Leadership and Motivational Theory

The case study, A Question of Motivation, explores the various types of leadership styles that affect the motivation of the employee. Jonathan and Dan have two different managerial styles. Jonathan, a supervisor in the supermarket, varies the duties of his subordinates (Robbins & Judge). In contrast, Dan, the other supervisor in the case study, prefers consistent routine and station adherence with a focus on repetitiveness (Robbins et al). The depiction of Jonathan in the case study is that of a supervisor who is well liked and more hands off.

As such, everyone at the supermarket wants to work for him (Robbins et al).Dan, on the other hand, is portrayed as caustic and a stickler for 30-minute lunch breaks (Robbins et al). The protagonist of the case study is Alex and his friend, Stephanie. Alex works underneath the supervision of Dan and Stephanie is Jonathan's employee. Alex is depicted as unhappy and frustrated, while Stephanie is spirited and motivated. Through Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, Equity Theory, Hersey Blanchard Theory of Leadership, and the Path-Goal Theory of Leadership, this paper will analyze the management styles of Jonathan and Dan and how each style influences the motivation of their employees, Stephanie and Alex.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a theory that shows the relationship of an employee’s personal needs to the employee’s work, and how the employee’s personal needs are satisfied within their assigned work (Gawel, 1997). It includes five types of needs, which are presented in order of satisfaction: physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualization (Certo & Certo, 2012). As these needs are examined, my conclusions will show how Stephanie’s needs are being met while Alex’s needs are not.1. The first need is a person’s physiological one that includes basic needs like hunger, thirst, and shelter. Both Stephanie and Alex’s physiological needs are met by their ability to partake in lunch breaks, have a position that allows them flexible work hours, and ultimately being employed at the grocery store that provides them with an income.

2. The safety need can also be displayed for both Stephanie and Alex. They are both provided with physically safe working environments, and wages that manage to cover their food and housing. On the other hand, Alex’s emotional safety is in question.

He has to deal with his manager, Dan’s, verbal abuse. This is displayed when Dan infers that Alex is lazy and dumb for taking a 30-minute lunch break. 3. Social needs are depicted as a person’s ability to be accepted among coworkers as well as customers, and their ability to acquire friendships (Certo & Certo, 2012). Stephanie’s has proved to do this through her friendship with Alex, her positive relationship with her manager, and the opportunity to interact with customers at the culinary center.

Unfortunately, Alex has not been that lucky.He was able to become friends with Stephanie, but lacks acceptance and belongingness from Dan. Alex often notices he is given the same mundane tasks from day to day, while his coworker Denise works in different areas of the store and is paid more. This goes to show that Alex is not fully accepted at work. 4. Esteem needs are also an important factor in the hierarchy of needs concept.

This can be shown through respect from others and self-respect. Jonathan gives Stephanie the respect she needs by assigning her to different duties each week and by giving her the chance to achieve a goal of selling 10 bottles of truffle oil.This in turn builds her self-esteem. Alex is not as lucky though. Dan often belittles him in front of others much like the situation that occurred on his lunch break. This hinders Alex’s self-esteem and works against his drive and motivation as an employee.

5. Once all other needs are met, the last one to fulfill is the self-actualization need. This is the point that Stephanie has reached and displays it by trying to be the best employee she can for Jonathan. Since Dan has assigned Alex to repeat one task, stock apples, he has not quite met some of Alex’s other needs.Alex does not feel that he is able to show his full potential at this point, and thus has little motivation to perform.

Equity Theory of Motivation Equity theory is when one perceives equitability an inequality. If an employee perceives inequality, they will act accordingly to bring correction to the inequity. There are four different ways in which an employee will react when seeking to correct the inequality. They are the change of work outputs, the attempt to change their current compensation, the change of their own perception, and removing themselves from the unfair situation (Certo & Certo, 2012).

After reading the case study, Alex is experiencing inequity while Stephanie is receiving equity. Some employees will change their outputs to match rewards that they are currently receiving. They can either increase or decrease their outputs. It depends on if they feel like their rewards are greater or lesser. Stephanie’s manager, Jonathan, offers her bonuses to push her to sell expensive products.

Therefore, Stephanie increases her work output to match her rewards. Alex’s manager, Dan does not offer him any type of incentive at all. Therefore, Alex’s work output decreases.Some employees will attempt to make a change to their compensation. They will ask for a raise or even take legal action. Alex is also aware that his co-worker, Denise gets paid more than him and has been there in a lesser amount of time than he has.

As a result, Alex desires a raise from Dan. On the other hand, Jonathan treats Stephanie so well that she does not wish to make a change to her compensation. Alex changed his perception of the inequality by trying to adjust his perception by thinking about his reasoning’s of staying employed under Dan.He believes that it’s too risky to just up and leave his current job.

He has financial responsibilities such as tuition to pay. Lastly, another way of equity motivation is an employee making the decision to leave their unsatisfied situation. Alex has many reasons to resign from his job. His manager is treating him unfairly. Dan makes smart remarks to Alex in reference to his intelligence and him taking 30-minute lunch breaks instead of 45-minutes (which is his actual lunch break length).

This has prompted Dan to want to find another job. On the other hand, Stephanie is very satisfied with her situation.Hersey – Blanchard Life Cycle Theory of Leadership The Hersey-Blanchard Theory of Leadership suggests that leaders are to lead and make decisions based on the development and maturity of their followers, which is usually in phases (Certo &Certo, 2012). This further means that effective leadership can be achieved if the leader studies the associate and matches them with the appropriate task they can handle on their own; this also encourages them to be the best at what they do. Thus this theory of leadership is referred to as a life cycle theory because it runs in stages.The stages range from high-task /low relationship to high-task/high relationship to high relationship/low-task and finally low-task /low relationship.

Based on the reading, Jonathan and Dan exhibit distinct leadership roles, which made a lot of difference in motivating Stephanie and Alex. Jonathan who is Stephanie’s manager displays a low –task /low relationship with Stephanie because she seemed to be fully matured. He gave her an opportunity to take charge over selling 10 bottles of truffle oil in the culinary center because he trusts her ability to accomplish that goal.Even though she has not done it before he believes in her, and she also believes in herself.

Maturity enables talent management in organizations (Goulet, Jefferson, & Scwed, 2012). Also, Jonathan and Stephanie have managed to create a personal relationship over the years, so Stephanie feels comfortable going to her manager for help if she needs it. Jonathan has created for himself and his associates a positive organizational culture and working strategy by giving them the tools for success and empowering them to be the best. Dan on the other hand is stricter with his managing style.

Alex is frustrated at his job because he has not been given the flexibility to do work in other areas and is stuck stocking apples every day. Dan does not trust Alex to be able to handle much of the daily tasks. Instead, this is putting a strain on Dan and slowing Alex’s motivation down. Path-Goal Theory of Leadership The Path-Goal theory of leadership, developed by Robert House in 1971, is grounded on the belief that, a leader can alter an employee’s performance through his or her own behavior (Vandergrift & Matusitz, 2011).Branching from this belief are the four main behaviors of the path-goal theory: directive behavior, supportive behavior, participative behavior, and achievement behavior. Later update to the theory includes such behaviors as shared leadership, value-based leadership, and interaction facilitation (Vandergrit & Matusitz, 2011).

We can see the effectiveness of the path-goal theory in the relationship between Jonathan, and his subordinate, Stephanie. Stephanie shares with her friend Alex, another employee of the supermarket, how she enjoys working with Jonathan. She is never bored at ork as Jonathan rotates her station every week. One week she will do the checkout counter and the next week she can be at the culinary center (Robbins et al).Jonathan's method of station rotation is part of the achievement behaviors of the path-goal theory.

Achievement behavior stipulates that leaders set challenging goals for their subordinates and express confidence in their ability to achieve them (Vandergrift ; Matusitz, 2011). Rotation of stations allows subordinates to challenge themselves to learn new skills needed to succeed in the new station, and feeling challenged will diffuse any sense of boredom.Participative behavior of the path goal theory supports leaders to incorporate subordinates in the handling of the business operations and decision-making process (Certo ;Certo, 2012). An issue with stock maintenance in the culinary center highlights the usage of the participative behavior of the path goal theory by Jonathan.

Instead of taking it upon himself to reorder stocks, Jonathan, has his employees reorder items when they notice they are running low (Robbins et al).Stephanie shares how being a part of the organizational decision-making has helped her gain knowledge and insight into the supermarket’s inner-workings (Robbins et al). Stephanie further shares with Alex how she met with Jonathan to set a goal for her to sell 10 bottles of truffle oil next week. If she meets her agreed upon goal, she will get a $75 dollar bonus for her achievement. In addition, Stephanie strategizes a plan on her own to sell the truffle oils.

The setting of a goal and the confidence given to her by Jonathan is both the directive and supportive behaviors of path-goal theory at work.Managers need to find a balance with motivating and leading their employees to meet the organizational goals. Jonathan has been successful motivating and leading his employees by using some of the strategies from each of the theories: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Equity Theory of Motivation, The Hershey-Blanchard Life Cycle Theory of Leadership, and The Path-Goal Theory of Leadership. Dan on the other hand, could improve some of his motivating and leadership skills by using some of the concepts and methods in these theories. Jonathan is more effective managing Stephanie than Dan has been with Alex.