Workplace Reward Assessment

Workplace Reward Assessment

Introduction

In this assessment, I will be focusing on a technician job for a pest control company. We are adding a new department in the lawn care side of our organization. The new department will focus on repairing the sprinkler systems of our lawn care customers. I will be identifying the current major components, tasks, or responsibilities of the selected position. I will be answering whether the job currently allows any self-management or sense of choice, does the position cultivate a sense of intrinsic motivation? I will also be addressing the reward system and how goals are set, and if the goal system is effective for this position.

Irrigation Department

Currently we are expanding our services to include an irrigation department to complement our lawn care division. This way our organization can adjust, or repair our customer's sprinkler systems. In Florida, sprinklers play a huge role in maintaining a healthy lawn. Many of the products we use to green up a customer's lawn are most effective when watered in. Adding the irrigation department will help us implement a strategy to correct customer accounts with sprinkler system failure, resulting in drought stress and unhappy customers. Many customers don't water in the treatments they receive and their lawns develop browning, or undesired fertilizer burn. Florida is a very hot state and watering a lawn for the proper amount of time and with the sufficient amount of water is a necessity.

Components, Tasks, and Responsibilities of Irrigation Department

Currently we are in the beginning stages of establishing the irrigation department. Currently there are only two technicians on a pilot program establishing customer's through our current database of current customers. The task of the irrigation department is to establish a reputation with our current customer base and have enough clients to be able to sustain a healthy income. Starting a new division can be a difficult task. The irrigation technicians need to be self-motivated and have a strong work ethic. The irrigation technicians will also have to be outspoken and able to sell an irrigation service. In our organization, we take pride in looking good in our uniforms. Taking pride in one's work is important in maintaining our current customer base growing. Some of the responsibilities of the irrigation technician will be to maintain a clean work truck and maintain appearance. The irrigation tech will need to be able to sell repair services and understand the pricing charts. The tech will also need to be able to operate an automatic and a manual sprinkler system. Other duties include digging up sprinkler pipes, locating leaking pipes, map out underground piping using schematics.

Self-management/ Sense of Choice

Intrinsic motivation is needed in accomplishing this job title. Being an irrigation tech is a very self-reliant position. There are extrinsic motivators like, bonuses, rewards for selling services, and increase in pay. Although extrinsic motivation will get one by in performing one's duties, one needs to rely on intrinsic motivation to accomplish a high level of customer retention and satisfaction. As an irrigation technician, there is no upper management following the technician around looking over the tech's back. It is a new position and there really isn't any senior management with irrigation training. The job will be performed by someone with prior experience in irrigation systems. So the techs that will be leading the operation will have a high level of being independent. The technicians hired for this position will have to be highly self-motivated and have a sense of pride in their work. This position requires a high level of intrinsic motivation. Often, the days are long and the work is hard. One must also poses a positive attitude.

Reward System

The reward system is based on a balance between performance and internal motivation. In our organization, we have our company core values that we carry on person at all times. Customers are encouraged to call in to the office to compliment on a techs outstanding service. Many times if a customer calls in, we get rewarded in the form of gift cards, or shout outs in team meetings. Many times, the customer compliments keep the technicians motivated. It feels good to know that your work is appreciated by people. Irrigation technicians are rewarded the same as all other fields of service. We all share the same customers, so this means that we offer services to benefit other departments. This promotes team work and allows the technicians to share in the wealth of building a large customer base. This means that a pest technician can sell an irrigation service, or an irrigation tech can sell a lawn service. Even though a pest tech gets the commission of the sale of a lawn service, the lawn tech gains a new customer and is paid every time the lawn service is performed. This benefits both the pest and lawn techs and vice-versa.

How Goals are Set

The setting of our organization's goals come from the commander and chief. The president of our organization has a number of sales that he wants obtained within the year. Each branch is provided this number of sales and the managers of the branches are responsible for motivating the employees and helping the techs accomplish the task. The goals are then broken down into more manageable sections. Each technician is asked to make a certain amount of sales per month. The number of sales is not required, but there are rewards for a technician who accomplishes the highest amount of sales per month. Then there is a larger reward for the technician that has the highest amount of sales company wide at the end of the year. Usually the prize for the most sales at the end of the year is a car or, a large sum of cash. There is no direct pressure to make sales, but based on your intrinsic motivation, the sky is the limit. Usually techs who are intrinsically motivated have the highest amount of sales. This is due to the positive attitude they have and the ability to set goals and follow through to accomplish their goals. Extrinsically motivated techs usually burn out after a few months and give up on making sales. They often will run into a customer who gives them negative feedback, based on the techs poor performance and the tech wonders why the customer is not satisfied, or doesn't want to buy any services. I believe the reward