The HR school: Free Write

The rise of management research and theories began in the 1920s and was influenced largely by Human Relations Theory, which was developed largely by Elton Mayo. In this theory, there are 6 propositions on how humans interact in an organized environment. I will focus on two of them. First, it is stated that human relations are essential to maintaining motivation. I believe that this is very true. If there were no people to interact with at work, then people would be deprived of the daily social interaction that is needed for humans. Again, it is suggested that motivation depends on the teamwork of the individuals involved in a task, where each person in that team contributes equally. This makes sense, as work can get done faster if done in a group, and each person pushes the other to be the best that they can be. However, if one person does not put in as much work as another person, or does not have a positive attitude, this can significantly decrease the amount of motivation that a person has. I have experienced this personally at my job. If co-workers are having a bad day, and give a negative attitude to me, it takes away my motivation to get the tasks done, as well as demotivates me from wanting to work with them. Now, how can we apply these theories to the workplace? Firstly, a positive attitude must start from the top down in an organisational structure. I have gone into work, and the bosses were not happy, because it was so busy for example, and thus it made me less motivated in my work. Secondly, we can try to pair people up at work that have emotional or experiential similarities. While this may not work all the time, it will give them something to talk about, as well as increase the bond between co-workers, and make for a more healthy work environment. There can be many more improvements in the workplace surrounding management research, but I will stop here. Can you think of any more?