Individual motivation and attitude play a key role in job satisfaction and in related job performance. In this week, you will analyze a case of job motivation and attitude.

Consider this case:

Lydia is a 58-year-old woman who has worked with Norman Electronics for over 12 years. Lydia’s children are grown and her husband died three years ago, leaving Lydia a tidy insurance settlement. Lydia began working for the company head, Fred Norman Sr., as a general secretary and as the company expanded, she became an assistant to the head of personnel, where she dealt with scheduling interviews and handling related hiring issues for the 250 employees of Norman Electronics. Lydia knew almost all of the employees on a personal basis, and often spent extra hours doing new employee orientation, handling questions, and negotiating with management to settle employee complaints. Lydia was a very valued employee.

When a new position with higher pay opened in the payroll department, Fred Norman Jr., now head of Norman Electronics immediately promoted Lydia. She now was in charge of a group of five accountants whose job was to process the payroll, including computing the bonuses and sales commissions of the employees. After a brief training to orient her to her new responsibilities, Lydia began her new position. Although she was working a similar number of hours as in her old position, Lydia’s performance dropped on the job. The department itself had problems with accuracy and timeliness in delivering paychecks. Lydia herself often came to work late, or called in sick, citing exhaustion and tension headaches as a reason for her tardiness and absenteeism. In just a matter of months, Lydia had gone from being a loyal, valued employee, to a withdrawn employee whose presence in the company was becoming a liability.

Instructions:
For this assignment, write a paper in which you analyze the case of Lydia. Include in your analysis the following points:

  • What work motivation theory might best explain Lydia’s motivation?
  • How might Lydia’s age or financial situation be a factor in her work motivation and attitudes?
  • What tests would you use to evaluate Lydia’s job satisfaction and attitudes in her new position?