Organizational Behavior and MotivationTerm PaperOrganizational behavior is described as "A field of study that investigates the impact that individuals, groups, and structure have on behavior within organizations, at purpose of applying that knowledge towards improving the effectiveness of an organization.'(Robbins and Millet and Cacioppe and Waters-Marsh, 1998, p.10). An important area within organizational behavior is motivation the main problem in business practice: “How do I get an employee to do what I want him to do” (1991, p.13). Motivation is a word used to describe how eager a person is to complete a task it is the set of processes that elicit, direct and maintain human behavior towards the achievement of a goal' (Robbins et al., 1998, p.199). levels of commitment to organizational goals but "conditioned by the ability of efforts to satisfy some individual needs". (Robbins et al., 1998, p.199). Inkson and Kolb link motivation to ability, environmental conditions and performance (1999). "Highly motivated people with average ability can succeed in favorable environments. In contrast, capable people in favorable environments can perform poorly if they lack motivation" (Inkson and Kolb, 1999, p.319). Motivation interests me because I like to find out what factors are necessary for employees to achieve the desired goals that the company expects of them. Greater knowledge of how people are motivated will also help me on a personal level as it will allow me to understand what drives me to want to achieve my goals. Motivation is complex and there are many theories that explain how motivation can be brought out in people and as entities. result how employers can get the most out of their employees.? Theories of motivation in business have gone through many phases, influencing and being influenced by the prevailing ideologies and management philosophies of each era.? (Bowey, 2001) There are many divergent views on how employees should be treated and assisted in order for them to achieve their desired goals. Herzberg believes that "the only way to motivate the employee is to give him a challenging job in which he can take responsibility." (1991, p.13). Other common ideas include incentive plans, job loading, i...... middle of document ...... compensation issue.http://www.netnz.com/gainsharing/Motivation.htmlc) Inkson, K. & Kolb, D. (1999). Management: Perspectives for New Zealand. (2nd edition.) New Zealand: Pearsons Education (p.317 – 335).d) Herzberg, F. (1991). Once again: How to motivate employees?: HarvardBusiness Review: Business classics: fifteen key concepts for managerial success. (p.13 ? 22)e) Young, S. (March 23, 1995). Taking care of your employees is the path to BusinessHealth: People Management: the magazine for personnel, training and development professionals. (p. 53)f) Little, B. (23 February 1995). Different approaches to the role of workplace Mentoring: People Management: the magazine for personnel, training and development professionals. (p. 51)g) Kohn, A. (1993 September - October). Why Incentive Plans Can't Work: HarvardBusiness Review. (p.54 ? 63)h) Myers, C. & McCutcheon, M. (1995 April 20). Different approaches to the role of mentoring in the workplace: People Management: the magazine for personnel, training and development professionals. (p. 32 - 34)