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Latest News

Ambition motivates staff more than money

by Personnel Today 9 Jun 2004
by Personnel Today 9 Jun 2004

Only
one in five of the UK workforce are motivated by financial reward at work,
according to research by Manpower.

The
recruitment company’s study of 1,500 British staff found four in 10 adults are
motivated by gaining a sense of responsibility, and a further 30 per cent by
career advancement.

Less
than one in 10 are motivated go to work to socialise with other people.

Charles
Ashworth, Manpower chief operating officer, said: "The fact that so many
people are motivated to work by ambition suggests that employers should look at
attracting employees by other methods than just financial reward.

"Communication
is key to keeping people motivated. Employees like to feel they are listened to
and that managers recognise the hard work they do,” he said. “Regular appraisals
can also help motivation, by setting key objectives and outlining career
progression plans.”

Here
are the results:

What
motivates you to go to work?

Motivator
                                                                    Percentage

To
earn an income                                                        59
Ambition                                                                      30
To socialise                                                                  9
To get away from home pressures                                 1

When
you are at work, what motivates you?

Motivator                                                                     Percentage

A
sense of responsibility                                               41

Career advancement                                                     30
Financial incentive                                                         17

Recognition from colleagues                                          10

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Source
– Manpower

By Michael Millar

Personnel Today

Personnel Today articles are written by an expert team of award-winning journalists who have been covering HR and L&D for many years. Some of our content is attributed to "Personnel Today" for a number of reasons, including: when numerous authors are associated with writing or editing a piece; or when the author is unknown (particularly for older articles).

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