Deck 10: Understanding Motivation, Engagement and Retention

Question 1

The core characteristic of an engaging leader-manager is a bright, extroverted and warm personality.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Which of the following would an engaging leader-manager be unlikely to do?

A) Agree on clear goals
B) Allocate resources according to seniority
C) Provide employees with development and learning opportunities
D) Engage in fair, open decision making
E) Provide leadership people can respect

Answer 2

B

Question 3

An employee who is content with their job and has good attendance rates, but who does not demonstrate passion or energy, is an example of:

A) an engaged employee.
B) a passively disengaged employee.
C) an actively disengaged employee.
D) a dissatisfied and disengaged employee.
E) a satisfied but not engaged employee.

Answer 3

E

Question 4

According to Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, once a need is reasonably well satisfied, it loses its ability to motivate, and the next level of need on the hierarchy emerges and begins to motivate.

Question 5

According to Herzberg's two-factor theory, hygiene factors such as remuneration and extra benefits to employees (i.e. free car parking spaces) are powerful motivating factors which promote a high level of job satisfaction.

Question 6

The lowest order of need in Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs is:

A) security needs.
B) physiological needs.
C) esteem needs.
D) self-actualisation needs.
E) transcendence needs.

Question 7

Which of the following would an engaging leader-manager be likely to do?

A) Provide positive, constructive and corrective feedback
B) Use a formal, directive coaching style
C) Take more interest in tasks than in people
D) Allow employees to address their own performance problems in their own time
E) All of these responses are correct.

Question 8

The need to mentor and pass on your skills and knowledge to others in the workplace, and the satisfaction gained from doing so, are examples of a:

A) push factor.
B) pull factor.
C) external factor.
D) extrinsic factor.
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 9

The human desire for money makes it an intrinsically motivating factor. In all employee situations, the more or less money a person is offered, the more or less they will be motivated, respectively.

Question 10

In Australia, the majority of employees fall into the category of being:

A) actively engaged.
B) dissatisfied but actively engaged.
C) satisfied but not engaged.
D) dissatisfied and not engaged.
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 11

On the whole, senior employees, hands-on employees and operational employees are more likely to be engaged than professionals and support staff, who are more likely to have the lowest levels of engagement.

Question 12

If applying Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs to a workplace environment, showing appreciation for and recognition of an employee's work efforts would help to satisfy their:

A) security needs.
B) physiological needs.
C) esteem needs.
D) self-actualisation needs.
E) social needs.

Question 13

Which of the following is not a benefit to an organisation's bottom line of having engaged employees?

A) Reduced attrition
B) Reduced absenteeism
C) Engaged employees perform 20 per cent better than satisfied but not engaged employees.
D) Decreased risk of employees burning out
E) Fewer safety incidents

Question 14

In relation to addressing human beings' basic emotional needs, fair, transparent, trustworthy procedures for allocating resources, dealing with grievances, making decisions and managing performance may all be appropriate to address an employee's:

A) drive to acquire.
B) drive to bond.
C) drive to comprehend.
D) drive to defend.
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 15

According to David McClelland and John Atkinson's needs theory, people are likely to deal well with the public and make good customer service staff if they are motivated by the need for:

A) achievement.
B) affiliation.
C) power.
D) esteem.
E) recognition.

Question 16

If applying Frederick Herzberg's two-factor theory, what strategy could a leader-manager implement to motivate an employee?

A) Provide an interesting, challenging job with clear goals
B) Provide a job with opportunities for learning
C) Provide a job that allows a sense of achievement
D) Provide appreciation for the employee's contributions
E) All of these responses are correct.

Question 17

Organisations set the scene to motivate individual workers at broad policy and strategic levels, while leader-managers engage them at an operational level.

Question 18

The three C's of engagement as it relates to employees are:

A) connection, consistency and credibility.
B) connection, contribution and credibility.
C) collaboration, contribution and credibility.
D) connection, contribution and certainty.
E) collaboration, contribution and certainty.

Question 19

Placing employees in suitable jobs that allow them to use their strengths is an example of:

A) connection.
B) credibility.
C) certainty.
D) contribution.
E) collaboration.

Question 20

One way to successfully increase the motivation of employees who do a repetitive job might be to:

A) offer them more money.
B) threaten them with penalties.
C) set them more challenging goals.
D) allow them to rotate through different jobs.
E) provide them with positive feedback.

Question 21

Which of the following is the outcome it is most important for an organisation to achieve when holding an exit interview following the voluntary departure of an employee.

A) To find out why the employee is leaving
B) To allow the employee to express their dissatisfaction with their job or the organisation
C) To formalise the separation between the organisation and the employee
D) To find out why the employee has left, and then take action based on the information collected to achieve a better outcome in the future
E) To ensure that the employee leaves happy and does not spread negative publicity about the organisation

Question 22

When a job fails to satisfy a person's higher order needs, offering them better hygiene factors they may ask for, such as higher pay or a new desk, will motivate them, since they have specifically identified what they need.

Question 23

The question, 'What policies and practices do we follow that you feel are praiseworthy?' is one that might be asked in:

A) an interview as part of a recruitment and selection process.
B) a grievance process.
C) an exit interview.
D) an employee performance review.
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 24

Whether a need is a lower order or a higher order need, it may not always remain as a motivating factor, due to the fact that once satisfied, it may lose its importance and be replaced with a different need.

Question 25

The importance of Victor Vroom's expectancy theory for leader-managers is that it reminds them:

A) that the satisfaction of higher order needs will usually be enough to motivate people.
B) that it does not matter whether people think they can succeed in a task, just that they will receive something in return for undertaking it.
C) that to motivate people, you must first help them believe that they can succeed, and then let them know that they will receive something they want in return for succeeding.
D) that a person's return for their effort does not have to be equitable, as long as their higher order needs are satisfied.
E) None of these responses are correct.

Question 26

What is the generally accepted benchmark for organisations in relation to voluntary turnover?

A) To be in the 25th percentile for their industry in voluntary separation
B) To be in the 25th percentile for all industries in voluntary separation
C) To be in the 75th percentile for their industry in voluntary separation
D) To be in the 75th percentile for all industries in voluntary separation
E) To retain at least 50 per cent of staff over each five-year period

Question 27

Which of the following is the approach with the greatest chance of regularly succeeding when it comes to motivating people in the workplace?

A) Satisfy only lower order needs
B) Satisfy only higher order needs
C) Help workers to believe that they can succeed
D) Attend to people's hygiene needs, and let them motivate themselves
E) Identify what people want from their work, then see that they get it in return for good performance

Question 28

Which of the following is a key factor for organisations in retaining Australian employees?

A) A culture of clear values
B) Effective leadership
C) Allowing employees to have a say
D) Offering employees mutual trust and respect
E) All of these responses are correct.

Question 29

When an organisation is adequately motivating its workers, but a rival organisation does so even better, coercing employees to leave and join it, this is known as:

A) voluntary redundancy.
B) involuntary redundancy.
C) push turnover.
D) pull turnover.
E) involuntary turnover.

Question 30

Which employees should organisations be vigilant in 'looking after' due to the greater risk of them leaving the organisation or becoming disengaged?

A) Employees in the 20-30 age bracket
B) Employees with skills, knowledge and attributes that other organisations want
C) The organisation's top performers
D) Graduates who are new to the organisation
E) All of these responses are correct.