will
depend on whether or not they are properly communicated.
Management must determine if the communication mechanism is used effectively, the
answer must be in the affirmative, because if not, the company can expect difficulties, if it is not
yet experiencing some of them.
WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?
Communication is the process of sharing information through verbal and nonverbal
means, including words, messages, and body movements.
Communication may happen between superior and subordinate, between the manager and
the customer, between an employee and a government representative, and so on. It may be done
face-to-face, or through printed materials like newspapers and books, or through electronic
devices like the telephone and the computer.
Good management dictates that communication must be made for a purpose, and because
it has cost attached to it, it must be used effectively.
Communication happens regardless of the time and the distance involved in the actual
delivery of the message. For instance, a person may record a message to be played to an
audience many light years away and thousands of years later.
FUNCTIONS OF COMMUNICATION
Communication may be used to serve any of the following functions:
1. Information Function. Information provided through communication may be used in decision
making at various work levels in the organization. A construction worker, for instance, may be
given instructions on the proper use of certain equipment, this will later provide him with a guide
in deciding which equipment to use in particular circumstances.
Another example is the manager who wants to make sure that his decision in promoting
an employee to a higher position is correct. Through effective communication, the information
provided will minimize if not eliminate, any risk in his decision.
2. Motivation Function. Communication is also oftentimes used as means to motivate employees
to commit themselves to the organization’s objectives. When objectives are clearly stated,
direction is provided, and achieving them becomes a matter of course.
3. Control Function. When properly communicated, reports, policies, and plans define roles;
clarify duties, authorities and responsibilities. When this happens, effective control is facilitated.
1. Emotive Function. When feelings re repressed in the organization, employees are affected
by anxiety, which in turn, affects performance. Whatever types of emotions are involved.
Whether satisfaction, dissatisfaction, happiness, or bitterness, communication provides a
means to decrease the internal pressure affecting the individual.
THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS
The communication process consist of eight steps, which are as follows:
1. Develop an Idea. The most important step in effective
communication is developing an idea. It is important that the
idea to be conveyed must be useful or of some value.
Examples of useful ideas are the prevention of accidents in the
workplace and how to increase sales volume.
2. Encode. The next step is to encode the idea into words,
illustrations, figures, or other symbols suitable for
transmission. The method of transmission should be
determined in advance so that the idea may be encoded to
conform to the specific requirements of the identified method.
3. Transmit. After encoding, the message is now ready for
transmission through the use of an appropriate communication
channel. Among the various channels available for
transmission are the spoken word, body movements, the
written word, television, telephone, cellular phone, computer,
radio, artist’s painting, the movies, sound recording, and some
others.
Proper transmission is very important so the message sent will
reach and hold the attention of the receiver. To achieve this,
the communication channel must be free of barriers, or
interference.
4. Receive. The next step in the communication process is the
actual receiving of the message by the intended receiver. The
requirement is for the receiver to tune in to receive the
 message, which may be done through listening or by other
means.
The message may be initially received by a machine or by a
person. In any case, the attempt to communicate is blocked
when the machine is not turned on or turned in to receive the
message, or the person assigned to receive the message does
not listen or pay attention properly.
5. Decode. Decoding means translating the message from the
sender into a form that will have meaning to the receipt. If the
receiver knows the language and terminology used in the
message, successful decoding may be achieved.
6. Accept. The next step is for the receiver to accept or reject the
message. Sometimes, acceptance or rejection is partial.
A new hired employee was sent to a supervisor with a
note from his superior directing the supervisor to receive the
employee into his unit and to provide the necessary training
and guidance. As the supervisor feels that he was not
consulted in the hiring process, he thinks that his only
obligation is to accept the employee in his unit and nothing
more. The factors that will affect the acceptance or rejection of
a message consist of the following:
a. The accuracy of the message;
b. Whether or not the sender has the authority to send the
message and / or require action; and
c. The behavioral implication for the receiver.
7. Use. The next step is for the receiver too use the information.
If the message provides something of importance to a relevant
activity, then the receiver could store it and retrieve it when
required. If the message requires a certain action to be made,
then he may do so, otherwise, he discards it as soon as it is
received. All of the above mentioned options will depend on
how the message is perceived by the receiver.
8. Provide Feedback. The last step in the communication process
is for the receiver to provide feedback to the sender.
Depending on the perception of the receiver, however, this
important step may not be made.
Even if feedback is relayed, it may not reach the original
sender of the message. This may be attributed to the effects of
any of the communication barriers.
FORMS OF COMMUNICATION
Communication consist of two major forms:
1. Verbal Communication. These are those communications that are transmitted through
hearing or sight. These modes of transmission categorized verbal communication into
two classes- oral and written.
Oral Communication is a form of communication transmitted through speech in
personal conversation, speeches, meetings, lectures, voice mail, telephone, and video
conferences.
An alternative to oral communication, the written communication is sometimes
preferred to the oral communication because of time and time constraints. When a sender,
for instance, cannot personally meet or call the receiver due to some reason, a written
letter or memorandum is prepared and sent to the receiver. The sender of the written
communication, has also the advantage of reaching mass audiences. Apart from the
written letter, written communication also takes the form of leaflets, pamphlets, books,
billboards, newspapers, magazines, and so on.
The written communication, however, has limitations; to remedy these, some means
are devised. Perfume advertisers, for instance, lace their written message with the smell
of their products. In the same light, the design of the now popular Christmas card is an
attempt to enhance the effects of the written note.
2. Nonverbal Communication. These are those that are made through facial expressions,
body movements, eye contact, and other physical gestures. Nonverbal expression
conveys many shades of meaning and it is to the advantage of the communicator to
understand what message is relayed.
THE BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION
Various factors may impede the efficient flow of communication. Any of all of these
factors may at any stage, derail the process. Even if the message is transmitted by the
channel, the timing and the meaning of the message may be affected by some factors. The
barriers to communication may be classified generally as:
1. Personal barriers. These are hindrance to effective communication arising from the
communicator’s characteristics as a person, including emotions, values, poor listening
habits, sex, age, race, socioeconomic status, religion, education, and so on.
Emotion could the communicator’s ability to correctly judge the real meaning of
messages received, assuming that this could even be received at all. People with different
values find it hard to communicate with each other. Poor listening habits of a receiver
frustrate the communication efforts of the sender. The sex, age, race, socioeconomic
status, religion, and education of both the sender and the receiver provide formidable
barrier to effective communication.
2. Physical Barriers. These are interferences to effective communication occurring in the
environment where the communication is undertaken. The very loud sound produced by a
passing jet temporarily drowns out the voice of a guest delivering a speech. Such
distraction does not allow full understanding of the meaning of the entire message and is
an example of a physical barrier.
 Physical barriers include distances between people, walls, a noisy sound system
near a telephone, etc. An office that is too classy may sometimes inhibit a person form
meeting the occupant of the office face-to-face. A menacing pet dog posted near the door
may also prevent to a person from directly communicating with the object person behind
the door.
A communication channel that is overloaded may also prevent important
information reach the intended user. Another physical barrier to communication is poor
timing. For instance, how many one expect a person who has just lost a loved one to
immediately accede to a personal request from a fellow employee?
3. Semantic Barriers. Semantics is the study of meaning as expressed in symbols. Words,
pictures, or actions, are symbols that suggest certain meanings. When the wrong meaning
has been chosen by the receiver, misunderstanding occurs. Such error constitutes a barrier
to communication.
A semantic barrier may be defined as an interference with the reception of a
message that occurs when the message is misunderstood even though it is received
exactly as transmitted.
For example, the words “wise” and “salvage” will be interpreted differently by an
English speaking foreigner from the way the Filipinos, interpret them.
OVERCOMING BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION
When communication barriers threaten effective performance, certain measure must be
instituted to eliminate them. To reduce or totally eliminate problem due to noise, selective,
perception, and distraction, the following are recommended:
1. Use feedback to facilitate understanding and increase the potential for appropriate action.
2. Repeat messages in order to provide assurance that they are properly received.
3. Use multiple channels so that accuracy of information may be enhanced.
4. Use simplified language that is easily understandable and which eliminates the possibility
of people getting mixed-up with meanings.
TECHNIQUES FOR COMMUNICATING IN ORGANIZATIONS
Communication may be classified as to the flow the message, which is as follows
downward, upward, or horizontal.
1. Downward Communication. This refers to message flow from higher levels of authority
to lower levels. Among the purposes of downward communication are:
a. To give instructions;
b. To provide information about policies and procedures;
c. To give feedback about the performance; and
d. To indoctrinate or motivate.
Among the techniques used in downwards communication ae letters, meeting,
telephone, cellular phones, manuals, handbooks, and newsletters.
 Letters are appropriate when directives are complex and precise actions are
required. When orders are simple but the result depends largely on employee, morale,
techniques that provide personal interchange like meetings, telephones, and cell
phones are appropriate. Modern technology has made it possible for people to hold
meetings even if they are thousands of kilometers apart from each other.
Manuals are useful sources of information regarding company policy, procedures,
and organization. Unlike using person as sources of information, manuals “do not
take a break” and may be made available anytime needed.
Handbooks provide specific information about the duties and privileges of the
individual worker. Like manuals, it is also has the advantage of being made available
anytime needed.
Newsletters provide a mixture of personal, social, and wok-related information.
Articles about new hiring, promotion, birthdays of employees, questions and answers
about work related issues are presented.
2. Upward Communication. Management needs to provide employees with all the necessary
material and nonmaterial support it can give. A requisite, however, is for management to
know the specific needs of the employees. This requirement is the primary reason for
upward communication.
Upward communication refers to message flows from persons in lower-level
positions to persons in higher-level positions. The message sent usually provide
information on work progress, problems encountered, suggestions for improving output,
and personal feelings about the work and non-work activities.
Among the techniques used in upward communication are formal grievance
procedures, employee attitude and opinion surveys, suggestion systems, open-door
policy, informal gripe sessions, task forces, and exit interviews.
 Formal Grievance Procedure. Grievances are part of a normally operating
organization. To effectively deal with them, organizations must maintain a
system for employees to air their grievances.
Ivancevichv (2001) defines grievance as “complaint, whether valid or
not, about an organizational policy, procedure, or managerial practice that
creates dissatisfaction or discomfort.” A grievance includes any employee’s
concern over a perceived violation of the labor agreement that is submitted to
the grievance procedure for eventual resolution. Grievances represent an open,
upward communication channel whereby employees can offer suggestions to
management.
Depending on the size and nature of the company, the grievance
procedure may consist of a single step or a number of steps. Companies with a
collective bargaining agreement with the union must refer to the grievance
procedure spelled out in the law on labor relations.
 Employees Attitude and Opinion Surveys. Finding out what the employees
think about the company is very important. The exercise, however, requires
expertise and the company may be not prepared to do it. If the organization’s
 operation is large enough to justify such activity, then it must be done. If the
assistance of an outside research firm is considered, a benefit-cost analysis
will be most useful in determining the right action to consider.
 Suggestion systems. Suggestions from employees are important sources of
cost-saving and production-enhancing ideas. Even if majority of the
suggestions are not feasible, a simple means of acknowledging them
contributes to employee morale.
 Open-Door Policy. Even on a limited basis, it provides the management with
an opportunity to act on difficulties before they become full-blown problems.
 Informal Gripe Sessions. These can be used positively if management knows
how to handle them. When employees feel free to talk and they are assured of
not being penalized for doing so, then management will be spared of using
lots of efforts in determining the real causes of problems in the company.
 Task Forces. When a specific problem or issue arises, a task force may be
created and assigned to deal with the problem or issue. Since membership of
task force is consists of management and non-management personnel,
integration, and teamwork are fostered, creativity is enhanced, and
interpersonal skills are developed.
 Exit Interview. When employees leave an organization for any reason, it is to
advantage of management to know real cause of such action. If there are
negative developments in the organization that the management is not aware
of, exit interviews may provide important clues.
3. Horizontal Communication. This refers to messages sent to individuals or groups from
another or the same organizational level or position:
The purposes of horizontal communication are:
a. To coordinate activities between departments;
b. To persuade other at the same level of organizations; and
c. To pass on information about activities or feelings.
Among the techniques appropriate horizontal communication are; memos, meetings,
telephones, picnics, dinners, and other social affairs.
MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM
It was mentioned at the beginning of this chapter that communication may be used to
serve the information function. This means that a way must be devised to allow the organization
to absorb information necessary for effective decision making. In this regard, companies of
various sizes have organized systems to gather information that will be used to management.
Management information system (MIS) may be defined as organized means of providing
past, present, and projected information on the company’s internal operations and external
intelligence for use in decision making.
 The MIS used currently by corporate firms consists of written and electronically based
systems for sending reports, memos, bulletins, and the like. The system allows managers of the
different departments within the firms to communicate with each other.
The purpose of MIS. The MIS is established for various reasons. They are the following:
1. To provide a basis for the analysis of early warnings signals that can originate both
externally and internally;
2. To automate routine clerical operations like payroll and inventory reports;
3. To assist managers in making routine decisions like scheduling orders, assigning orders
to machine, and reordering supplies; and
4. To provide to information necessary for management to make strategic or non-
programmed decisions.

Chapter 10
Motivating
INTRODUCTION
Business must produce outputs that will help maintain their competitive stance in the
market. Products or services must be produced with the least cost, even if it is only one of the
factors required for business survival and growth.
Economy in production, however, will depend on how motivated the employees are in
the performance of their assigned tasks, as the outputs will be needed by customers in various
qualities and quantities, at different times and places, the firm must be able to deliver the
requirement, or it will be driven out of the market.
It will take a different motivation level to meet quality standards than to produce the
required quantity. Although motivation is a common ground among the various activities, the
levels may not be so, this makes motivation a complicated undertaking.
In any case, it is important for management to understand that motivation is a function
that can be used as a powerful means to achieve the company’s objectives. Literature abounds
with stories of organizations, which succeeded because of highly motivated employees.
What Is Motivating?
Motivating refers to the act of giving employees reasons or incentives to work to achieve
organizational objectives. Motivation, on the other hand, refers to the process of activating
behavior, sustaining it, and directing it toward a particular goal. The definition is useful because
it specifies three stages: activating, sustaining, and directing actions towards the achievements
towards the achievement of objectives.
FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO MOTIVATION
 The following factors influence a person to do his job well.
1. Willingness to Do the Job. People who like what they are doing are highly motivated to
produce the expected output.
2. Self-confidence in Carrying the Task. When employees feel that they have the required
skill and training to perform the task, they get more motivated.
3. Need Satisfaction. People will do their job well if they fell that by doing so, their needs
will be satisfied.
THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
There are various theories of motivation, but only the four most influential ones will be
presented. They consist of the following:
1. Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Theory. Abraham Maslow, an eminent psychologist, theorized
that human beings have five basic needs, which relate to the following: physiological,
security, social, esteem, and self-actualization. These needs have to be satisfied in
hierarchical fashion, meaning one need will be satisfied first before satisfying the other
needs.
a. Physiological Needs. Those that are concerned with biological needs like food, drink,
rest, and sex fall under the category of physiological needs. These needs take priority
over the needs.
b. Security Needs. After satisfying the physiological needs, people will seek to satisfy their
safety needs. They include freedom from bodily harm and financial security, which may
be affected by the loss of job, or death of the family’s breadwinner, etc.
c. Social Needs. After satisfying his physiological and security needs, the employee will
now strive to secure love, affection, and the need to be accepted by peers.
d. Esteem Needs. They include the need for a positive self-image and self-respect and the
need to be respected by others.
e. Self-Actualization Needs. The topmost level of needs in the hierarchy involves the
realization of the individual’s potential as a human being and becoming someone that he
could be.
The Relevance of Maslow’s Theory to Management. Even if Maslow’s theory has been
largely questioned, one basic premise cannot be discarded: “a fulfilled need no longer
motivates an individual”. If this is his subordinates is in, the manager will be at an
advantage if he identifies his subordinate’s unfulfilled need and work out a scheme so
that the subordinate will be motivated to work in order to satisfy the unfulfilled need.
2. Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory. The two-factor theory, develop by Frederick Herzberg,
indicates that a satisfied employee is motivated from within to work harder and that a
dissatisfied employee is not self-motivated.
Herzberg identified two classes of factors associated with employee satisfaction
and dissatisfaction. In his research, Herzberg found out that satisfied employees consider
the following factors (satisfiers or motivation factors) are responsible for job satisfaction:
achievement, recognition, the work itself, responsibility, advancement, and growth.
Dissatisfied employees consider the following factors are responsible for job
 dissatisfaction: company policy and administration, supervision, relationship with
supervisor, work conditions, salary, relationship with peers, personal life, relationship
with subordinates, status and security.
If the manager considers Herzberg’s theory in motivating employees, he must do
something to eliminate the dissatisfiers and install satisfiers.
3. Expectancy Theory. This is a motivation model based on the assumption that an
individual will work depending on his perception of the probability of his expectations to
happen.
The theory poses the idea that motivation is determined by expectancies and
valences. Expectancy is a belief about the likelihood or probability that a particular
behavioral act (like attending training sessions) will lead to a particular outcome (lie a
promotion). Valence is the value an individual places on the expected outcome or
rewards.
Expectancy theory is based on the following assumptions:
a. A combination of forces within the individual and in the environment determines
behavior.
b. People make decisions about their own behavior that of organizations.
c. People make different types of needs, goals, and desires.
d. People make choices among alternative behaviors on the extent to which they
think a certain behavior will lead to a desired outcome.
4. Goal Setting Theory. Goal setting refers to the process of improving performance with
objective, deadlines, or quality standard. When individuals or groups are assigned
specific goals, a clear direction is provided and which later motivates them achieve those
goals. The goal setting model consist of the following components.
a. Goal Content. To be sufficient in content, goals must be challenging, attainable,
specific and measurable, time-limited, and relevant.
When goals are challenging, higher performance may be expected. The sales
quotas impose by companies on individual members of their sales force indicates
reliance of these companies to the use of challenging goals. Goals must be attainable
if they are be set. If they are not, then workers will only be discouraged to perform.
Goals must be stated in quantitative terms whenever possible. When exact figures
to be met are set, understanding is facilitated and workers are motivated to perform.
There must be a time limit fir the accomplishment of goals.
The more relevant he goals are to the company’s mission, the more support it can
generate from various levels of employment in the organization.
b. Goal Commitment. When individuals or groups committed to the goals they are
supposed to achieve, there is chance that they will be able to achieve them.
c. Work Behavior. Goals influence behavior in terms of direction, effort, persistence,
and planning. When an individual is provided with direction, performance is
facilitated. In trying to attain goals that are already indicated, the individual is
provided a reason to persist in his efforts until the goal is attained. Once goals are set,
the first important input to planning is already in place.
d. Feedback Aspects. Feedbacks provide the individuals with a way of knowing how far
they have gone in achieving objectives. Feedbacks also facilitate the introduction of
corrective measures whenever necessary.
TECHNIQUES OF MOTIVATION
Individuals or groups of individual may be motivated to perform through the use
of various techniques. These techniques may be classified as motivation through job
design, motivation through rewards, motivation through employee participation, and
other motivation techniques for the diverse work force.
1. Motivation Through Job Design. A person will be highly motivated to perform if he
is assigned a job he likes. The first requisite, however, is to design jobs that will be
meet the requirements of the organization and the persons who will occupy them.
Job design is concerned with specifying the tasks that constitute a job for an
individual or a group.
In motivating through the use of job design, the tasks that constitute a job for an
individual or a group.
a. Fitting People to Jobs. Routine and repetitive tasks make workers suffer from
chronic dissatisfaction. To avoid this, the following remedies may be adapted:
 Realistic job preview – is undertaken by management by “conveying to
applicants what organizational life will actually be like on this job, warts
and all.”
 Job Rotation - is where people are moved periodically from on specialized
job to another.
 Limited Exposure – is where worker exposure to a highly fragmented and
tedious job is limited.
b. Fitting Jobs to People. Instead of changing the person, management could
consider changing the job. This may be achieved with the use of the following:
 Job Enlargement – is where two or more specialized tasks in a work flow
sequence is combined into a single job.
 Job Enrichment – is where efforts are made to make jobs more interesting,
challenging, and rewarding.
2. Motivating Through Rewards. Rewards consist of material and physiological benefits
to employees for performing tasks in the workplace. Properly administered reward
system can improve job performance and satisfaction.
Rewards may be classified into two categories:
a. Extrinsic Rewards – refers to the rewards external to the job, such as pay, promotion,
or fringe benefits.
b. Intrinsic Rewards – are internally experienced payoffs and which are self-granted.
Examples are a sense of accomplishment. Self-esteem, and self-actualization.
Extrinsic and intrinsic rewards coincide with the needs spelled out in the need
theories principally represented by Maslow and Herzberg.
 Management of Extrinsic Rewards. To motivate job performance effectively,
extrinsic rewards must be managed in line with the following:
 It must satisfy individual’s needs.
 The employees must believe effort will lead to reward.
 Rewards must be equitable.
 Rewards must be linked to performance.
No single type of rewards is generally applicable to all employees. This is so
because individuals have need different from others. As much as possible, the particular needs of
an individual must be matched with the corresponding reward if motivation is objective.
Although the administrative constraints inherent to such systems could be a hindrance to their
adaption, they must be used whenever feasible.
Employees must believe that efforts will lead to reward. Otherwise, they will not strive to
turn in more efforts in their particular job assignments.
Rewards that are not equitable will not produce the desired motivation. When employees
know that reward is tied up with individual performance, management may expect extra efforts
for them. A negative example is the practice in some government offices where every employee,
regardless of performance, is a given productivity bonus. As a result, the majority is not
motivated to exert extra efforts.
3. Motivation through Employees Participation. When employees participate in
deciding on various aspects of their jobs, their personal involvement is often carried
up to the point where the tasks are completed.
The specific activities identified where employees may participate are as
follows: setting goals, making decisions, solving problems, and designing and
implementing organizational changes.
The more popular approaches to participation included the following:
a. Quality control Circle. A method of direct employee participation is the quality
control circle. The objective of QCC is to produce ideas for improving
productivity and working condition.
The circle consist of group of three to ten employees, usually doing related
work, who meet at regular intervals to identify problems and discuss their solutions.
The circle includes a leader such a foreman, but relies on democratic process. The
members are trained in various analytical techniques by a coordinator. The circle
forwards recommendations to management, which in turn, makes decisions on its
adoption.
b. Self-Management Teams. When workers have reached a certain degree of
discipline, they may be ripe for forming self-managed teams. Also known as
autonomous, work group, or high performance teams, self-managed teams take
on traditional managerial tasks as part of their normal work routine.
 The self-managed team works on their own, turning out a complete
product or service and receiving minimal supervision from managers who act more as
facilitators than supervisors. When a product or service is produced by a group of
professionals or specialists, they might as well be formed as a self-managed team to
save on supervisory costs.
Requisites to Successful Employee Participation Programs. To
succeed, an employee participation program will require the following:
 A profit-sharing or gain-sharing plan;
 A long term employment relationship with good job security;
 A concerted effort to build and maintain group cohesiveness; and
 Protection of the individual employee’s rights.
4. Other Motivation Technique. The advent of theories of individual difference and the
biological clock of human being has challenged managers to adapt other motivation
techniques such as:
a. Flexible Work Schedule. There is an arrangement, called flextime, which allows
employees to determine their own arrival and departure times within specified
limits. For example, a business firm may allow one group of employees to take
the 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. schedule, another group takes the 9:00 a.m. to 6:00
p.m. schedule, and another takes the 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. schedule. Another
alternative is the adaption of the forty-hour workweek in four days allowing the
employees to choose a “day-off”. An innovation adapted by a popular bank in
Makati is the hiring of part-time tellers to work four hours a day from Monday to
Friday.
There are certain benefits offered by flexible work schedules although it is
not appropriate for all situations. Nevertheless, the manager has an option and he
decides when it is applicable.
b. Family Support Series. Employees oftentimes burdened by family obligations like
caring for children. Progressive companies provide day care facilities for children
of employees. For instance, a multinational company in faraway Davao province
has even opened an elementary and a high school facility within the planation site.
c. Sabbaticals. A sabbatical leave is one given to an employee after a certain number
of years of service. The employee is allowed to go n leave for two months to one
year with pay to give him time for family, recreation, and travel. It is expected
that when the employee turns for work, his motivation is improved.