Advertisement
Advertisement

Psychological warfare

Baat Gwaa

A friend who is a senior sales and marketing director has complained to Baat Gwaa about how difficult it is to hire good people these days because of the 'employee-friendly market'.

There is more demand than supply, thus companies have to offer better wages and reward/retention packages. 'I have been asked by my company to analyse what motivates a candidate, both in the short-term and long-term, and identify the underlying factors. It's almost like psychological profiling,' she says.

Lancy Chui, managing director of Manpower Hong Kong, Macau and Vietnam, agrees that hiring has become more complex as companies don't just want to recruit, but also to retain talent.

'There are two types of motivation - intrinsic and extrinsic - so hiring managers need to understand the difference in order to motivate people,' Chui explains.

Intrinsically motivated people gain job satisfaction from promotion and recognition. But, those who are extrinsically motivated prefer tangible benefits such as job titles and perks.

Chui says motivation is not about getting your staff to do the job, but understanding what they need to stimulate them to do a good job. Baat Gwaa thinks it sounds like psychological warfare in the workplace.

Post