The human side of innovation

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The human side of innovation

How does organizational innovation influence employee motivation?

Master thesis Msc BA Change Management University of Groningen, Faculty of Economics and Business

April 2012 Machiel Smit Student number: S1920626 m.g.smit.1@student.rug.nl Grote Marktstraat 1 2511 BH Den Haag

First supervisor / university: dr. J. Rupert Second supervisor / university: dr. C. Reezigt

Supervisor / field of study: Z. Z. Hordijk

[This research investigates the influence of innovation on motivation. For this research, a qualitative approach was selected which resulted in fifteen employees interviews. The general conclusion is that innovation influences motivation through several mechanisms. Firstly, innovation influences personal

growth, secondly innovation influences personal recognition, thirdly innovation influences personal conflict, fourthly innovation facilitates a drive to contribute to the organization, fifthly innovation leads

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Millwork ain't easy; mill-work ain't hard

Millwork, it ain't nothing but an awful boring job I'm waiting for a day dream

To take me through the morning And put me in my coffee break

Where I can have a sandwich and remember

Then it's me and my machine For the rest of the morning For the rest of the afternoon And the rest of my life

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Introduction

In fast moving environments, organizations need to adjust their products and services in order to survive. However, some think innovation can be more important to the organization than providing new products and solutions alone. There is a belief that innovations changes the internal client inside the organization. That innovation leads to better-motivated employees and herewith helps the entire organization. In other words "organization innovation" influences "employee motivation".

The organization

PostNL is a mail, parcel and e-commerce organization in the Netherlands with a history of over 200 years. Recently, the company transformed from a state-owned company into a private company. In its short history as an independent company it merged with parcel service TNT and after 5 years it decided to continue independently as PostNL. As of May 2011, the organization is named PostNL and left the TNT brand behind. It is listed at the Euronext and has around 77.000 employees (TNT annual report, 2010).

To keep an organization in business, work is a necessity. At the moment the turnover generated by mail is dropping around eight per cent a year and this downfall is expected to continue in the upcoming years. In this shrinking market, organizations need to develop new products and adapt to the environment. For that reason, PostNL has developed an innovation strategy. Among others, this is driven by the shareholders. The company has promised these shareholders an increase of revenue generated by new products. Furthermore, the urge to generate new revenue is important to the organization. This is because the outlook does not show any market recovery regarding mail volumes.

Reason for management question

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ideas and grow these ideas until they can go further into development. Historically the organization has a strong connection with employee involvement. In the so-called production department it is common practice for employees to come up with process improvement ideas. When these improvements are stable and significant, they will be implemented.

A vision with strong emphasis on process improvement made the organization one of the most efficient and innovative on the process side of its sort. This holds not only for Europe, but it can compete with the best in the word. It is this atmosphere that the organization wants to optimize and further incorporate into the normal way of working.

One year into the new innovation project, people in the platform task group hold the belief that innovations change the internal client inside the organization. According to them, the process has a positive effect on the staff working with the program. In their experience working with innovation makes employees more enthusiastic about their work. In addition to this, innovation can lead to more employee motivation and as a result help the entire organization. Furthermore, the current practice around the platform holds room for process adaptation. In other words, when adaptations in the processes help increase employee motivation this could be of great benefit to the organization.

Resuming, at the moment PostNL is working with an online innovation platform. People around the platform believe in the influencing power of innovation on motivation.

Theoretical relevance

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In answering the question ‘why is the link between innovation and motivation so important?’ the innovation and employee motivation both have a part. On the one hand, innovation is an important element for an organization (Cooper 2008, Schumpeter 1943). For PostNL innovation is seen as a way forward. By constantly updating and improving the work process, PostNL has become a benchmark in the European postal services. On the other hand, motivation is a necessity for an organization to function (Amabile 1996). An example of the importance of work motivation can be found during organizational change at the organization. In recent literature and studies "employee motivation" is considered an important factor during organizational change. Chung-Ming Lau and Woodman (1995) for example, argue that an employee who is exceptionally motivated is more willing to accept organizational change. Iverson (1996) argues that employees with high employee motivation are willing to put more effort into the change process. It is because of these and other reasons that employee motivation is of such importance to an organization. The practical implication for PostNL can be found during the transformation regarding the new working methods. Working in a new environment or with new procedures will be easier with high employee motivation.

More theoretical relevance of this link can be found in the work of Janssen (2004). He points out that it is important to look at innovation as an independent variable. Janssen underlines the belief that innovation can have an impact on the organizations performance. In his work Janssen is supported by Anderson, Dreu and Nijstad (2004). In their article on the critical review of the state of the science regarding innovation they make a plea for “innovation as an independent variable”. Not only in the broadest sense but for organizational behaviour research in particular. Anderson et al (2004) point out that little is known regarding innovation in regard to organizational behaviour. This can be of interest because innovation is interconnected with nearly all organization and behavioural aspects.

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Figure 2: Innovation

Aim of the Study

The aim of this study is to research the influence of innovation on the employee motivation inside the organization.

Research question

How does organizational innovation influence employee motivation?

The following pages will give an explanation of innovation, motivation and the theoretical link.

Innovation

Definition of innovation

According to Sawhney, Wolcott & Arroniz (2006) innovation is a very broad concept. It can comprehend the introduction of a new good, the improvement of an organization or everything

in-between. Recently, Albury (2005) defined innovation as “the creation and implementation of new processes, products, services and methods of delivery which results in significant improvements in outcomes, efficiency, effectiveness or quality”. From a different perspective, Damanpour (1996) described it as “the adaptation of an idea or behaviour new to the adopting organization.” He continues explaining that

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this definition encompasses the phases during the process and further, that innovation is seen as a way to change an organization. This can be a response to changes in the external environment, or as a pre-emptive action to influence the environment.” In other words, innovation is defined to encompass a range of types, including new products or services, new plans or programs related to organizational members, new process technologies, new administrative systems or organizational structures. As overall definition for this research, the definition of Sawhney Wolcott and Arroniz, (2011) is adopted. This definition has links with business system and it incorporates the general consensus in current literature (Sawhney et al 2011). Therefore, it is suitable as definition in the innovation and motivational research. The definition is as follows;

“Innovation is the creation of substantial new value for customers and the firm by creatively changing one or more dimensions of the business system’ (Sawhney et al 2011,P 29)

These dimensions, as mentioned by Sawhney et al (2011), can further be classified by Schumpeter (1943). In 1943 Schumpeter defined five sorts of innovations: 1. The introduction of a new good.

2. The introduction of an improved or better method of production. 3. The opening of a new market.

4. The conquest of a new source of supply of raw materials or half-manufactured goods.

5. The carrying out of the better organizations of any industry.

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Radical innovation.

Radical innovations change the whole business or even the basis of society. They offer new designs, create new markets and develop new channels of distribution (Jansen et al 2004). An example of this sort of innovations is steam power and its role in the industrial revolution, or the computer in modern day life.

Incremental innovation

These innovations are designed to meet the needs of existing customers or markets. They broaden existing knowledge and skills, improve established designs and increase the efficiency of existing distribution channels (Jansen et al 2004).

In conclusion, innovation is the creation of new value for customers or firms (Sawhney et al 2011). This can be done by the introduction of a new good, the introduction of an improved or better method of production, the opening of a new market, the conquest of a new source of supply of raw materials or half-manufactured goods or the carrying out of the better organizations of any industry (Schumpeter 1943). All these forms of new value creation differ in impact and can be placed in two categories. Either radical innovations with a high impact or incremental innovations with a low impact (Damanpour 1996).

Focus of this thesis

For this thesis, the emphasis will be placed on incremental innovation. Most of PostNL’s effort is invested into projects that have the aim of improving existing knowledge and using the existing distribution channels. Regarding the sorts of innovations as defined by Schumpeter (1943) two pillars appear inside the organization.

The introduction of a new good or service

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The introduction of an improved or better method of production

This pillar is interesting because of the increased competition. After the privatization, the organization felt increased pressure from competitors (TNT annual report 2010). This forced the organization into reorganizations and the need to become more efficient. Currently, there is a constant pressure for innovation in the production environment, which results in frequent improvements and novel ideas. The further centralization of the sorting process is an example of this. By using the latest and most sophisticated technology the organization is capable to eliminate the last sorting stage. This stage is currently still conducted by hand. In the near future, machines are able to rearrange mail on a number-to-number level in a way the mailman wants it. This is currently unheard-of and will mean a big advantage over the competition in terms of speed, accuracy and cost of delivery.

Employee motivation

Definition of motivation

The dependent variable of this theoretical framework is employee motivation. In the following pages, an outline is presented. This is followed by two theories and a comparison of these theories.

Motivation has always been a central problem for leaders and managers. This is because it impacts all the employees and the organization (Pinder, 2008). Unmotivated employees are likely to expand little effort in their jobs and avoid the workplace as much as possible. They produce low quality work and exit the organization if possible (Amabile 1993). On the other hand motivated employees have

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the opposite work attitude. When employees are motivated, they work hard, are more creative and turn out better quality work (Pinder 2008).

Motivation can be defined in different ways. In general, motivation is seen as “Willingness to exert high levels of effort toward organizational goals, conditioned by the effort’s ability to satisfy some individual needs” (Ramlall 2004). In the day-to-day work practice this means that someone is working hard and produces better work. All this is fuelled by one’s needs.

The Needs theory

Ramlall (2004) describes needs as an effort that one takes to satisfy one’s individual need. The form in which one experiences these individual needs is through pleasure and pain (Locke 2000). In other words satisfaction of your needs is pleasurable. Need frustration is not only uncomfortable, it can be life-threatening. This can be the case when the basic needs are not attended. These needs are the exterminators of the selection of behaviours that a person develops in order to satisfy each goal (Locke 2000).

As can be seen in figure 4 it all starts with an unsatisfied need (Ramlall 2004). An unsatisfied need creates tension that stimulates drivers within the individual. These drivers then generate search behaviour to fulfil particular goals that, if attained, will satisfy the need and lead to the reduction of tension (Ramlall 2004).

The so-called needs are

seen as physical and

psychological wellbeing

(Maslow 1943). It reflects a set of assumptions that whatever else we might be, people are always in need of something.

Much of the work is directed at satisfying those needs. These needs operate constantly and they are never satisfied permanently (Zurbriggen & Sturman 2002). Furthermore, any given need can initiate different behaviours and any particular act may satisfy more than a single need (Zurbriggen & Sturman 2002).

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The relevance of Maslow and Herzberg theories

Several theories are built around the needs perspective. The now following paragraph will go into the relevance of the theories. Among them are the theories of Maslow (1943) and Herzberg (1959). Further on the theories will be explained in more detail.

Maslow’s theory of needs is one of the most familiar theories among academics and practitioners (Smith & Cranny 1968, Pinter 2008). One of the advantages of the theory of Maslow (1943) is that Maslow’s theory is one of the more detailed theories regarding the needs perspective (Steers, Mowday and Shapiro 2004). This provides the possibility to go further into detail than would be possible with other theories. This level of detail gives the opportunity to describe the effects of innovation with more accuracy and provide a better understanding of the possible link. Maslow’s model has further been used in studies regarding a variety of disciplines (Glasberg and Ouerghemi 2011). From a business perspective it is used as a model for understanding motivation. In the social sciences, sociology and psychology, it is used as a model for understanding the needs of persons. In any case, it has been and continues to be used for understanding what the driving forces are (Glasberg and Ouerghemi 2011). So, regardless of the sort of link between innovation and motivation, Maslow’s theory of needs has proven to be applicable. Moreover, Maslow’s theory has been used with regard to innovation. In 2011 Glasberg and Ouerghemi used Maslow’s theory in research on innovation in human resources. Others used it to identify drivers for innovation or implementation (see for example, Waters and Vilches 2001, Fullan 1991, Shaw 2003).

So regarding Maslow’s theory, it is still considered to be legitimate. It has a high level of detail and is applicable in innovation research. Therefore it is used as one of the theories for this research.

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War II employee motivational research is conducted with considerations of Herzberg’s two-factor theory (Smith and Cranny 1968). More than 50 years later we can say that reprints of this article by Herzberg remain among the most sought after papers published by the Harvard business review (Latham 2007). Even recent research states that it still holds its legitimacy. Basset-Jones and Lloyd (2005) focused on the question what motivates employees to contribute ideas for the company. The outcome was in line with Herzberg’s findings in 1959. Intrinsic motivators such as self-esteem and personal growth were valued higher among the respondent in motivating them (Basset-Jones and Lloyd 2005). Herzberg’s theory is further applicable in regard to innovation research. It has been used in many occasions in motivating innovation-researches (see for example, Glasberg and Ouerghemi 2011, Hoat, Lan Viet, Wilt, Broerse, Ruitenberg And Wright 2009). In addition to this, Herzberg’s article in 1979 was solely devoted to the subject of motivation during innovation. This indicates that Herzberg’s theory of needs is suitable for innovation research.

So Herzberg’s theory (1959) sheds light on the negative aspects of motivation, is one of most used theory in post-World War II motivational research, is still applicable in current day practice and has links with innovation. Therefore it is used as one of the theories for this research.

Abraham Maslow Hierarchy of needs

During his work Maslow analysed his patients and found that people have five basic needs (Maslow 1943). These needs are arranged in a hierarchy. At the bottom, the lower level needs, these are

important for survival. More to the top are the needs that are necessary for psychological wellbeing.

Maslow argued that the lower level needs have to be satisfied first. After that, the higher level needs would motivate employees. Even more so that when a need is satisfied it would no longer be a basis for motivation.

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In a metaphor he describes “It is quite true that man lives by bread alone— when there is no bread. But what happens to man's desires when there is plenty of bread and when his belly is chronically filled? (Maslow 1943 p375).What this means is that an employee is on average most often partially satisfied and partially unsatisfied in all of its wants (Ramlall 2004). These wants are divided into five needs in the following sequential hierarchical order (Maslow 1943).

Basic needs - These psychological needs include the needs that must be satisfied for a person to survive.

Safety needs - These safety needs refer to security, stability, freedom from anxiety and an ordered environment.

Social needs - Social needs refer to social interaction, affection, love and friendship. Esteem needs - These include needs for feelings of adequacy, competence,

independence, strength, and confidence and the appreciation and recognition of these characteristics by others.

Self-actualization needs - Self-actualization needs involve the desire to develop one’s true potential as an individual to the fullest extent and to express one’s skills, talents and emotions in a manner that is most personally fulfilling.

Frederick Herzberg Motivator-Hygiene theory

Herzberg (1959) theoretical approach of job design and motivation is based on the belief that the task itself and environment is key. The theory states that a challenging job enhances motivation, whereas a monotonous job does exactly the opposite. Herzberg (1968) discovered that employees tended to describe satisfying experiences in terms of factors that were intrinsic to the content of the job itself. These factors are called “motivators”. On the other hand dissatisfying experiences are called “hygiene” factors. These factors are called this way because they are comparable to the concept of

mental hygiene in psychiatry, “these items were _{Figure 6: Motivator- Hygiene theory}

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seen as necessary, but sufficient for healthy adjustment” (Pinder 2008). In other words, this is a minimum level that needs to be reached.

So, one can argue that the elimination of the causes of dissatisfaction would not result in a state of satisfaction. In practice it would result in a neutral state of the employee. If one wants to motivate employees one should use the “motivational” factors.

The implications are clear. The motivation of an employee can be increased through basic changes in the nature of an employee’s job. In other words, through so called job enrichment (Ramlall 2004).

Maslow and Herzberg

Despite the fact that the theories proposed by Maslow and Herzberg are different they share some similarities. Herzberg was concerned with a person’s needs. The contextual or hygiene factors were similar to Maslow’s emphasis on satisfying physiological and security needs. The job content or motivators were similar conceptually to Maslow’s emphasis on a person’s needs for esteem and self-actualizations. By changing characteristics of the job environment, Herzberg argued that an employee’s need would be satisfied. Characters of the job, Herzberg believed, facilitate or hinder satisfaction of the “growth needs” for self – esteem and self-satisfaction (Pinder 2008).

In addition to that,

implicit in Maslow and

Herzberg’s theories is the assumption that one does not

directly motivate another

person. One creates an

environment where people can motivate themselves (Latham 2007).

When comparing the two theories it can be said that Herzberg hygiene factors can be roughly related to Maslow’s lower levels needs and motivators to the higher level needs (Pinder 2008).

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After this paragraph about motivation and the previous paragraph concerning innovation, the next paragraph will go further into the link between innovation and motivation.

Reviewing the effects of innovation on motivation

As previously

described the aim of this study is to research the influence of innovation on the employee motivation. The attention is focused towards incremental innovation. This is a type of

small improvement that asks for broader knowledge and skill improvements from employees.

The now following paragraphs will go deeper into three theoretical links. These three links follow from the combined motivation and innovation theory. According to innovation theory these elements can be found as a result of innovation (Jansen et al 2003, Eisenberg, Fasolo 1990, Jansen Vliert and West 2004). Furthermore these elements are known to influence motivation (Maslow 1943, Herzberg 1968). The first link between innovation and motivations is personal growth. The second link is recognition of personal achievements. The last link is the effect of innovation on

personal relations. These elements all link innovation and motivation.

The first mechanism: Personal growth

Innovation asks a person to develop. Working on something that is not done before asks the person to go into new undiscovered territory. This discovery process leads to personal growth. Personal growth in its turn leads to an increase in employee

Figure 8: the effects of innovation

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motivation. This is because personal growth satisfies needs as defined by Maslow and Herzberg. The following paragraph will further explain this link and start by defining personal growth. After that the link between innovation and personal growth is explained and the link between personal growth and motivation.

Defining personal growth

In defining personal growth, Ryff (1989) gives the following explanation. He stated that there is a need to realize ones potential. A growing individual is continually developing and becoming, rather than achieving a fixed state. In defining the term personal growth Ryff (1989) makes a distinction between high and low personal growth. According to him, a high personal growth encompasses the following for an individual. One has a feeling of continued development, one sees oneself as growing and expanding, one is open to new experiences, one has sense of realizing his or hers potential, one sees improvement in self and behaviour over time, one is changing in ways that reflect more self-knowledge and effectiveness. A low score is defined by a sense of personal stagnation, one lacks sense of improvement or expansion over time, one feels bored and uninterested with life, and one feels unable to develop new attitudes or behaviours (Ryff 1989).

In later work, Andersson (2008) places this in the 21st century. In his article on personal growth and sensitivity training, he points out that personal growth is mainly about learning. This is because nowadays it can be seen the same as “personal development”. According to him, one can speak of personal development because one needs to develop knowledge and a sense of realizing his potential. Both personal growth as well as personal development describes the same. Therefore, one can speak of fashion in management. This is a phenomenon where the same comes back after a certain time frame (Andersson 2008). In other words, personal growth is the process of developing oneself, learning new skills and self-knowledge. Where self- knowledge is referring to knowing ones abilities and weaknesses.

Linking innovation and personal growth

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learn new skills (Kerr and Landoure 2004). It is this “stretched” goal during innovation that is the basis for personal growth. It is because one does not know how to get there one needs to develop oneself in one way or the other to be able to accomplish the task.

Another aspect of this research is the focus on incremental innovations. Jansen et al (2003) describe incremental innovation as a sort of innovation that broadens existing knowledge and skills, improves established designs and increases the efficiency of existing distribution channels. In other words, the type of innovation requires knowledge that does not yet exists inside the organization. So the introduction of a new good, service or an improved method of production challenges the individuals. This to the level that one walks in de dark and needs to find a solution that one is not yet familiar with.

A different direct link comes from the work of Janssen, Vliert, West (2004). They state that innovation might help employees to adapt to the job, leading to several benefits and, among them: personal growth. In their view when there is not a person-environment fit, this leads to stressful state of mind. Changing this person – environment fit can be achieved by adapting oneself. This may involve renewing and restructuring cognitions in order to be able to handle the job problems experienced. On the other hand one can modify elements of the workplace by example job design or job approach. For this, innovation is suggested to be a valid problem-focused strategy for coping with this stress (Janssen, Vliert, West 2004).

In conclusion, when working on innovation this process asks for something what has not been done before. This can be an innovation on a larger or smaller scale. In some cases this innovation may only be new to the organization or business unit. Despite this, one who is working on new product development learns about the product and masters new tasks. It is this familiarizing with the (new) environment or new knowledge development that is essential. In essence this is the process of learning as a result of working with innovation. So because one is working with innovation, one needs or is able to learn. All this leads to personal growth.

Linking personal growth and motivation

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tension (Ramlall 2004). Maslow (1943) defined learning and personal growth as one of those needs that ask to be satisfied. In other words personal growth and learning satisfy a need and results in a reduction in tension. So, because it reduces tensions caused by the needs, one is motivated to learn and work on personal growth. To be more precise the personal growth needs as defined by Maslow are part of the self-esteem needs. The self-self-esteem needs focuses on the abilities to learn and master task and get recognition for this (Pierce, Gardner, Cummings and Dunham 1989). Especially ambitious employees want to feel challenged and have opportunities to advance (Sadri and Robertson 1996). This need can further be fulfilled through listening, participative decision processes and involvement in improvement (Halepota 2005). So, among other ways of satisfying self-esteem needs, involvement in improvements or in other words working on innovative projects is a way to motivate employees.

All this is confirmed by Herzberg (1968). Regarding the motivators, Herzberg states that in practice, for one to be motivated the job requires the following: it should increase challenge and responsibility and personal growth (Ramlall 2004). Therefore, managers should focus on “vertical loading”. Vertical loading consists of giving workers more responsibility. This is where employees take on tasks normally performed by their superiors. In contrast to horizontal loading where employees are given additional task of similar complexity (Herzberg 1959 Ramlall 2004, Latham 2007). In conclusion, job enrichment as pointed out by Herzberg (1968) shares great similarities with the motivators underlined by Maslow (1943), in particular the need for learning, responsibility and rewards.

Summarizing, innovation asks for a person to develop. Working on something that is not done before asks for the person to go into new territory personally. All this leads to personal development. Personal development in its turn leads to an increase in employee motivation. This is because personal growth satisfies needs as defined by Maslow and Herzberg.

From this the sub question is derived: to what extend does personal growth explains the relationship between innovation and motivation?

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The second mechanism: Personal recognition

Jansen, Vliert and West (2004) see other effects of innovation. They state that when one is promoting innovative ideas for change the person in question can get recognition for that, this recognition in turn leads to an increase of motivation.

Defining personal recognition

In defining recognition it needs to be noticed that it can have many forms and appear in different ways. Schmidt, Geith, Haklev and Thierstein (2009) define recognition and state that; recognition is the acknowledgment of one’s achievements by others. This can be by a group, person, or organization. Stevic and Ward (2008) define it as a type of positive interaction between individuals. “Thank you” or “good job” are examples of these kind of interaction. This appraisal can be accomplished by using awards, delegate responsibilities, give training and encourage participation (Ramlall 2004, Smith & Granny 1968).

Linking innovation and personal recognition

Promoting your ideas has its consequences. These consequences can be positive or negative. Innovative ideas can lead to conflict or one can encounter resistance (Jansen 2003). This shadow site of innovation is important and can have far reaching effects for the innovation. These negative consequences of innovations will be further addressed in the following paragraph, but first the recognitions as a result of innovation are further addressed. Jansen, Vliert and West (2004) state that when promoting innovation this may lead to recognitions of the work performed. Eisenberg, Fasolo and Davis-La Mastro (1990) work is in line with this. They described that the employee’s view of being cared about and valued by the organization is positively related to innovation.

This indicates that when one is working on innovation this is noticed. As a reaction to this innovation, one receives praise.

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Linking personal recognition and motivation

The link between recognition and motivation is a strong one (Herzberg 1968). Maslow (1943) explicitly names recognition as a part of the self-esteem needs. This link between recognition and motivation is further underpinned by many others as further explained in the now following part.

The perspective of the needs theory is the basis for this link. The core of the behaviour can be found in the unsatisfied needs. This is similar to the link between personal growth and motivation. In this case these unsatisfied needs drive one to seek for reduction in the tension. These specific self-esteem needs focus on growth and the recognition for an achievement. This motivates people to seek recognition, praise, dominance, glory and the attention of other people (Maslow 1943, Pierce, Gardner, Cummings and Dunham 1989). This public appraisal can be fulfilled by using awards, advancement in careers, delegate responsibilities, give training and encourage participation (Ramlall 2004, Smith & Granny 1968). Another way to increasing motivation is to make reports available to the workers themselves rather than to supervisors. This in its turn facilitates internal recognition (Herzberg 1968). In other words, according to Herzberg (1968) and Maslow (1943) one has the need for recognition and attention. To satisfy this need employees seek for appraisal whether this is public or not (Smith & Granny 1968).

So, in conclusion, during the innovation process one can receive recognition. This recognition will lead to more motivated employees because it reduces tensions for self-esteem and reputation needs.

From this the sub question is derived: to what extend does personal recognition explains the relationship between innovation and motivation?

The third mechanism: Conflict

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idea. The following pages start by explaining the negative effects of conflict after that the other side of the medallion is further addressed.

Defining conflict

Conflict has been defined as perceived incompatibility between people (Jehn 1995). This is because the parties involved hold a disagreement in their views or have mismatches. Points that may indicate conflict are the amount of frictions and the number of occasions that people disagree about opinions regarding the work. In a more extreme form of conflict Spector and Jex (1998) state that personal differences can evolve till a point that one starts yelling.

Linking innovation to conflict

As Jansen, Vliert and West (2004) stated; innovation can have negative influences on the interpersonal relationship. This is because one is challenging elements of the established framework of work goals, work methods, task and informal norms. Co-workers and supervisors can be expected to resist these ideas. This is because of the tendency to avoid the insecurity and stress surrounding change. All this can result in a conflict with co-workers (Jansen 2003). In other words, by pushing for innovation one takes a personal risk of conflict. Jansen, Vliert and West (2004) further comment on the resistance that may lead to negative feelings and conflict. They state that radical innovations come with a more elaborate change and therefore a stronger resistance. This has a higher risk of negatively impacting the social interaction.

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In other words, because of the tendency of people to avoid change any innovative idea that one brings up may result in conflict. This is because innovation is always a change from the status quo. Or as stated above, when working on innovation an innovative process or method of production asks for something that has not been done before. This brings situations that are new and uncertain that lead to conflict.

The positive effects of conflict

On the positive side Badke-Schaub, Goldsmidt and Meijer (2010) found positive effects of conflict during the development of creative ideas. Their research states that groups performed better when there was less collaborating than in comparable peer groups. What this means is that conflict increases the quality of the innovation. In other words the ideas are better when not everybody thinks the same and is willing to express that. Furthermore, when in conflict, team members confront each other with their views. This forces them to be creative in finding a collectively satisfying solution (Dreu 2006). As a result of that the focus is on learning, the development of insight and the ability to solve complex problems. This in its turn contributes to the innovation (Dreu 2006).

So beside the negative effects on personal relations, conflict has positive effects as well. It is exactly this conflict that helps to spark discussions and helps the innovation forward. For personal conflict to harm or benefit the innovation the sort and amount of conflict is of importance. For conflict to be beneficial, differences concerning task-related issues are best. These spark a discussion concerning the innovation itself (Badke-Schaub, Goldsmidt and Meijer 2010 p120).

Linking personal conflict and motivation

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effects of conflict on innovation, conflict interrupts the social interaction. This disruption prevents the reduction in motivation and social needs. Hence the disruption of positive social interaction leads to less motivation.

Summarizing, besides the positive aspects innovation has its risk. The dark side of innovation is the possible conflict it brings to the organization. This conflict is the result of the natural tendency of people to avoid change.

From this the sub question is derived: to what extend does conflict explains the relationship between innovation and motivation?

In conclusion, the link between innovations can be positive and negative. During an innovation process a positive effect of innovation is personal

growth. This in its turn positively influences motivation. Another positive effect can be personal recognition. This also leads to an increased motivation. The last described effect of innovation is a negative or positive one. Innovation can lead to personal conflict. This conflict can have negative consequences on employee motivation. On the other hand, conflict can be positive as well. This is because of innovators have the tendency to bring the innovation to a higher level. This is because a way of coping with the conflict is to puts more effort into the innovation and making it a better plan.

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Method

The following chapter will present the method. The first part will explain the data collection. The second describes the data analysis. The results of the data collection and analysis can be found in the next chapter; results.

Data collection

For this research, a qualitative approach was selected. This is because the aim of this research is to look more in-depth. The advantages of interviews are the possibility to respond on answers and seek more and detailed information during the interview (Baarda, de Goede and Teunissen 1997). It is this way of data collection that allows obtaining more in-depth information (Kumar 1996). Besides this an interview allows to explain questions and in doing so it is less likely that a question will be misunderstood and therefore the answers will be more accurate (Kumar 1996).

Interviewee selection and sample

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Interview structure

The research is conducted using semi-structured interviews (Kumar 1996). To start the interview an interview schedule is written concerning the subjects, learning, growth and conflict. After these questions a more unstructured form is adopted to look for a more in-depth inside into the link between innovation and employee motivation. The semi-structured interview provides the advantage that the interviewer has the ability to learn the respondent’s viewpoint regarding the research problem (Blumberg 2005). The format was flexible depending on the course of the conversations. All interviews were taped for transcription and had an average duration between 40 and 50 minutes.

Measures

For the interview questions, scales of prior research were used. As this research has a qualitative approach the questions are transformed into open questions. All questions can further be found in the appendix

Innovation

For this research, innovation was defined as the introduction of a new good or service or the introduction of an improved or better method of working (Schumpeter 1943). The focus was on the innovation in relation to the organization. This means that the innovation in itself could be existent in another way or form elsewhere but was new to the organization.

Construct of innovation, Schumpeter 1943

Statements:

The introduction of a new good, service, an improved or better method of working Questions:

-Can you elaborate something about the innovation projects you are working on or have been working on in the recent past, and your contribution?

-What was the aim of these innovations?

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Personal growth

Personal growth was defined as a continued development, learning new things and skills. During the interview the questions were aimed at mapping these items. An increase in knowledge and skill were seen as indicators for such growth (Ryff 1989). From the research of Ryff (1989) these personal growth indicators were adapted and transformed into open questions as presented below.

Construct of personal growth, Ryff 1989

Statements:

I see improvements in myself. I have a feeling of development. I possess more knowledge than before. I have new insight.

Questions:

-Can you elaborate something about your personal development during the innovation process?

-Was all the necessary knowledge present at the start of the innovation?

-To what extent do you have the feeling that you gained knowledge during the innovation process?

Conflict

For the measurement of conflict the research of Jehn (1995) was used. Conflict is seen as friction between one or more of the team members working on innovation. Furthermore others stakeholders can be the source of the conflict as well. The indicators for conflict are presented below and are adapted from the research of Jehn (1995).

Construct of conflict, Jehn 1995

Statements:

Hold discrepant view or have interpersonal incompatibilities. The encounter of friction.

Disagree about options.

Disagreement about who should do what Questions:

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- To what extent did you have a disagreement during the innovation process because of the ideas you had?

- To what extent did you had arguments during the innovation process?

- To what extent do you develop negative feelings about other team members during the innovation process?

- To what extent did you encounter conflict during the innovation process?

Recognition

Recognition was defined as the acknowledgment or achievements by others. It is seen as a positive interaction between individuals. This was measured using a scale originally developed by Stevic and Ward (2008). The indicators and questions used are transformed from Stevic and Ward (2008) work and presented below.

Construct of recognition, Stevic and Ward 2008

Statements:

Do you receive recognition and praise?

Overall, how often do you receive recognition and praise? Questions:

-Did you receive recognition or praise for the innovations and ideas that you were working on?

-In which form and way did you receive this recognition? -During what kind of moments did you receive this recognition?

Motivation

The research of Grant (2008) was used to investigate motivation. Grant describes motivation in a work context, and developed a series of questions to determine the motivation. For this research, the questions were transformed to open questions as presented below.

Construct of motivation, Grant 2008

Statements:

Why are you motivated to do your work? Because I enjoy the work itself.

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Because it’s fun. Because I enjoy it.

Because I want to help others through my work.

Because I care about benefiting others through my work. Because I want to have positive impact on others.

Because it is important to me to do good for others through my work. Questions:

-What do you feel are the good sides of working with innovation? -What motivates you to work in innovation?

-What would motivate you to work more on innovation?

-What was the effect of conflict/personal growth/ recognition on your motivation?

Data analysis

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Results

The now following chapter will describe the findings of the interviews. It will go further into the mechanisms between innovation and motivation. The first paragraph will start with personal growth after that conflict and recognition are covered. The chapter will end with other results found during the interviews.

Innovation

Among the interviewees, the improvement of a better method of production was the most common innovation. Twelve of the fifteen interviewees mentioned an improvement in the working process or procedures. Among the innovations were improvements on the core process, or better way of processing parcels and mail. Others mentioned innovation in the back office. An example is the introduction of new IT-system for sales agents. The other three interviewees mentioned the introduction of a new good or service. In these three cases they all mentioned market expansion of an existing product. The introduction of scan facilities to the open market is an example of that. The knowledge considering digitization was developed for the core process in order to facilitate a fast transcription of hand written addresses. This knowledge is now brought to the market and combined with printing experience already possessed at the organization. Overall the innovations were designed to meet the needs of existing markets or customers. Therefore one can speak of incremental innovation.

Personal growth

Personal growth was defined as a continuous development process, learning new things and skills. During the innovation process people experience personal growth. The now following paragraph will go further into this subject.

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process places them in a situation outside of their comfort zone and these situations lead to knowledge and skill development. In addition to this, one replied that because of his new product development he became an expert inside the organization. “I think that in my line of business I acquired and possess the most knowledge of the entire organization regarding this subject”. All this describes a clear link between innovation and personal growth.

Positive consequences for one’s motivation can also be found. Eight interviewees describe that specifically this boost in their knowledge is triggering them to work. They experienced learning as nice and fun. Others found gaining knowledge engaging or just enjoy working on it. Although the other seven did not describe this phenomenon during the interviews, the personal growth is evoking a positive motivating reaction. One employee describes his personal growth and increase in motivation vividly. “I find it very fulfilling to do and learn new things. Instead of doing the same thing over and over again and then go home“. This describes the positive effect of knowledge or skill acquiring. This personal growth has positive effects on one’s motivation.

That not all interviewees experience this pattern is indicated by one quote “yes on the one hand is nice, but on the other hand it is sometimes unwelcome necessity”. The interviewee continues explaining that keeping up with the ever-changing surrounding costs time and sometimes time is scarce. What this describes is that the interviewee experiences a shadow side of the effort that needs to be invested in, order to learn something. Due to time or resource restrictions possibilities to learn are sometimes limited. Although this is not a commonly heard view, for some the process becomes unsatisfying when it becomes a repetition of sets. “I experience that I am doing things that I have done repeatedly. It feels like I am pulling all the weight ….this is finished now, I am exhausted”. Although it can be argued that this quote is about resistance in essence the interviewee is describing a process that fails to give him “energy” or “experience pleasure”. In other word personal growth is of such importance that is helps counterbalance the sometimes negative side effects of work or innovation.

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Conflict

Friction on the work floor is a common phenomenon. During an innovation process this is often the case. Eleven out of fifteen encountered resistance and conflict. Often described as resistance interviewees experienced often a lack of cooperation. “Yes I experience resistance. Sometimes we argue about the options and then we disagree. Some find it hard to change, they experience too much change (as a result of the innovation)”. Others pointed in the direction of diversity as a reason for disagreement. “In an organization like this you encounter many different people and they have as many opinions and visions. This sometimes leads to disagreements about the way to proceed”

These two quotes describe conflict. Especially the disagreement about opinions and the way to process are commonly described. In addition to that one interviewee is pointing in the direction of diversity as the reason behind this. Others were less clear about the reason why and were more general. Three others pointed at the organizational culture as a reason for conflict “we are not an organization that has a natural tendency to change certainly not from an innovative standpoint.” Overall the interviewees nearly all described different sorts of conflict that made the innovation process difficult and energy consuming.

Despite this, conflict is often seen as a part of innovation. Three out of fifteen people expect it and know that this is part of the process. One stated; “you see that when you are leading, you will encounter conflict. Sometimes referred to as “de remmende voorsprong”. Others point out that it’s sometimes best not to ignore the fact but just to take it into consideration “I knew that some people had difficulties with the innovation. But I did it anyway”. These statements describe an awareness regarding the conflict and that it is part of the process. Overall conflict is not seen as spur of the moment thing that comes up but more as a certainty that one expects and one can prepare for. One stated this as follows: “Conflict is natural for an innovation process. Therefore is not unexpected”.

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these procedures. Therefore, these procedures are a common source for irritations. The first part of conflict is mainly mentioned in combination with the innovation impact. Some state that they understand that, for some it is all going too fast. “But I realised that certain things change (innovation) for some people that is more difficult to comprehend” or “you see that it is not easy to cope with changes. Some are eager to hold on to the old…”All this seems very negative but not all respondents described conflict this way. Two have seen the benefits. “Friction yes. But negative consequence no. Friction is energy too. This can be helpful”. What this describes is the positive energy that one can encounter during conflict. It states that not all is negative and that it can be formed into a driver for the innovation. It can also be a more personal driver during the innovation, specifically seeking the challenge. “Making people enthusiastic about the innovation that is one of the aspects that I consider to be more fun than the others.” The resistance concerning systems and procedures was formulated in similar words. Mainly the procedures were seen as time consuming.

Recognition

Compliments like “thank you” or “good job” are ways to express recognition. During innovation one produces something that can evoke such a reaction. The interviewees describe many of such situations. All interviews had a recognition experience as a result of innovation and the link towards motivation was equally strong.

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further and more sincere. “For me trust is more significant than a pad on the back….that can be fake”. What this describes is broader feeling of recognition than compliments alone. The interviewees make a differentiation in the value they give to a compliment based on the sort of compliment.

Besides the compliments from managers as described above, the same phenomenon can be seen when someone experience compliments from peers. From the fifteen interviews six described recognitions from peers. All but one mentioned recognition in other form or way than a compliment. One mentioned that working with his idea is fulfilling for him and felt like a sincere compliment. “That they say that the idea is being executed and that they are in the process of fine tuning. That is a very nice compliment”.

These compliments have their impact on one’s motivation. Mostly interviewees experience a positive feeling as a result of the compliment. “That gives extra energy” or “that is nice”. Besides these, another point was described often. The confirmation of one’s ability was seen as motivating and a reason to continue working harder. “It is nice to know when the innovation is going into the execution phase, because then you know that your idea was good”. This describes a need for recognition in order to work harder or continue to stay motivated. In particular the latter is mentioned explicitly by some. “If you don’t get support why should you continue”. In essence, this is similar as the phrase above but the argument is turned around. Stating that one is seeing lack of support as a reason to stop innovation.

So, interview results show that recognition is an important aspect during innovation. This recognition can appear in many different ways and has effect on motivation.

Other mechanisms

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Contribute to the organization

Contributing to the organization was described as one of the effects experienced from engaging or initiate innovation. Throughout all the interviews among the employees in the organization, twelve out of fifteen named the ability to contribute to the process as one of the effects of innovation.

They felt that they were able to make a contribution and that in its turn motivated the employees. Interviewees indicated that they enjoyed the ability to make a contribution. One of the interviewees stated that “you are able to contribute to the daily business from your field of expertise. And it is nice that you are able to add something”. This shows a drive to improve the working methods and experience the positive effect from that ability to contribute. Other state “it really felt like we were making progress in making it more user friendly for many employees. I thought yes this is something I really enjoy doing, the ability to make this available through the whole organization. It just motivates me, if you are able to create something and it works”. What this describes is a positive feeling the interviewee experienced when they were able to bring innovation. In this statement the latter refers to the effects this has on the employee’s motivation. In this case the ability to contribute had a positive effect on his motivation. Others used statements like “an important aspect is that others say, yes that really helps” or “yes I want the organizations to benefit from it (the innovation). I don’t want to innovate like, what a cool gadget or tool.” Besides other aspects these last statements clearly mention that the interviewee is affected by the contribution his innovation has on the organization. It shows that the employee has other motives than purely innovation. Eleven out of the fifteen interviewees further experienced and stated that this ability to contribute enhanced their motivation. Some used phrases’ like “this is the fun part of my work. Because you mean something for….” Or as stated above “it just motivates me”.

So one of the effects of innovation is the ability to contribute to the organization and as a result of that the vast majority experienced a positive effect on their motivation.

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Being challenged

Being in a challenging state of mind was not mentioned before in this research but was described by eight interviewees as an important aspect of innovation. Being “triggered’’ or “challenged” can be defined as the feeling of making the most of your capabilities or just not function in sleep modus.

Although not caught in plain text the clarity and enthusiastic way of recollecting innovating events was the strongest when describing the feeling of “being challenged”. What this indicates is that the way toward a point is for some more important than the point in itself. This was underlined by descriptions like “that is really cool, to find the way from a to b” and “can you imagine that when you are working with an innovative aspect that you are being triggered and that you wake from a sort of sleep modus”. Other described it more like a puzzle. “Some aspects are a puzzle which is fun. You look at it and determine what you are able to do and what you can’t. This is a challenge that you are doing”. For the interviewee this puzzle was a metaphor for a challenge. One that was accomplishable but it needed focus and attention. What this indicates, is that the challenge to solve the puzzle is important regardless of the result or other aspects. Another employee described more the ability for self-fulfilment. “Being able to do the things you want. This describes a more personal aspect of the innovation. Just being able to put your teeth in it and solve the challenge.

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Discussion and conclusions

The following pages will discuss the implications of the results and go further into the choices made in the methodology section. In the first part the general

conclusions are discussed followed by general implications and the limitations.

General conclusions

The general conclusion is that innovation influences motivation trough several mechanisms. To start, innovation influences personal growth because one encounters situations that were unfamiliar. This results in task specific learning. Personal growth influences motivation because it satisfies self-esteem drivers. Secondly, innovation influences personal recognition because when one is working on an innovative project, this gets noticed. Positive feelings towards this innovation are expressed and do not go unnoticed by the one who is working on innovation. The mechanism influencing motivation comes from the needs for recognition. Thirdly, innovation influences conflict because people have a natural tendency to avoid change. Overall innovations benefit from the discussions. This is because the innovative ideas are better constructed in order to encounter conflict. Fourth, innovators have a drive to contribute to the organization. Innovation enables them to do that by their

innovations. Fifthly, innovation leads to a state of being challenged. This moment of heightened creativity is fuelled by the self-actualization need.

Regarding mechanisms, their influence is seemingly positive. It impacts the higher regions of the Maslow pyramid and motivators as described by Herzberg. The former is interesting because it satisfies two needs. On the one hand, it satisfies tensions derived from the self-actualization needs. On the other hand, it satisfies esteems needs. This means that regardless of the motivational tensions, innovation can reduce these tensions. The same holds for Herzberg’s motivators (1968). As described, targeting the dissatisfying aspects of work does not make anyone more motivated. Innovation is therefore a good tool because it does exactly the opposite. It targets multiple “motivators”. By targeting these motivators employee are positively motivated.

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Personal growth

The interviews showed that during the innovation process people experience personal growth and this in its turn stimulates their motivation. This was mostly because people encountered situations that were unfamiliar to them. What can be concluded from this is that working on innovation places someone in a situation that asks for adaptation and personal growth. This is in line with literature that stated that innovation asks a person to develop because one is working on processes that are innovative (Ryff 1989).

What this research further shows is that personal growth can been seen as a result of innovation. The learning itself can be a goal and innovation can be used for that. Kerr and Landauer (2004) find similar results and state that stretch goals is a valid personal development method. So besides the innovation that benefits the organization there is a benefit for the employee as well. This benefit is there in terms of personal growth. In case of personal growth by means of innovation, this is often referred to as task-specific in the interviews. During the interviews becoming an expert on a specific subject was mentioned. This can be explained because one is driven to accomplish a specific task. Frohman (1999), Kerr and Landauer (2004) both describe this in task specific learning and suggest that a learning role is set up

especially for this tension between what is and what needs to be. This in order for the employee to continue learning.

With regard to the link between learning and motivation interviewees

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supported by educational assistance plans, these help employees to keep up with the pace of the ever changing work environment.

So innovation influences personal growth because one encounters situations that were unfamiliar to them. This results in task specific learning. Personal growth influences motivation because it satisfies drivers. More specific the self-esteem needs in the higher spectrum of Maslow’s pyramid.

Recognition

This research shows that innovation leads to recognition and that in its turn leads to motivation. The vast majority indicated that recognition as a result of the innovation has a positive influence on motivation.

All fifteen interviewees described recognition as a result of innovation. Mostly a specific moment was mentioned, this often being the launch of the innovation or a go or no go moment. As Jansen, Vliert and West (2004) describe there are moments during innovation that are specifically suitable for feedback. The research has shown that when the innovation is to one’s liking this gets noticed and one gets recognition for this innovation.

Both peers and managers were mentioned as important for the recognition. This could be explained because recognition and feedback has a consequence that one is able to judge the difference one makes (Frohman 1999). This means that the source of the recognition is not the most important element, the recognition in itself is. Another explanation for this could be found in the theory of Maslow. According to him one is driven by a need to master tasks (Maslow 1943). Recognition can assure someone that one was able to do just that. So whether a peer or manager gives recognition is less important than the knowledge that one was able to achieve something.

Furthermore, many sorts of recognition were mentioned. As the research showed employees found it motivating when they were asked to participate in a project. Smith & Granny (1968) found that besides compliments, delegate

responsibilities, promotion, give training and encourage participation could have a positive effect. This means that recognition does not always have to be explicit. Employees recognise and price other forms, as found by Smith and Granny (1968).

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Both pointed out that there is a need for recognition. Further, Pinder (2008) describes two subsets of esteem needs. The outside subset is for prestige and reputation. This motivates people to seek recognition, praise, dominance, glory and the attention of other people (Pinder 2008). In other words, one of the self-esteem needs is

recognition. This need is satisfied by the reward of innovative behaviour. The latter statements of Pinder (2008) are further in line with the findings in this research. The results show that the form or origin of the recognition is of less importance.

So innovation influences personal recognition because when one is working on an innovative project this gets noticed. Positive feelings towards this innovation are expressed and do not go unnoticed by the one who is working on innovation. The mechanism influencing motivation comes from the need for recognition. The need for prestige and reputation have shown to influence one’s motivation

Conflict

The results show that conflict is an important element and affects motivation in an innovative context. Conflict as a result of innovation costs energy and asks employees to revaluate their innovative initiatives.

Mostly the interviewees describe a fear for change as the reason for this conflict. This could be the case because employees have the natural tendency to avoid change. This explains the amount of conflict in relation to the change. When

someone is pushing for a large innovation this normally brings more conflict (Jansen, Vliert and West 2004).

The human side of innovation