What role does the job (or tasks) that employees are asked to do have on their motivation at work?
One theory that tries to address this is Hackman & Oldham’s job characteristics model.
The model is based on the belief that the task itself is the key to employee motivation
A boring and monotonous job stifles the mitivation to perform well, whereas a challenging job enhances motivation.
Their model argues that it is possible to design jobs that add to employee motivation.
Hackman & Oldham suggested that there are five job characteristics that can be studied to help predict job satisfaction:
Skill variety
How many different skills and talents does the job require of a person?
Are they asked to do a lot of different things, or is it a monotonous, repetitive job?
It seems reasonable to conclude that a job that involves a variety of activities and perhaps stretches an employee to develop his / her skills is more likely to be motivating than menial and monotonous work each day
Task identity
Is there a clearly defined beginning, middle and end to a given task?
Does a worker know what he or she is supposed to do, and when he or she is successfully completed the task?
There is no better feeling at work of having completed a task successfully - a clearly-defined task is more likely to create opportunities for employees to enjoy the positive feelings of achievement
Task significance
Does the job have “a substantial impact?
Will it matter to people, either within the organisation or to society?
Is this job/given task meaningful?
It can be pretty de-motivating at work if you feel your work has little or no "meaning" or significance. You'd be forgiven for wondering why you bother doing it!
Autonomy
How much freedom does an individual have to accomplish his or her tasks?
Does this freedom includes the ability to schedule work as well as figuring out how to get the tasks done?
Job feedback
Is an employee kept in the loop about their performance?
Are they being told when they are doing well and when they are not?