Part I
In 1961; Douglas McGregor, an American social psychologist
had authored and published a book titled, “The Human Side of Enterprise.” He
was also a professor at MIT school of management and his theory of X & Y is
well-known in the field of managerial sciences/studies. (accel-team.com) The
differences of the theories are quite stark;
Theory X exemplifies the human being as fully grown working
adult with little capability to change and thus must have an indignant attitude
to work. This being stated, the work environment should be managed quite
tightly with little room for error and with stringent policies in place to
maintain high level of mindless productivity.
Theory Y exemplifies the human being on the other hand, as a
learning and growing being who learns to not only accept but seek
responsibility and thus also is committed to their work most when there are two
intangible rewards present, namely growth of self-respect & skills
improvement.
We see the approach of a X theory manager as determining the
potential of his or her employees in a negative light; where a person
essentially has to be tightly controlled in the work environment to retain a
high amount of productivity.
Y theory manager puts the emphasis on the employee’s personal
development and believes that everyone is capable of their own greatness and
thus expects higher standard and quality of work from his or her employees.
Part II
Theory X:
Would ask every employee to maintain a high percentage of
output of production per quarter to ensure no reprisal.
Would ask all employees to maintain a professional attitude
and discourage banter among colleagues during worktime.
Theory Y:
Would ask all employees to contribute to weekly and monthly
meetings and follow up and implement some of their feasible suggestions
Would allow and encourage employees to discover new ways to
complete tasks effectively and reward those who can complete them efficiently
with bonuses and company-wide recognition.
Part III
If I was a Theory X supervisor; I would be very detail
oriented. I would ask employees to submit a clear and detailed report on their
performance and how they will implement new actions or skills to become more
efficient. I love to plan and I can see myself asking others to do the same
about themselves.
If I was a Theory Y supervisor, as I have been for two
years; I would ask my employees for real solutions to real issues in the
workplace and work collectively to solve the issues through mutual discussion
and implementation of modified and approved solutions by the workforce. I would
reward the employee who has the most effective solution with tangible and intangible
rewards; to help them grow in their own confidence of their greatness.
Resources: -
Douglas McGregor.
Theory X Theory Y employee motivation theory. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.accel-team.com/human_relations/hrels_03_mcgregor.html
Thomson, T.
(1998). Retrieved from http://home.snu.edu/~jsmith/library/body/v20.pdf
Jones, G. R.,
& George, J. M. (2013). Essentials of contemporary management. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
