Connect a motivational approach to the case facts

To connect a motivation approach to a case, find the clue about what the staff want or lack, name the approach that explains it, and recommend an action that answers that clue. This appears in short application questions and as the first step of longer judgement questions in motivation at work.

What are the approaches, in plain words?

Three broad ways of explaining motivation cover most cases. Your syllabus may name specific theories, so check the Cambridge page for your code. The plain versions below help you see which clue belongs where.

• Pay-focused: people work harder when extra effort earns extra money.
• Needs-focused: people work well when needs are met, such as a safe job, fair treatment, belonging and recognition.
• Job-content-focused: people work well when the job itself gives variety, responsibility and a sense of achievement.

How do you connect an approach to a case?

1. Underline the clue. Look for what staff say, do or lack: complaints, turnover, lateness, minimal effort.
2. Name the approach the clue points to. One clue usually points more strongly to one approach.
3. Say what the approach predicts. For example: if the job gives no variety, effort stays at the minimum even with fair pay.
4. Recommend an action that answers the clue. The action should change the thing the clue shows.
5. Add a limit or condition. It may cost money, take time or depend on staff reactions.

If the action costs money, the cash versus profit bridge shows how the cost reaches the cash balance.

Worked example

Kedai Buku Teratai is a bookshop in Kota Bharu with six staff. The owner says: “Staff arrive on time and are paid about RM200 a month above similar shops, but they do the bare minimum. Last month they told me they only shelve books and never choose what we stock or how we display.”

Step 1, underline the clues. Paid above similar shops. On time. Bare minimum. Only shelve, never choose.

Step 2, name the approach. Pay is already above the local level, so a pay-focused explanation does not fit the clue. The complaint is about the content of the job, which points to the job-content approach.

Step 3, say what it predicts. A job with no choice or variety gives staff little reason to put in more than the minimum.

Step 4, recommend an action. Give each staff member one display section to design and one monthly stock suggestion. This adds responsibility and variety.

Step 5, add a condition. It works only if the owner actually uses some of the suggestions. If every idea is ignored, staff may feel worse than before.

The mistake to watch for

A common slip is to match on a keyword instead of the clue.

Mistaken answer: “Staff are unmotivated, so the owner should raise pay. Higher pay motivates workers.”

The case already says pay is above the local level. The answer ignores that fact and describes a general idea.

The correction is to ask “which clue does my action answer?” Here the clue is no choice in the job, so the action must change the job, not the pay.

Check yourself

1. A garage in Ipoh pays well. Its mechanics say they always get the simplest repairs while one senior mechanic gets the interesting ones. Which approach fits the clue most strongly?

2. A shop in Kuching has had three cashiers leave in four months. Each said they could not plan their lives because shifts change with a day’s notice. Name the approach and one action.

3. Which clue would make you choose a pay-focused explanation: “staff chat at lunch and enjoy the work” or “staff say the same job at another shop pays RM300 more”?

Where this leads next

Next, compare what money and non-money rewards can do in financial and non-financial incentives. The business case-answer planner is useful for practising the clue-to-action chain.

Some students know the ideas but lose marks by answering the general question rather than the case. That is the pattern our teachers look for in online one-to-one Business tuition.