A situation that may occur in reality and that may surprise some is the following. Suppose we have two companies, both with a mass of approximately 500 workers. In one of them, the work climate is very positive and interpersonal relationships are stimulating for coexistence among its members. However, despite this, the level of motivation of its collaborators is average.
Meanwhile, in the other company, the prevailing climate is not as positive as in the first. However, staff motivation is higher. How can this fact be explained? Isn't a good work climate supposed to be motivated in the same way?
Rothlin and Werder (in Boreout, book published in 2009) emphasize that there cannot necessarily be a coincidence between climate and motivation: “… the most interesting activity in the world is useless if it has to be done in the wrong place (…) Seen from the perspective On the contrary, of course it won't do you any good if the workplace is fantastic and colleagues are fun if you have to deal with a subject that is inappropriate for you.
A fantastic work environment cannot compensate for the lack of interest in the content of the work. Doing the wrong thing in the right place doesn't work ”(p. 80).
Other authors have already spoken about this same discrepancy between climate and motivation, pointing out that a specific job or task can be reformed or enriched to make it more interesting and challenging and, at the same time, its manager or occupant may feel disturbed or blocked by factors. environmental.
In conclusion, the divergence between the organizations with the best climate and those with the highest motivation would tell us that these two phenomena require different procedures and at different levels.
While the climate is influenced by broad or generic actions of leaders and managers towards the entire staff, motivation appears only in those contexts in which employees perceive that certain particular needs of theirs are being met, as respect for their opinion, make them participate in some decisions, allow them to establish the objectives and procedures of the job itself or enrich the work of the position to make them more challenging or interesting. A fundamental task in the company is to match both lines of procedures: those that feed the climate and those that benefit motivation.
