London School

of Business &

Finance (LSBF)

Masters in Business Administration

Module

Organisational Behaviour (OB)

Assignment Title

Motivation in the Modern Business World.

Assignment Type Essay

Word Limit 4000 (+/- 10%)

Weighting 50%

Student Intake Resits students

Issue Date 9th March 2011

Submission Date 11th April 2011

Feedback Date

Issued by

(Assessor)

Junaid Shaikh

Internal Verifier Kulbir Basra

Plagiarism When submitting work for assessment, students should be aware of the LSBF

guidance and regulations in concerning plagiarism. All submissions should be your own, original work.

You must submit an electronic copy of your work. Your submission will be

electronically checked.

Harvard Referencing

The Harvard Referencing System must be used. The Wikipedia website must not be referenced in your work.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this assignment you will be able to:

• Demonstrate a systematic understanding of the challenges and issues relevant to Organisational Behaviour as highlighted in the

question.

• Demonstrate a critical awareness of current issues in Organisational

Behaviour. • Apply academic knowledge to the problems stated in the

questions.

• Develop management and research skills relevant to the

Organisational Behaviour context. • Analyse and critically asses the relevant theories and connect them to real

world examples.

Scenario

There has been extensive research and debate over the years in regards to

understanding and attempting to explain the nature of motivation. Motivation is one of the earliest concerns of organisational behaviour and links

between a motivated workforce and increased performance led managers to strive toward ‘motivating’ their workforces in an attempt to reduce alienation (Wilson &

Rosenfeld, 1990). It is fair to assume that every organisation wants to have

committed employees.

Your Task

Using examples and case studies of your choice critically discuss, evaluate and

recommend how an organisation can benefit by the use of motivation theories in order to influence its workforce.

In particular, discuss what role culture, management and leadership styles play in

order to achieve a highly motivated work force.

Guidelines

Your submissions will be expected to demonstrate the following qualities:

1. Answering the central focus of the assignment topics.

2. A critical appreciation and application of relevant literature and theories to support argument substantiate model(s) and other aspects of the

assignment.

3. Taking ownership of the content, being prepared to debate and argue a personal position, evidences evaluative skills. A submission made up of

extracts from published sources which is descriptive and just theoretical, is not acceptable.

4. Your submission must have interpretation and consideration of the

challenges and issues of taking theory into practice (using cases and/or personal experience).

5. Ability to analyse relevant theoretical concepts in a critical manner, evaluation of material.

6. Logical flow of ideas and treatment; imaginative approaches; appropriate

selection of real world factors related to the model(s) or specific assignment topic.

7. Evidence of additional personal research and the ability to analyse material from a variety of appropriate relevant perspectives.

8. A clear listing of references using the Harvard referencing method. 9. Presentation, structure, appropriateness of methodology, breaking into

section headings/subheadings, tidiness.

10. A strong conclusion.

Please ensure that you reference material which you take from text books,

published documents, internet, etc, in the main body of your report, at the

place you use it, as well as listing the publications in an appendix. Also, try to evaluate and critique this material and the experience you get from applying and

using it. The assignment should be written from a third-person perspective.

London School of

Business &

Finance (LSBF)

Masters in Business Administration

Module Organisational Behaviour

Assignment Title Motivation in the Modern Business World

Grade Description of Achievement

70%+ The Harvard Referencing System has been both used and applied correctly.

All parts of questions answered well. Displays originality in choice of examples and cases used to support main

arguments. Clear evidence of the deployment of critical analysis in the answers provided.

Work laid out in a clear and professionally acceptable format.

Critically informed reference made to current academic debate or theory. Imaginative recommendations made for improvement in achievement of project

objectives with answers displaying evaluation and depth of evidence in support of main arguments. Ample evidence of critical evaluation and applicability of current academic theory

given. Clear linkage between theory and practice given throughout.

60%-69% The Harvard Referencing System has been used and applied, but with minor errors.

Very good attempt to answer most parts of the questions.

Clear evidence of the deployment of analysis in the answers provided. Work clearly laid out and easy to follow.

Clear reference made to current academic debate or theory. Good recommendations made for improvement in achievement of project objectives

with answers displaying depth of evidence in support of main arguments.

Clear evidence of critical evaluation and applicability of current academic theory.

50%-59% The Harvard Referencing System has been used and applied but some mistakes

have been made. A good attempt to answer most parts of the question.

Some evidence of analysis given. Work clearly laid out and easy to follow.

Some reference made to current academic debate or theory.

Good recommendations made for improvement in achievement of project objectives although answers lack depth of evidence in support of main arguments.

Some evidence of critical evaluation and applicability of current academic theory.

40%-49% The Harvard Referencing System has been used and applied but major mistakes

have been made. Some attempts made to answer questions as set.

Little supporting evidence provided for main conclusions. Some recommendations for improvement made.

Some use made of supporting theoretical concepts.

Little critical evaluation of current academic debate or theory.

30%-39% The Harvard Referencing System has been used and applied sporadically but major

mistakes have been made. Some attempt made to answer the main questions.

Some errors in understanding demonstrated. Little attempt to critically evaluate key project factors. Little use made of supporting documentary sources.

Below 0-29% The Harvard Referencing System has not been used. Little attempt to answer the main questions.

Serious errors in understanding demonstrated. Little or no use made of supporting evidence. Little or no reference made to academic or theoretical texts.