ABSTRACT
Motivation is one of the most important factors affecting human behavior and performance. This is the reason why managers attach great importance to motivation in organizational setting. Rensis Likert, has called motivation as "the core of management". Effective directing of people leads the organization to effectiveness, both at organizational and individual levels.
This paper focuses on motivation theories which originate from Maslow thought and applies them to Oracle Direct organization. The Oracle Direct case study, brought from personal experience, says how people working in this organization can be motivated and encouraged to work more efficient. The theories are applied in Oracle Direct objectives to motivate their employees worldwide.
Motivation is the set of forces that leads people to behave in certain ways. It refers to energy and commitment with which an individual or group performs a task or role. It is one of key management elements. Managers attempt to motivate people to behave in ways that are in the organization’s best interest.
More contemporary thought on motivation has a source in need-based perspectives. Martin & Fellenz (2010, p.156) note that need theories address the question of what motivates human behavior in organizations. They emphasize particular aspects of an individual’s need or the goals that they seek to achieve as the basis for motivated behavior. Among major need theories are distinguished Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the Alderfer’s ERG theory and Herzberg’s two-factor theory. In the 1940s psychologist Abraham Maslow developed his theory. He assumed that people have an innate desire to satisfy their needs. He developed a model of needs to explain purposive behavior (Maslow, 1943, 1987) and arranged them in hierarchy of importance, with basic needs at the bottom of hierarchy. Formed in pyramid, the model consists of five basic categories of