Foluso Ogunmodede (PRO)
A professor of Industrial and Organisational Psychology of the Federal University Oye Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria (FUOYE), Prof. Benjamin Oluwabunmi Omolayo, has tasked employees in various employments across the nation not only on positive attitude to work but the will–to-get results with a view to bringing the”heart of innovation and creativity” to workplace.
Besides, the Professor of Industrial and Organisational Psychology encouraged employees to put up the toga of passion with a burning desire and intense enthusiasm as preventive mechanism against “tough times when they come.”
Prof. Omolayo said this at the FUOYE’s 15th Inaugural Lecture entitled “The Indelible Shadow At WorkPlace.”
Prof. Omolayo, who delivered the university’s 15th Inaugural Lecture harped on employees’ positive attitude as panacea for optimal goals.
At the 15th Inaugural Lecture, held at FUOYE’s Faculty of Science Lecture Theatre, Oye campus were the university Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Abayomi Sunday Fasina, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Administration, Prof. Tajudeen Bolanle Opoola, University Registrar, Mr. Mufutau Adeshina Ibrahim, Bursar, Mrs. Adebolanle Adekemisola Debo-Ajagunna and the University Librarian, Dr. Isaac Busayo.
Others were Provost of College of Medicine, Prof. Patrick Adegun, Dean Postgraduate School, Prof. Raphael Ajayi Omolehin, Dean Faculty of Communication Studies, Prof. Chika Asogwa, Dean Students’Affairs, Prof. Wasiu Oyedokun-Ali, Dean Faculty of Education, Dr. Olubanke Bankole, Dean Faculty of Management Science, Prof. Babatunde Afolabi, Dean Faculty of Social Science, Prof.Azee Olaniyan, Dean Faculty of Arts, Dr. Rafiu Farinde, Dean Faculty of Pharmacy, Prof. Oluseun Adedokun.
Also, at the Inaugural Lecture were Dean Faculty of Engineering, Prof. Olaitan Akinsanmi and the Director Academic Planning, Prof. Babatunde Omotoso.
However, Prof Omolayo, who held his audience spell-bound, identified resilience, optimism, confidence, positive attitude and the will-to-get results, among others as essential ingredients for”Indelible Shadow At WorkPlace.”
Accordingly, the inaugural lecturer insisted that only employees with positive work attitude would remain as catalyst for organisational goals and vision, describing such employees as “persistently productive on the job.”
Prof. Omolayo said: “The focus of every employee in work organisation should be set on improving their work output in ways that could be beneficial and profitable to them and their work organisations. The development, growth and survival of work organisations are tantamount to employee’s growth and survival.
“One of the ways to improve attitude of employees at workplace is to make employees to be more intrinsically motivated (work accomplishment) rather than being motivated intrinsically (money). Although extrinsic motivators are important to employees, intrinsic motivators should skyrocket their job satisfaction.
“Setting higher goals that are above and beyond the basic minimum standard and proffering the mode of achieving the goals are ways to enhance intrinsic motivation.
In addition, employees should take their jobs seriously but make the work interesting by applauding themselves for handling the job successfully and professionally.
“However, they should knock and discipline themselves if they do not handle the job very well.
Furthermore, employees need to improve their workstations by decorating their offices with pictures and things that can make them happy. Anytime the feelings of boredom or frustration crept in, the pictures and other decorations would remind them of the positive things that the work has brought into their lives. Going forward, employees should make themselves a no-gossip zone for other co-workers.”
Meanwhile, Prof. Omolayo offered some recommendations which were capable of making employees surpass objectives and desired goals.
According to him, “attitude can make or mar an employee. A bad or good attitude can change employee’s thoughts and, therefore, their behaviour. Managers of work organisations should note that the strength with which an attitude is held is a good predictor of behaviour. The stronger the attitude, the more likely it would affect behaviour. The level of significance of an employee’s attitude and how it relates to self-interest, social identification and employee value is very important and such an attitude will have a very strong influence on the employee’s behaviour. Therefore, a manager of human beings in the workplace should seek people with a positive work attitude.”
He went on: “Self expression of attitude can be non-verbal, such as wearing a T-Shirt, cap or stickers with a slogan that communicates the intent of the employee. Employees whose pride has suffered following a failure in a promotion exercise might adopt a defensive attitude of ‘I am not bothered,’ ‘I am tired of this organisation,’ or ‘I will soon leave this organisation,’ or might even result in petitioning the process of promotion. Managers should therefore take cognizance of the non-verbal expressions of their workers.
“Managers of organisations should imbibe the master-master communication style which encourages two-way communication whereby employees can participate and contribute to decisions and decisions that can affect the organisation. This can promote a sense of belonging and make the workers elicit a positive work attitude. In addition, managers can institute end-of-the-year awards for different categories and cadres of employees as a way of motivating them. Such awards do not need to be monetary but should be gifts that can encourage employees’ achievement drives. Likewise, regular and undelayed promotion, which is devoid of the use of subjective indices such as man-know-man, tribalism, statism, religious affiliation, and other favouritism measures, should be enjoyed by the employees.
“It is always better for managers to supervise their employees instead of controlling them. Employees are human beings that need to be respected. Hence, managers should cultivate the habit of supervising them for higher performance. Also, employees should be allowed to participate in periodic training and development programmes geared towards acquiring new skills relevant new skills that are relevant to the organisation’s development and survival. Such training and development programmes which could be local, national, or international, can be sponsored by the organisation.
“The workplace should be conducive for employees to discharge their duties unhindered. Adequate and well-equipped offices and the availability of state-of-the-art infrastructure should be put in place the workplace. Attainable goals should be set for the employees whereby tasks assigned to them should be such that they can be completed by the employees within the stipulated duration. Employees should not be assigned difficult tasks that cannot be accomplished within the set time frame, and conflicts arising among employees or between managers and employees should be resolved in a no-victor, no-vanquish way. Positive conflict resolution skill is a key issue that needs to be taken seriously by managers and leaders of organisations.
“Managers should maintain professionalism in their dealings with the employees. Self-control and self-discipline are the key indicators of professionalism at work. Managers should operate an open-door policy whereby employees will be free to interact with them. Managers should visit their employees at the workstations and duty posts to see how the employees accomplish the tasks given to them. In doing so, managers will be able to appreciate their employees. Managers and leaders of organisations should be empathetic and sympathetic to the yearnings of their employees. They should listen to their employees’ complaints with the hope of making life easier for them. Generally, managers and organisational leaders should lead by example.”
Above all, Prof. Omolayo concluded that it’s obvious that employees with positive work attitude were significant to the realisation and achievement of organisational goals and vision.
He described such employees as those to be tagged as productive on the job.
He, however urged the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Abayomi Sunday Fasina to initiate what he called a comprehensive psychological evaluation and diagnosis for “all university employees through the application of attitude and personality tests.”
He said: “I, therefore, respectfully implore you, being a thorough academic, an intelligent administrator, and a goal-getter leader, to initiate a comprehensive psychological evaluation and diagnosis for all university employees through the application of attitude and personality tests. This assessment can be efficiently handled by the Psychological Services Centre in collaboration with the Department of Psychology, where proficient and certified professional psychologists are stationed.
“Furthermore, it is advised to incorporate attitude tests into the screening process for job applicants during the recruitment and selection procedures for the university. The results of such psychological assessment can accurately and significantly predict the work attitude of both the existing employees and the new applicants.”
