Category: Motivation

Abstract

The paper is focused on examining the programs for at-risk students, the benefits of such programs, and the role of education in modern life. Moreover, the paper provides some insights regarding the importance of motivation and the phenomenon of learned helplessness. The process of education receives priority in the digital world, and thus, the topic is essential to discuss.

Education

Education is one of the most significant elements in modern life, especially with the consideration of the fact that society has already entered the digital era. The at-risk students require even more attention from the teachers, and thus, should be provided with certain educational programs. However, motivation plays a significant role in the process of learning. The primary purpose of this paper is to examine how motivation, programs for at-risk students, and the principle of learned helplessness influence the way the child develops.

Recent researches prove that academic performance is linked to the success the person will have in the future, and thus, the question regarding the programs for the at-risk students should receive the primary concern and priority. It is worth noting that Lucy Daniels Center is currently working to help children to improve their learning, foster emotional development, and contribute to positive acquiring of the information (Lucy Daniels Center Early Intervention Program Overview, 2009).

Knowledge is Power Program is also created for students to receive an opportunity to make progress in their academic level with appropriate help and support of the experienced staff. Such programs can be considered as beneficial as they aim to change the lives of children for the better. The centers work not only with children but their families as well in order to accomplish the maximum result.

The students should see the final goal, the major objective of education (Slavin, 2015). The question is what role does the final goal plays in the process of education for the at-risk students.

Motivation

The motivation is the aspect that can foster the educational process and positively influence the way the students perceive the information. Children should understand the relationship between academic performance and future success. Children should communicate with people who use their knowledge successfully in their careers. However, the teachers should take into consideration that the children can face the problem of learned helplessness.

Every person needs a different amount of time to catch the information. Those children who struggle with the process of understanding school subjects need to be provided with the help and appropriate support, as well as with the motivation. Otherwise, they will feel confused, and frustrated (Learned Helplessness, 2007). These feelings influence the learning process in a negative way, and it results in learned hopelessness. In case the student sees that the other part of the class has better success in academic performance while he simply cannot understand anything, his level of confidence will decrease.

Thus, it is significantly important to dedicate enough time for every student with special attention to those ones who struggle with education (Head Start Education, 2009). The development programs were created to help at-risk students to achieve more and increase the level of confidence.

One of the motivation theories is attribution one. It deals with the explanation of the success and failure of a person based on the motives, behavior, and experience. Attribution theory addresses the concept of learned helplessness (Renninger & Hidi, 2015). Students have a different level of desire for accomplishments. The question is whether the lack of motivation of students can be compensated with a high motivation of the teacher.

Conclusion

Motivation plays an integral role in the process of education. In order for the students not to experience learned hopelessness, the teachers should dedicate enough time to at-risk students. In addition, students who struggle with academic performance can attend special programs that aim to help them in their accomplishments and achievements. Further progress would be impossible without close attention to the process of learning. The academic performance influences future success, and thus, education can influence the well-being of the whole nation and generation.

References

Head start education [Video file]. (2009). Web.

Learned helplessness [Video file]. (2007). Web.

Lucy Daniels Center early intervention program overview [Video file]. (2009). Web.

Renninger, K., & Hidi, S. (2015). The power of interest for motivation and engagement. New York, NY: Routledge.

Slavin, R. (2015). Educational Psychology: Theory and practice (11th ed.). New Jersey, NJ: Upper Saddle River.

The questions of motivation and belief in the positive results are very important in all kinds of activities. Using quantitative methods of educational research, and survey research in particular, is to increase the evidence of a significant relationship between the level of inner and outer motivation and the results achieved.

Byer (2000) researched a statistically significant relationship between the students self-concept, their absences, and academic achievements, using a Pearson test and a multiple correlation test. The relationship between the motivation-related variable of academic self-concept and academic achievement proved to be positive, while the relationship between the number of absences and achievements proved to be negative. As quoted in Byers work (2000) Pajares (1996) concluded that academic self-concept was a consistently strong predictor of academic achievement (p. 5). Though Byer (2000) admits that the extent to which the educators and parents can influence motivation-related variables, increasing the academic achievements correspondingly, is questionable, the significant relationship can not be denied. Love (2003) researched the impact of the teachers collective belief in the students success on the academic achievements, contributing the results of the quantitative research. The author emphasizes the importance of the teachers being culturally congruent for the process of effective learning. Love (2003) notes that It is the collective belief that all children can succeed that may make a significant difference in childrens achievement levels when the majority are low-income and students of color (p. 11). With the goal of researching the most effective ways for increasing the teachers competency different types of surveys may be conducted. Mertler (2003) investigated advantages and disadvantages of web-based and paper-and-pencil surveys. It was concluded that electronic surveys may save time and costs, but access to them may be complicated due to technical problems and/or technology il-literacy as well as the teachers reluctance to spend time on it prevented from participating in the survey. Thus, this research implies the importance of the teachers literacy, self-education and self-motivation.

The results of the quantitative research concerning motivation and belief in success inspire confidence and motivate me for further self-education. It is very important to pay enough attention not only to the plans of the lessons, but to the motivation of the students as well. Taking into consideration the psychological and cultural peculiarities of every student, educators should use a personal approach to every student. Survey research could be used to inspect the peculiarities of some certain classes and get the picture of the relationships observed in some concrete environment. Feeling responsibility for the students achievements, the teacher is to take pains to motivate the learners using different methods or even tricks, like prizes or illustrated calendars of absence. The educators work never ends after the bell rings. It is very important not only to conduct a lesson but to create a supportive atmosphere for its effectiveness as well.

Demonstrating the results of practical application of the survey researches, the works under analysis prove the effectiveness of this quantitative method of educational research, under the condition that the survey was conducted observing all the rules. At the same time Mertler (2003) provides the evidence concerning the possible disadvantages of the web-based surveys, which could be hardly predicted without the survey research.

The class discussion influenced my thinking on this topic, reminding that all scientific data requires evidence, while the figures inspire confidence. Survey research is an effective method of gathering the necessary information for examining the relationships between psychological and sociological variables.

Reference List

Byer, J. (2000). The effects of absences and academic self-concept an academic achievement in two eleventh-grade U.S. history classes. The Annual Meeting of the Mid South Educational Research Association, Bowling Green, KY.

Gay, L., Airasian, P. (2002). Educational Research: Competencies for Analysis and Applications. Atlanta, GA: Prentice Hall.

Love, A. (2003). The relationship between teachers beliefs and student achievement in two primarily African American urban elementary schools. The Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA.

Mertler, C. (2003). What&Another survey??? Patterns of response and nonresponse from teachers to traditional and web surveys. The Annual Meeting of the Mid-Western Educational Research Association, Columbus, OH.

Explain how your personal history and family background have influenced your professional development to become a teacher

My decision of becoming a teacher solely comes from my family background and my interests as I grew up. I was motivated into becoming a professional teacher because I loved the profession. Although I did not know exactly what it entailed to become a teacher, I started developing the interest and began interacting closely with my teachers asking them questions about how they became to be teachers.

As I advanced in my career, I realized that teaching was not the only profession that I could study. I could as well study law, medicine, and other prestigious professionals. I once thought that teaching was not my profession but my wish and my desire of becoming one could not allow me to change my career. Even when my friends advised me to change my career, I could not since it was an intrinsic desire that I felt motivated to pursue it.

My family background also contributed a lot to my decision of pursuing teaching in my professional development. My father to be precise, influenced my decision to pursue the course because he believed that I could provide good leadership and an example to my smaller siblings behind me. He frequently encouraged me to study hard not to lose the target. Furthermore, I wanted to take a profession that was different from the other people in our family. Therefore, I was motivated to study teaching to bring diversity in the family as well as impacting positively on the lives of many children by facilitating the realization of their dreams and achievement of their goals and ambitions. I, therefore, developed a positive attitude and worked hard towards achieving my dream of becoming a teacher.

State your professional goals and aspirations after becoming a teacher

After becoming a teacher, I have certain goals and aspirations that I need to accomplish. Primarily, I will ensure that there exists an environment conducive to the learning system: an environment of respect and rapport between all the stakeholders in the education system. Achievement can only be attained if respect goes to every person, students, fellow teachers, and the parents regardless of age, gender, and among other parameters.

Communication stands out also as one of my aspirations. The relationships in the learning environment should be cultivated based on constructive communication and openness between all the stakeholders. Achieving this will prove a milestone for me in my initiative of achieving my goals as a teacher. I also wish to re-engineer the classroom environment by establishing a culture of learning among my students.

I will accomplish this by managing classroom procedures and ensuring that students uphold good morals and discipline. When students prove their ability to demonstrate good morals when at school, it fosters commitment and hard work in their studies hence excelling in their future careers and life at large (Stigler & Hiebert, 1999, p.32). My happiness will reach a peak upon the realization of my goals, which will otherwise stand out as the best time for my students to excel in their studies achieving their dreams in life.

Other goals and aspirations as a teacher include the demonstration of professionalism and the positive contribution towards the development and growth of school and education in general. As a professional, I aspire to adapt to the appropriate, current, and relevant teaching practices that will foster understanding and growth in the field of education. Professionalism will also encompass involvement or adoption of teaching methods using the current technologies, which will enhance efficiency in learning as well as the transmission of skills and knowledge to students. Lastly, I have the goal of becoming a teacher-consultant where I will teach upcoming teachers on the best practices and ethics required of a teacher.

There has been much discussion lately about an achievement gap in K-12 education. What does that mean to you? What do you think are some of the reasons for the gap? What should be the role of a teacher relative to this gap?

To me, the achievement gap ink-12 is depicted in the deviations in performances of students coming from different races, economic backgrounds, and ethnic groups among others. These differences are the ones attributed to the achievement gap witnessed in the education of students both in primary and secondary levels. There stand different reasons, which have led to the gap including poverty, ethnicity, race, resources among others.

For instance, ethnicity in some of the states proves an issue of concern, which has contributed to this achievement gap to a greater extend. Lack of equity in the learning institutions where students from other races fail to receive much attention as their colleagues contribute a lot to the gap (Stadtman, 1970, p.212). Furthermore, poverty also contributes to the gap. Poor students on most occasions miss out on school due to a lack of learning materials, books, uniforms, and fees, which make them lag hence leading to the gap. Therefore, to end the problems by filling the gap, a teacher has a bigger role to play (Edward, 2007, Para. 4).

A teacher should engage all the stakeholders, parents, and students in helping the students with the requirements. Parents should be talked to and told to pay the fees of students in good time to avoid unnecessary absenteeism on the part of the students. Furthermore, a teacher has the responsibility to treat the students equally without showing favoritism to some based on their race (Thomas, 2011, Para. 3). This will provide a good environment for students. I will encourage them to work hard competing favorably with each other hence reducing the gap. The teacher should also liaise with the government by contributing his/her views concerning how to improve the education of k-12 for the achievement gap to reduce (Edward, 2007, Para. 3).

Describe an experience in which you found yourself changing your views about a significant topic or a significant person in your life. What prompted the change? How did that change affect your thinking and your interactions with others?

My thinking about the deaf man, who despite his situation, managed to accomplish his goal of becoming a lawyer proves my most remembered experience in life that has changed my entire way of thinking. At first, upon receiving the story of the man who had successfully managed to pursue and finish a career in law, I could not believe until I came one on one with the person. I believed that the man was a practicing lawyer who had successfully won several cases.

This changed my formed assumptions about people with disabilities especially those with seeing impairments. This experience prompted a change in my perceptions and thinking opening a wide scope of thinking as I was motivated and encouraged that despite some disabilities everything remains possible provided one has the zeal and heart of achieving what he/she wants to achieve. I also learned that hard work and perseverance pay. The way I used to underrate and look down upon people with disabilities as not resourceful significantly changed, as I was touched never to despise anyone. I came to declare the adage disability as not an inability true.

This experience changed my thinking and interactions with others on a great magnitude. I began to establish relationships with those people with various disabilities encouraging them and beginning agitating for their rights and educating society on how these people remain a great resource to the nation. There has been a remarkable change in my entire life, as I have learned that people need to embrace the disabled people loving them by providing them with what they want for them to realize their dreams.

Write about an experience in which you demonstrated commitment and Resilience

The entire period that my mother stayed in the hospital, admitted for cancer stands out as one among the many experiences in which I demonstrated commitment and resilience. This marks the episode that I will never live to remember or even narrate the story to my grandchildren if ever I will live and see them. By then I was still pursuing my diploma course and paying the tuition fee by myself following my fathers retrenchment.

Money was not enough to cater for the hospital expenses for the operation that my mother was to undergo. What next then? I did not have any person to turn to for help in footing out the bills. I began to solicit assistance from well-wishers and my friends who in most cases turned me away or even never contributed even a cent claiming that they did not have any money at their disposal. However, my commitments and resilience finally bore me fruits when a well-wisher, a stranger opted to assist me in footing the bill. I thanked God for that. I even had to cut off classes just to go and provide comfort to my mother during the pressing time.

On the day of operation, it happened that I had my last examination paper. It was unfortunate for me since it coincided with the date of operation; I had to sacrifice that paper, which I had now to re-sit for the following year. My commitment, concern, and love for my mother could not make me sit for the paper knowing that my mothers condition was pathetic. I, therefore, sacrificed this just to be in the hospital praying for that the surgery to turn out a success.

I had to leave everything I was doing and use every single penny I had from my savings to pay the bills just to see to it that my mother gets well. This proves the well-remembered experience I have ever encountered in life and I am thankful to God and to all well-wishers for ensuring the survival of my mother. I am glad that until to date, I can see my mother and still feel the love of a mother.

Statement of Purpose for wanting to attend The University of California (USC)

It has always been my desire since my early years of attending school to be one of the students at the University of California. The university has always been my source of inspiration and motivation believing that I will build my future and my profession by securing a place in this university. Apart from winning recognition around the globe for its exemplary performance, the university enhances the skills and talents of students and hence the reason behind my desire to join it.

The university further has an array of a variety of infrastructure and learning resources (Harvey, 2002, p.35), which are important in facilitating the dissemination of knowledge and skills as well as harnessing various talents and gifts of its students. Therefore, my statement of purpose in my need to attend this university is to realize my dream of being an innovative, creative, and competent person and a professional in my field of study.

I have faith and confidence in the institution as it represents the region in offering quality and relevant education that applies in the current situations. The university will also allow me to grow in my thinking capacity providing me with a platform to interact with students from various backgrounds hence learning about different cultures and ways of living (The economic policy institute, 2011, p.4). Hence, I will therefore stand a chance to fit in any working environment based on my learning of several cultures from the students at the university. Therefore, my University of choice remains the University of California. I am optimistic that my dream will come true upon joining the university.

Reference List

Edward, F. (2007). Tips for closing the achievement gap between whites and blacks in K12 School. Web.

Harvey, H. (2002). University of California, Berkeley: An Architectural Tour and Photographs. New York: Princeton Architectural Press.

Stadtman, V. (1970). A Centennial Publication of the University of California. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co.

Stigler, J., & Hiebert, J. (1999). The teaching gap: Best ideas from the worlds teachers for improving education in the classroom. New York: Free Press.

The economic policy institute. (2011). Teacher quality: Understanding the effectiveness Of teacher attributes. New York: Washington.

Thomas, B. (2011). NCLB and the closing of achievement gaps. Web.

Introduction

The problem of motivation and motives of behavior and activity aimed at a positive result is one of the central problems in psychology. Moreover, these issues are also important in the processes that are directly related to the individuals health. The problem of overweight and obesity has its own medical, social, economic, and psychological aspects. This is due to the serious consequences and the growing epidemiological frequency of morbidity in people with nutritional disorders (Monaghan et al., 2018). This paper analyzes the way goals, mindsets, and personal beliefs affect motivation to engage or disengage in healthy eating behavior.

Goals

Goal setting refers to the motivational domain of an individual when they are faced with an achievement situation that calls into question a persons sense of competence. Traditionally, psychological research has distinguished two categories of goal achievement or motivation: the motivation for success and the motivation for avoiding failure. Hangen et al. (2019) have proposed a new model in which the following types of motivation are distinguished. First, focus on achieving mastery (the desire to feel competent through personal effort). Second, the focus on avoiding the demonstration of mastery (the desire to avoid feelings of incompetence). Third, focus on achieving a demonstration of the result (the desire to be competent in the eyes of others). Fourth, focus on avoiding the demonstration of the result (the desire to avoid incompetence in the eyes of others). Analysis of the literature shows that the main theories of motivation were obtained from various sources: theories of the self, internal and external motivation, self-determination theory; as well as expected value theory (Deckers, 2018).

Concerning the distinction between skill and efficiency, three theories are frequently discussed in the literature: intrinsic/extrinsic motivation, self-determination theory, and expected value theory (Deckers, 2018). A high degree of interest in the task at hand is a good predictor of intrinsic motivation for achievement. Self-determination, or a persons desire for choice and autonomy, is also a good predictor of skill motivation.

Mindsets

There are four types of mindsets relevant to the discussion. First, it is a growth mindset which is the belief of a person that his intellectual abilities can improve throughout his life if efforts are made for this (Dweck, 2016). Unlike a fixed mindset  the belief that human intelligence is a fixed feature, a growth mindset is based on the fact that a person can develop constantly. People who have a growth mindset are not afraid of difficulties and failures, but on the contrary, they have a positive attitude towards such things. Negative experience is the most important experience, without which moves towards the goal is often impossible. A growth mindset is a positive attitude towards change, the ability of a person to leave their comfort zone quickly. Second, a solution-oriented mindset is associated with practical issues and is based on the generalization of practical experience. This type of thinking focuses on solving emerging problems and, thus, affects the decrease in the level of procrastination (Brenner et al., 2016). Third, the curiosity mindset, as the name suggests, focuses on asking questions about lifes phenomena and finding answers to them. An essential feature of this type of mindset is generating many original ideas in unregulated conditions of activity, developed verbal creativity and insight, a high level of reflection, inquisitiveness, fantasy, and self-control of emotional states (Brenner et al., 2016). Finally, the abundance mindset, according to which, in the world, there is plenty of everything, everyone is more than enough, and if someone has something, this does not mean that the other is experiencing a shortage because of this, and in general  life is not a kind of race in which people constantly compare and compete with each other (Yost et al., 2019). Moreover, when people share their successes, knowledge, and joy with others, the benefits do not diminish; on the contrary, there are more of them. However, although all these four types focus on positive thinking and bring strengths and advantages to empower a person, the solution-oriented mindset is the most appropriate for a motivation to engage in healthy eating behavior to emerge and stabilize.

Personal Beliefs

Helplessness is a state that occurs in a situation when an individual feels that external events do not depend on them, and they can do nothing to prevent or modify them (Trindade et al., 2020). If this state and the features of motivation and attribution associated with it are transferred to other situations, it means that learned helplessness is evident. A concise history of the uncontrollability of the surrounding world is enough for the learned helplessness to begin to live, as it were, its own life, to control the individuals behavior itself. Learned helplessness is considered a psychological disorder that plays a significant role in forming unhealthy eating behaviors, such as addictions (Bullivant et al., 2020).

The theory of self-efficacy explains the dependence of activity on the objective level of a persons abilities and their assessment of their own competence and confidence that they will be able to apply their skills to achieve the goal successfully. In Banduras theory, special attention is paid to the dynamics of the development of self-efficacy: personal results, their assessment by others, observation of other peoples behavior can lead to strengthening or weakening of self-efficacy, and this, in turn, affects the choice of behavior in the future and the assessment of future results (Williams & Rode, 2016). This explains the difficulties that arise in testing the hypothesis of a causal link between self-efficacy and eating healthy. As a result, it is customary to talk about the mutual influence of two factors: low self-efficacy stimulates the desire to avoid eating healthily or delay its implementation, weakens persistence in achieving goals and overcoming difficulties, and negative experiences accompanying unhealthy eating, such as guilt and self-blame, maintain self-efficacy at a low level.

As Drewelis et al. (2018) state, mastery beliefs are peoples beliefs about their ability to influence and change life circumstances (p. 789). Mastery beliefs are inextricably linked with the individuals idea of self-efficacy and the formation of learned helplessness. Healthy behaviors and a persons motivation to engage in them are intrinsically linked to these three concepts and are impossible without their realization of their self-efficacy and mastery beliefs.

Conclusion

When eating is disturbed, food gradually becomes loved and hated, controlled and controlled. In the process of psychotherapy, the victim should be taught a healthy way of satisfying his needs, without fear of feeling emotions, needs, accepting them, and meeting them in real life in contact with other people. For example, food serves to strengthen relationships, safety, reduce pain, feelings of loss, and disappointment. Traumatic experience leads to an unconscious form of psychosomatic reaction, which results in such forms of manifestation as learned helplessness. Lack of mastery beliefs and an appropriate mindset, as well as self-efficacy and self-regulation, leads to a lack of motivation to engage in healthy eating behaviors or failure to adopt a new lifestyle routine. Thus, to ensure that the change in a persons behaviors is successful, a psychologist needs to guide the formation of these critical elements in their patients.

References

Brenner, W., Uebernickel, F., & Abrell, T. (2016). Design thinking as mindset, process, and toolbox. In Design thinking for innovation (pp. 3-21). Springer.

Bullivant, B., Rhydderch, S., Griffiths, S., Mitchison, D., & Mond, J. M. (2020). Eating disorders mental health literacy: A scoping review. Journal of Mental Health, 29(3), 336-349.

Deckers, L. (2018). Motivation: Biological, psychological, and environmental. Routledge.

Drewelies, J., Chopik, W. J., Hoppmann, C. A., Smith, J., & Gerstorf, D. (2018). Linked lives: Dyadic associations of mastery beliefs with health (behavior) and health (behavior) change among older partners. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, 73(5), 787-798.

Dweck, C. (2016). What having a growth mindset actually means. Harvard Business Review, 13, 213-226.

Hangen, E. J., Elliot, A. J., & Jamieson, J. P. (2019). Lay conceptions of normbased approach and avoidance motivation: Implications for the performanceapproach and performanceavoidance goal relation. Journal of personality, 87(4), 737-749.

Monaghan, L. F., Bombak, A. E., & Rich, E. (2018). Obesity, neoliberalism and epidemic psychology: Critical commentary and alternative approaches to public health. Critical Public Health, 28(5), 498-508.

Trindade, I. A., Mendes, A. L., & Ferreira, N. B. (2020). The moderating effect of psychological flexibility on the link between learned helplessness and depression symptomatology: A preliminary study. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 15, 68-72.

Williams, D. M., & Rhodes, R. E. (2016). The confounded self-efficacy construct: Conceptual analysis and recommendations for future research. Health psychology review, 10(2), 113-128.

Yost, P. R., Terrill, J. R., & Chung, H. H. (2019). An Economy of Abundance: From Scarcity to Human Potential in Organizational and University Life. Journal of Applied Business & Economics, 21(7).

The interview with this acquisition librarian increases my awareness of the functioning of public libraries. This person explained to me the key challenges faced by such organizations; moreover, she identified their weaknesses which prevent them from attracting new readers and from becoming more prosperous. In particular, she believes that these organizations are far too bureaucratic. While speaking about this public library, in which she works, she pointed out that it had a very complex workplace hierarchy: in particular, the chief librarian, the heads of various sections, the heads of the departments, the deputies, and the frontline personnel. This complex hierarchy often slows down the decision-making in this organization, especially, if we are speaking about the initiative of the employees and their recommendations. She says that if she wants to procure certain books or periodicals for the library, it will take her at least a week to receive authorization to buy them. As a result, she finds it very difficult to keep the library collection up-to-date.

In her opinion, such an organizational structure leads to a great number of problems, and one of them is a lack of motivation. The thing is that the members of the staff do not always feel very enthusiastic about their work if they have to continuously ask the approval of their manager. Furthermore, this acquisition librarian argues that this public library as any bureaucratic organization does not have a well-developed remuneration policy. In other words, there are no quantitative or qualitative criteria according to which one would be able to assess the performance of these employees. This is one of the key reasons why some of them lack motivation.

While discussing the organizational culture of this public library, she also mentioned that the bureaucratic approach prevented them from improving customer service. In many cases, people who want to use the services of this public library, have to wait for a considerable amount of time before receiving any help from the librarian. The problem is that they do not have any opportunity for self-help services. For instance, very often they know exactly which book they need and in what section it can be found, but they cannot do it without permission.

This acquisition librarian claims that public libraries fail to adjust themselves to technological changes. She admits that modern readers can find easily information on the Internet, but librarians can also render valuable help to them, for instance, by explaining how and where a certain kind of information can found. They may also suggest some books or publications that can be of interest to the readers. Unfortunately, very often it is not done because employees have no incentive to be more attentive to the needs of the readers. Again, as it has been noted before, their performance is not properly evaluated and they do not always receive adequate compensation for their work.

On the whole, this interview gave me deep insights into the functioning of this non-profit organization. Bureaucratic culture seems to be the underlying cause of its difficulties, lack of employee motivation, slow decision-making, and poor customer service. The thing is that in a bureaucratic organization, the employees compensation is determined by his/her position in the workplace hierarchy, but not by the contribution or effort. Thus, library administrators must develop strategies for overcoming this problem; as this will enable them to attract new readers.

Reference List

Gothberg H. (1991) Time Management in Public Libraries: A Study of Public Libraries. Public Libraries. 30 (6), pp 350-377.

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Library Philosophy and Practice. (2010). Community Information Services Through Public Libraries in Bangladesh: Problems and Proposals. Web.

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Nitecki D. (1996) Changing the concept and measure of service quality in academic libraries. The Journal of Academic Librarianship. Pp 181-190.

Mullins J. & Linehan M. (2006). Are public libraries led or managed? Library Review 55(3). pp 237- 248.

Park. C. (2005). Harris County Public Library: creating a design paradigm for twenty-first century libraries. The Bottom Line. 18 (4). p 167-174.

Proctor R. & Simmons S. (2000) Public library closures: the management of hard decisions. Library Management, pp 25-30.

Public Library Association. (2010). The Official Website. Web.

Usherwood. R. C. (2007). Professional values in a bureaucratic structure. Library Review pp 666-673.

Ward. R. (2007). THE OUTSOURCING OF PUBLIC LIBRARY MANAGEMENT: An Analysis of the Application of New Public Management Theories From the Principal-Agent Perspective. Administration & Society 38. (6), p 627- 635.

White N. (2009). Customer acquisition costs: the costs of growing business in public libraries. The Bottom Line 22 (3), p 69-75.

Introduction

Trader Joes has become a multi-billion dollar national chain partly through its ability to find cheap real estate, skip name brands, and smartly manage its supply chain (Sheeran, Harris & Epton, 2014, p. 511). The employees of Trader Joes are very friendly. They are ready to go to all extent just to make sure their customers are well served. They engage the customers in friendly talk. The type of service customers receive in the stores is very different from what they receive from other conventional supermarkets. The conventional supermarkets are experiencing high turnover, never ending complaints from the staff, and poor customer service.

The products offered in Trader Joes stores are unique and have high quality. The stores have a variety of products, and this provides a fun shopping environment for customers. Apart from its products, the business maintains a cordial relationship with its suppliers (Nuttin, 2014).

Elements from Trader Joes motivational plan

Most of the employees within the business are satisfied with their positions. This has been made possible using various motivational plans. The motivational plans are characterized by the following significant elements:

Flexibility

Operation within Trader Joes is informal. The employees are not only fixed to one job description, but they are free to multitask. The employees are allowed to make their decisions regarding the operations in the stores. This element encourages productivity of the staff.

Training

Trader Joes provides a thorough extensive training to its employees. The employees are not only trained in one area, but in many. This training enables them to provide quality work and multitask without any difficulty.

Recognition

The company believes that the key to its success lies within their employees. The attitude within the corporate office is that the people it hires, trains, and promotes are just as important as the lower prices and products it carries (Hwang, Kettinge & Yi, 2013, p. 177). The employees are valued and respected. This motivational plan reduces employee turnover.

Motivational theory

The motivational theory being applied in the company is Herzbergs two-factor theory. Fredrick Herzberg coined the theory, which offers an understanding on the implication of motivation in the workplace. In his theory, Fredrick provides two factors that play a big role in determining the motivation of employees (Nuttin, 2014). The two factors are:

• Hygiene factors  absence of hygiene factors can make the employees be dissatisfied with their jobs. Examples of these factors are job security, salary, organizational policies, quality of supervision, and working conditions.
• Satisfiers or motivators  these are the major factors to job motivation and satisfaction. Examples of this factor are achievement, responsibility, recognition, and growth opportunities. Managers can make improvements in the company while observing the needs of employees.

Ways of motivating minimum wage service worker

Managing employees who are earning low wages is difficult because they have low motivation. However, there are various ways that can be used by employers to motivate these employees. The ways are:

1. Rewards  the efforts of employees can be recognized through rewarding them with things such as shoes, trousers or T-shirts (Hwang, Kettinge & Yi, 2013, p. 178). The rewards fall under Herzberg two-factor theory, especially in the hygiene factor.
2. Positive work environment  the work environment should encourage employees to work hard (Hwang, Kettinge & Yi, 2013, p. 179). It should be designed to make the staff have fun. This condition will increase employee-customer relation. This motivational plan it categorized under Herzberg two-factor theory (Sheeran et al, 2014).
3. Career advancement opportunities  a low wage employee can be motivated through the possibility of career advancement. The management can achieve this by training and helping the employees climb the ladder. This plan falls under the Alderfers ERG theory.
4. Good communication with the workers  good communication and regular meeting with the employees will enable the staff to know what is to be done at all time. This will make employees feel important. Good communication relates to relatedness need, which falls under the Alderfers ERG theory.

Team performance

Understanding interpersonal dynamics in teams can help managers identify the optimal arrangement of individuals to ensure team success and high performance (Bradley, Klotz, Postlethwaite & Brown, 2013, p. 385). However, a number of factors affect team performance. Examples are:

1. Communication  poor communication will hinder a group from achieving its goal because group members will not understand the scope of a goal.
2. Attitude  negative attitude hinders group cooperation. It will be hard to interact with a person having a negative attitude.
3. Behaviors  undesirable behavior will cause a rift in a group. Group members will group themselves according to their behaviors, and this will reduce group productivity.
4. Culture  according to a number of researches done, it has been proved that groups with individuals from different cultural diversity are likely to perform well.

Leading a work team

It is essential for a team leader to develop a guide for leading his/her group. The guide will propel a group towards achieving its goals (Dyer, Dyer & Dyer, 2013). The following vital skills are necessary for leading a group:

• The team leader should establish clarity in every task.
• Team connection should be properly built.
• Be able to resolve issues.
• The group needs to focus on team action.
• Increasing the strength of group capabilities.
• Improve and increase team performance.

References

Bradley, B. H., Klotz, A. C., Postlethwaite, B. E., & Brown, K. G. (2013). Ready to rumble: How team personality composition and task conflict interact to improve performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 98(2), 385-410.

Dyer, W. G., Dyer, J. H., & Dyer, W. G. (2013). Team building: Proven strategies for improving team performance. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Hwang, Y., Kettinger, W. J., & Yi, M. Y. (2013). A study on the motivational aspects of information management practice. International Journal of Information Management, 33(1), 177-184.

Nuttin, J. (2014). Future time perspective and motivation: Theory and research method. London, UK: Psychology Press.

Sheeran, P., Harris, P. R., & Epton, T. (2014). Does heightening risk appraisals change peoples intentions and behavior? A meta-analysis of experimental studies. Psychological bulletin, 140(2), 511-570.

Motivation refers to a condition that energizes and directs towards goal-oriented behavior (Baldwin & Migneate, 1996). Motivation is used at the workplace to attract individuals to the company as well as retain them there.

This is done by applying principles such as total quality management, meritocracy, team building, performance contracting, and reward systems (Baldwin & Migneate, 1996). People who are not motivated are considered discouraged. This could be observed through their apathy, absenteeism, non-cooperativeness, and rebellion (Kirkman, Low & Young, 1999).

Several companies have discovered the importance of compensation and reward systems with the aim of empowering their employees. Money oriented rewards are major motivations for employees, and they can be applied to both individuals and teams.

However, money on its own cannot be used as a tool for the motivation of employees because there are other things employees consider to be more important than just money. Therefore, the importance of money should never be overemphasized.

Additionally, two motivational tools classified as intrinsic and extrinsic have been identified (Baldwin & Migneate, 1996). The behaviors of employees at work that come as a result of extrinsic motivation are credited to sources outside the work itself. Some of the extrinsic rewards may include pay increments, coercion, promotions, or even allowances.

On the other hand, when the employee is motivated by things arising from the job itself, it is referred to as intrinsic motivation. The outcomes are experienced by employees who tend to be independent of others (Kirkman, Low & Young, 1999).

These kinds of employees are typically committed to their work and are actually fulfilled by it. In the case of employees working in a company, signing performance contracts with precise targets and defined time deadlines for projects is beneficial in setting the benchmarks for rewarding performers and reviewing the strategic short term and long term goals.

This can be achieved by team building and encouraging concerted effort in planning, decision making, and drafting project recommendations. Each team member is able to participate competitively as well as assess each others contributions for the sake of transparency and accountability (Baldwin & Migneate, 1996).

Reward systems for the team should ensure equity and fairness for the sake of team-esteem. The team leaders should be able to encourage cooperation instead of competition for the purpose of fostering team spirit.

The extrinsic motivation tool I could use is delegating duties to the junior staff as a way of empowering him or her to rise up the corporate ladder. This may involve several changes in the way work is done at the Excelsior Sales Corporation in that some of the duties done by the senior staff are delegated to the junior staff.

This will motivate the employees since they feel that the work of a higher rank is given to them. They then strive to do it well. This can go hand in hand with job redesigning with a view to restructuring the work itself without necessarily incorporating intrinsic outcomes based upon employees performance (Kirkman, Low & Young, 1999). This would lead to a higher level of job satisfaction.

Another extrinsic motivational technique is gaining and showing interest in what the employees are doing, their personal details, job experiences, schooling, family, future plans, and even hobbies. These can then be harmonized with the companys vision and structure with a view of assigning them appropriate roles.

Thereafter, reward systems for individual performance should be consistent employees goals in order to enhance self-esteem and self-actualization (Kirkman, Low & Young, 1999). The extrinsic tool of rewarding employees for their good work is very powerful and makes them work even harder for them to get the reward the next time.

One of the most commonly used rewards is the employee of the month award, where the employee who the management determines that did better work than the rest is rewarded.

The reward can be in the form of certificates, medals, trophies, or a coffee mug written employee of the month or a strategic packing place near the entrance of the company.

Such acknowledgments should be done in public so that fellow workers are able to know what made them outstanding, which then shall motivate them to work harder in order to get the same recognition.

Above all employees, cherish to work under respectable and trustworthy management, which is ready to fulfill its promises at whatever costs, enough to keep their private matters confidential and one which they can look up to as a role model (Baldwin & Migneate, 1996).

Reference List

Baldwin, A. D and Migneate L. R. (1996): Humanistic management by teamwork: an organizational and administrative alternative for academic libraries, Libraries Unlimited.

Kirkman, L. B., Low, B. K. and Young P. D. (1999): High-performance work organizations: definitions, practices and annotated bibliography, Center for Creative Leadership.

It could hardly be doubted that success in business profoundly correlates with developed leadership qualities. However, some individuals stand out as more significant influential figures, who inspire and motivate other people to grow as a leader. One of these people is Robert Kiyosaki, a businessman, writer, speaker, and public figure, whose philosophy of business had an immense impact on numerous individuals across the world. This paper aims to overview Kiyosakis personality, to discuss his role as a motivational leader and his leadership type according to the theory; also, a question for the businessman will be proposed.

First of all, it is essential to observe Kiyosakis place in the contemporary business world. Primarily, he is known for two aspects of his career: as a businessman and investor, and as an author of numerous books dedicated to business strategies and Kiyosakis philosophy of life. Even though dividends from his investments are shaping a significant part of his income, he is more recognized as a founder of the Rich Dad brand, under which numerous seminars are held across the world. According to the author, the key to success is to make a foundation for passive income by making investments in real estate, businesses, and stocks (Kiyosaki and Lechter 251). In another book, the advice by his rich dad is described: a person has to lead men into dangerous situations under his or her control, and thus one becomes a leader (Kiyosaki 72).

Further, it is essential to discuss Robert Kiyosaki as a leader and motivational figure. As it was already mentioned, he is well-known as a public speaker, who held numerous inspirational seminars under his brand Rich Dad. It is possible to note that he was chosen as a subject for this essay due to his vast and profound impact on many newcomers in business and entrepreneurs. Kiyosakis philosophy of business is the core reason for his fame and reputation (Maksum 64). He argued that there are four primary quadrants (described as a distinct and different source of cash flow, different lifestyle and core values), and, accordingly, there are four kinds of people in business: employees, business owners, self-employed and the investors (Osisioma 17).

Additionally, it is important to touch upon the question of what type of leader Robert Kiyosaki is. It is possible to observe that he fits the definition of a transformational leader. The main point of the transformational leadership theory is that peoples mindset, lifestyle, and decisions are shaped by their leaders inspirational nature and charismatic personality (Transformational Leadership Theories). Concerning Kiyosakis philosophy of business, the previous statement is particularly true since he always inspired his followers to be self-dependent, to make their own decisions, and to rely on their intelligence, without fear, skepticism, laziness, and arrogance (Stefan 948).

Finally, if I had a chance to meet Robert Kiyosaki and ask him one question, I would like to hear the answer to the following: How do you overcome the moments of weakness and disappointment? In my opinion, this question is of high importance for any businessman since at the beginning of anyones career, any person experiences the moments of a downturn. In conclusion, it is possible to state that Robert Kiyosaki is one of the most influential figures in contemporary business because he made an immense contribution to the development of a new business generation.

Works Cited

Kiyosaki, Robert T. Cashflow Quadrant: Rich Dad Poor Dad. Plata Publishing, LLC, 2012.

Kiyosaki, Robert T., and Sharon L. Lechter. Rich Dads Guide to Investing: What the Rich Invest In, that the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!. Time Warner Books, 2000.

Maksum, Ali. National Mental Model and Competitiveness: Transformation Toward Achieving and Progressive Behavior. Anima, Indonesian Psychological Journal, vol. 29, no. 2, 2014, pp. 63-73.

Osisioma, Benjamin Chuka. Entrepreneurship, Technical Education and Sustainable Development: An Overview. National Conference of Imo State Polytechnic, 4 Nov. 2015, Entrepreneurship Development Centre, Imo State Polytechnic, Umuagwo.

Stefan, Eugen Bruno. The Management Education of the Rural Entrepreneur. Amfiteatru Economic, vol. 16, no. 37, 2014, pp. 932-949.

Transformational Leadership Theories. Leadership Central, 2016, Web.

In the business environment, motivation can be defined as the internal state that activates behavior and energizes individuals to goal-oriented behavior. It is a composition of design beliefs that directs these needs me to take action. Motivation can include things such as inspiration, encouragement, and support. Motivating factors are the root causes and the stepping stone for the growth and elevation of an individual. The employees of an organization always need the motivation to keep themselves going.

Background

In accordance to Elliot, motivation is in its e, and scientific management involves a complete mental revolution on the part of the working man engaged in any particular establishment or industry  a complete mental revolution on the part of these men as to their duties toward their work, toward their fellow men, and their employers. (Elliot, 539) However, the motivations for each vary from person to person. For some, the salary is enough to keep them motivated, or the respect one may garner from his position. The quality and the efficiency of the work are directly related to the motivation towards their work. According to Slack, Only about two percent are even willing to be straw bosses, and most of them take that position because it carries with it more pay than working on a machine (Slack and Lewis, 8). Therefore, it is essential to maintain the focus of the workforce. As a result, specific motivation theories have come up through the ages, which we would discuss to understand better the motivation and motivation techniques that could be implemented at the workplace. This is where motivation management or techniques comes into play. Motivation technique means the act, manner, or practice of controlling, handling something. The person or persons who manage a business establishment, organization, or institution are the core management groups. It is essential to understand the structure, function, and roles of management and its managers in this context. According to Bissell, collaborative adult learning is vital to help institutions design and implement professional development procedures to support the learning and progress of the administrators. She says that the principles and supers of the institutions have realized a need for developing a more comprehensive knowledge base of the curriculum to achieve their goals. Their instructional leadership capabilities need to be developed, and professional learning groups must be encouraged. To improve institutions, the managers have to develop skills for collecting and using data from various sources. This is the fundamental structure of management (Bissell, 167).

Furthermore, if the workers are reluctant and lack enthusiasm for present conditions, it will take away the success achieved by the organization through their formal transactions. One way of overcoming this is that the leaders need to properly hear out and understand the staff members and listen to them. The motivation technique is better since it emphasizes that other than the things that are taught in the initial stages of the working life, there is also the need to understand how sustainability can be managed and form guidelines for the success of its employees and staff members. According to this theory, motivation is better if it is exercised and accepted slowly and gradually. It is also better since it is consistent with the changing ways of our present millennium. This is a better model since, unlike the older models, who believed that if people had to know something, they would be informed about it. According to this model, the people in the organization should be responsible for their needs, and this sense of responsibility can be enumerated as a basic function of management. (Bissell, 122) However, the older models of motivation techniques still hold ground reality and are usable under practical conditions.

Maslows Theory of Motivation

Dr. Abraham Maslow, a noted psychologist of this generation, tried to formulate a needs-based hypothesis of human motivation. He did this by studying the psychology of the human rather than that of the animals. From his studies, he came up with the Hierarchy of Needs. We have all come across the saying, Grass is always greener on the other side. (Kara, 116) Human beings are motivated by unsatisfied needs. This natural instinct of human beings is the basis of the Hierarchy of Needs. According to this theory, the needs are classified in a hierarchy where the higher needs can be satisfied only after the lower needs are satisfied. Only on the satisfaction of these needs can one act unselfishly and be happy. At the bottom of the need, hierarchy is the Physiological Needs. These needs constitute the basics of existence, namely, Air, Water, Food, and Sleep. The higher needs of the hierarchy are not recognized until these basic needs are satisfied. (Schroeder, 114-117)

Once the physiological needs are satisfied, then one is motivated to satisfy the second need in the hierarchy, that is, Safety. A person always tends to be motivated to make his life secure. These include a secured place to live in, medical insurance in case of accidents and emergencies, a secured job, and financial securities. MaslowsMaslows hypothesis says that a person would not be motivated for higher needs if he is threatened. Thus, security is an important motivation for a person.

The third need on Maslows Pyramid is the Social Needs. Human is a social animal, and social interaction is an important part of human life. Friendship, a sense of belonging, love, and being loved are all very important motivations for a human being. Once a person feels secure, he yearns for relationships and interactions. (Schroeder, 114-117)

Higher on the hierarchy of needs is the Esteem Needs. Once a person feels belongs, the sense of importance and self-respect is a motivation one attempts to achieve. These can be attributed to intrinsic and extrinsic motivations. Self-esteem, accomplishment, and self-respect constitute the intrinsic esteem motivations, and reputation and recognition constitute the extrinsic esteem motivations.

Above the Esteem Needs is a needs layer that constitutes aesthetics and knowledge. Human beings, on satisfying their esteem, yearn to gather experience and practical knowledge. At the peak of Maslows pyramid stands the Needs of Self Actualization. The topmost motivation of a being is to realize its own potential as a person. This need is never satisfied as with knowledge and experience once potential always grows to be realized. The motivators for self-actualized people are Truth, Justice, Wisdom, and Meaning. People in this layer of the hierarchy of needs experience complete and profound happiness. These needs, in order of importance, are Self Actualization, Esteem, Belongingness, Safety, and Physiological. (Ratelle, 471) MaslowsMaslows theory of motivation thus concludes that motivation may be rooted in the basic need to minimize agony and maximize comfort, or it may include specific needs such as eating and resting or a desired goal or object. Different individuals have different motives for their work. Even when their goals are the same, their motives vary. Such motivation profiles are classified under various motivational theories, such as biological, psychosocial, and interactionist. (Michalak, 26).

Herzbergs Two-Factor Theory

Another famous psychologist, Fredrick Herzberg, proposed another motivation theory based on needs. According to this theory, in a workplace, there are certain factors that cause job satisfaction and another set of factors that causes dissatisfaction. HerzbergsHerzbergs hypothesis states that the presence of one set of job motivations such as recognition, work challenge, and responsibility make way for ones satisfaction one strives to achieve while the factors such as status, salary, job security, and incentives do not motivate the beings if present but de-motivate them if absent (Heizer and Render, 175-177).

Alderfers ERG THEORY

Clayton Alderfer, explaining Maslows theory, proposed the ERG theory according to which stands for Existence, Relatedness, and Growth. As in MaslowsMaslows theory, Physiological and Security needs are held in the Existence category, love and self-esteem in the Relatedness category, and the Self Actualization in the Growth category (Erel, 320).

Discussion

Motivation at the workplace is a very important component of the organizational strategy. They require their employee to work at their full potential to their work. It has been found that lack of motivation leads to deterioration in the quality of the work of the employees. Motivation is a powerful mechanism in the workplace as it exerts out the most efficient levels of creation from the employees. Motivational techniques are implemented in the workplace to improve efficiency and increasing self-confidence. One effective way of motivation is by enlightening the workers on the aims and the requirements of the organizations and the strategies adopted to achieve these aims (Schroeder, 114).

The motivation techniques can be classified under negative motivational and positive motivational techniques. Certain leaders in organizations try to extract the efficiency of their employees by using negative strategies like shouting and swearing at them or by threatening them. The fear factor can be effective to a certain extent, but this may lead to unrest among the workers, and hence the productivity would be short-term and not up to its potential. Negative motivational techniques by threatening the employees of their basic needs (from Maslows theory) would let the employees be be de-motivated and work just to keep their jobs and not to satisfy their higher needs of satisfaction, which according to Maslow, is directly related to the productivity (Kara, 116-119).

Positive motivational techniques are those which provide the employees the scope to satisfy their higher needs. This has a direct impact on their efficiency and the realization of the targets of the organization. The positive motivational techniques include offering incentives and rewards to the deserving employees on their achievements at their work and on the the realization of the goals set upon. The organization may also put up healthy competitions among the employees by pitting them against each other to get the work done (González-Benito, 87-90).

As every individual is different from the other, their motivation also varies. Thus, it is very important for the leaders and the managers in the enterprise to recognize their employees motivations individually and to spur them accordingly. Conducting team meetings and conferences to better understand the whole team and each member individually is an efficient strategy to motivate the team. Questionnaires and feedback forms are also means which can be undertaken to detect every individuals motivation and help the managers to deal with them according to their needs.

Some motivation techniques at the workplace include:

• Training: The workers can be motivated at their work by providing work-specific training so that the employees feel less intimidated by their roles. Training and demonstration of their required tasks lead directly to improved motivation.
• Setting up targets and incentives: Setting up realistic and fair targets with promised rewards such as salary perks and rewards act as motivational catalysts and lead to a competitive atmosphere at the workplace with a a highly motivated group of employees.
• Team building activities: Socializing of the team leaders with their team members not only at the the workplace but outside it as well lead to happy, open,, and competitive teams. Team bonding results in increased productivity and morale and a healthier working environment.
• Setting up team slogans: Putting up motivational team themes and quotes for the team positively empowers a team and spurs them for action. Positive imagery of success through inspirational slogans gives the team a sense of belonging and patriotism towards the teams success.
• Enhanced communication: Effectively communicating with the team members by listening to their suggestions, recommendations and assuring them of their positive efforts leads to greater team bonding and also serves to motivate them by placing more importance on them, satisfying their needs of Esteem. (Maya, 260-274)

Conclusion

In conclusion, it should be mentioned that companies should not only provide employees with the factors that cause satisfaction but also provide those factors that eliminate the discontents in order to avoid dissatisfaction. Therefore, there are several alternatives to maintain high performance at work. The task should be challenging for the employees in the order for they could show their full potential. The main objective of the production manager or administration is to identify the needed and most logical technique. These are the successful attributes of motivation techniques at the workplace.

Works Cited

1. Bissell, B, Resistance Change, Auckland: Ebsco publishing, 2006.
2. Elliot, Brian. Operations management: an active learning approach. New York: Wiley-Blackwell, 1997.
3. Erel, E. Coordination of staffing and pricing decisions in a service firm. Applied Stochastic Models in Business and Industry 24.4 (2008): 307-323.
4. González-Benito, J. A review of determinant factors of motivation proactivity Business Strategy and the Environment 15.2 (2007): 87-102.
5. Heizer, Jay, and Barry Render. Operations Management. London: Prentice Hall PTR, 2005.
6. Kara, Sami. The role of human factors in flexibility management: A survey. Human Factors and Ergonomics in Manufacturing 12.1 (2005): 75-119.
7. Maya, Kaner. Design of service systems using a knowledge-based approach. Knowledge and Process Management 14.4 (2007): 260-274.
8. Michalak, James. Implicit motives and explicit goals: two distinctive modes of motivational functioning and their relations to psychopathology. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 13.2 (2006): 81-96.
9. Ratelle, Charles. Cognitive adaptation and mental health: A motivational analysis. European Journal of Social Psychology 34.4 (2004): 459-476.
10. Schroeder, Roger G. A resource-based view of manufacturing strategy and the relationship to manufacturing performance. Strategic Management Journal 23.2 (2002): 105-117.
11. Slack, Nigel, and Michael Lewis. Operations Management: Critical Perspectives on Business and Management. London: Routledge, 2003.

Avon Products is a leading cosmetics company based in the USA. The company operates in a highly competitive industry and requires high standards of products and environmentally friendly policies. Quality assurance programs will help Avon Products to improve its production and satisfy customers needs and expectations. The two major issues, affected quality at Avon, are production processes (low quality) and poor motivation among workers that lead to low product quality and a great number of defects. The example of Avon Products shows that environmental issues have, over the past few years, increasingly aroused our concern both as members of the community and as customers. To the voice of the former, a customer can be assured policymakers have been and will continue listening; and consumers make a potent force for production change (Beckford 2002).

The proposed strategies will be based on ISO 9000 standards and the zero Defects approach. To be effective, ISO 9000 standards should be a part of the philosophy and vision of the company. Whether the issue is global warming as a result of burning fossil fuels or accelerated air, land, and water pollution caused by producers and consumers alike, or opposition to the use of animal extracts for perfumes and colognes, the effect is, and will probably continue to be, a preference for products which are environmentally neutral (that is, do not have any impact on the environment). Clearly, therefore, however trivial and trite it might appear to be, not only must important customer needs be determined, measuring how well these needs are being provided for is also critical (Chase and Jacobs 2003). The aim of these changes is to encourage organizations to think about their management processes and react to the changing demands placed upon them (Beckford 2002, p. 222). The first stage of ISO 9000 standards implementation is to develop the implementation plan. The aim of the standards is to ensure that every employee understands his potential and responsibility to the organization. To the extent possible, all processes within the organization should be carried out supported b ISO 9000 standards, so that the new quality approach can be made available to the widest possible audience of employees (Johnston 2003). Avon Products needs to provide support for the preparation of ISO 9000 documents. The company also needs to provide a quality standard capability, so that documents can be exchanged for the purposes of annotation and revision. This, in turn, enables audit of the product or service delivered and monitoring of customer satisfaction and of competitor and market performance (Beckford 2002, p. 224).

The second proposed program is Zero Defects. In order to introduce this method, the company should develop a team of 5-6 employees responsible for implementation and control. Zero Defects program will be based on four main principles:

• quality is conformance to standards,
• defect prevention is preferable to quality inspection and correction,
• Zero Defects is the standard itself,
• quality is measured in monetary terms (Beckford 2002).

During the first stage, it will be important to change the attitudes and values of workers. The management should motivate workers and introduce rewards systems (Johnston 2003).

Zero Defects will help Avon to follow agreed standards and meet the main principles of quality and continuous improvement policies. Instill in the organization not merely a tolerance of, but even a desire for a higher level of mutual dependence. Overcoming the inherent urge to be independent and insulated calls for top management who can be diplomats, straight shooters, and firefighters all rolled into one. Whether the organization is for manufacturing or service, and irrespective of which part of the value chain is under consideration, the instinctive human tendency to provide margins of safety must be tackled and overcome. Initially, a firm recommendation if not the outright imposition of tight linkage may be the best medicine to prescribe. Changing layouts in production, eliminating inventory cushions in finished goods, raw material, or working-process (which could affect distribution, suppliers, and internal operations, respectively), linking Marketing Research and Applied Research using Quality Function Deployment, and so forth, are some of the possible steps. A change has to be effected from a relatively cozy existence in which individual and group efforts are exerted in isolated splendor to a state of possible turmoil, at least initially, where finger-pointing, feelings of guilt, and a generally increased sense of responsibility could be accompanied by spasms of frustration. This transition obviously could and should be eased to prevent the shock waves of resentment from rocking the organizations stability. This might include steps to improve equipment reliability through Total Productive Maintenance or implementing Statistical Process Control, balancing the chain of operations, the use of equipment of lower capacity to increase flexibility, and the encouragement of self-supervision to get employees acquainted with, even drawn to, the notion of taking responsibility for ones tasks and activity performance (Johnston 2003).

For Avon Products management, it will be important to check output for defects. The company should develop a special team of three-four persons responsible for checking and records reviewing. Also, this team will be able to introduce necessary changes and make continual improvements. Though information flow is a significant component of timely response, other types of activities could assume importance as well. Customers who, for instance, would like material delivered in smaller lots every day rather than in large batches every week are not just asking for information about the Avon Products capability. They want a decision, a commitment, and a demonstration of the ability to deal with the new set of circumstances. Improvements in operating cycle efficiency (OCE) achieved by chipping away at the waste times like storage time, material handling time, waiting time, and time lost due to quality lapses can certainly help. Though improvements in quality typically increase both the firms emphasis on value creation activities as well as the output rate (more cars produced per day, more guests checked in per hour, and so on), Quality still remains an efficiency measure. In a standardized operation where efficiency (resource utilization) and hence costs are the predominant considerations, Quality and allied efficiency indicators might suffice as performance measures. On the other hand, for firms that wish to deliver continuously rising value through tight linkage to the customer, flexibility/responsiveness indicators must be tracked to supplement the efficiency meter (Johnston 2003).

In sum, quality assurance programs will be based on two important methods, ISO 9000 standards, and Zero Defects. The two aspects represent the two faces of the coin of customer value. To be effective, a quality assurance program will involve changes in motivation and attitudes of employees towards standards and quality itself. Quality gaps make the chase of value a frustrating experience since the attainment of internal quality targets does not ensure the satisfaction of customers quality needs. Wherever information crosses boundaries (whether between value activities or hierarchic levels) distortion and even loss or suppression of information can occur. For Avon Products, time is both an irreplaceable resource and a prominent dimension of value. It also plays a crucial role in unifying Avon products by vesting customers needs with a sense of urgency.

References

Beckford, J. (2002). Quality. Routledge.

Chase R.B., Jacobs R.F. (2003). Operations Management for Competitive Advantage, Hill/Irwin; 10 edition.

Johnston R. (2003). Cases in Operations Management, 3rd Edition Pearson Education Limited.