The impact of motivation and job satisfaction on productivity within the insurance industry.
Year: 2011
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Motivation, job satisfaction and their links with productivity have been researched \nfor decades, with many researchers producing contradictory findings. This topic \nhas become especially important in recent times as companies struggle in a \nchallenging economic environment. The organisation that successfully implements \nstrategies which address these issues can gain a significant competitive \nadvantage, as a sustainable increase in productivity from their staff will result in \nrunning costs being reduced. \nThis study was carried out on the short-term insurance industry within South Africa \nand investigated the impact that motivation and job satisfaction have on \nproductivity within the organisation. The study comprised a literature review, which \nincludes the following concepts: a definition of motivation, motivational theories, \ndriving forces of motivation, skills variety, task identity, task significance, \nautonomy, job feedback and organisational productivity. These topics provided \ninsight into motivation, job satisfaction and productivity. A quantitative research \nmethodology was used for this study to understand the relationship between job \nsatisfaction, motivation and productivity. Due to the research being carried out on \none insurance company, which the researcher had access to, a non-probability \nconvenience sampling method was used. \nA key finding was that employees who were motivated or satisfied with their job \nwere more productive. However, staff who were not motivated did not believe they \nwere unproductive. The study also found that there was a relationship between \nmotivation and job satisfaction. \nOne of the recommendations of this study is that companies should empower staff \nto make decisions, as this is a key factor in them being motivated. Furthermore, \njob satisfaction is driven by one’s personal beliefs about whether or not their job is \nimportant to the organisation; therefore, companies should ensure that managers \ncommunicate with their staff regarding how their job affects the organisation.
Author: Nirven. Maharaj
Language: English
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1527823828