Is Financial Reward Still an Important Motivator for the Indonesian Multi-Generational Workforce?

Abstract

Objective - Considering the importance of work motivation in the workplace for staff performance and organizational success, employers need to be sensitive and focusing more on work motivation of their employees to avoid losing them. However, previous studies still have conflicting results on this issue whether there is a significant difference on intrinsic and extrinsic motivators or not among employees from Baby Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y because many studies find generation is not the only driver influencing work motivators. The objectives of this study are to investigate whether a three-generation workforce differs in the level of work motivators and whether differences in generational work motivation are better explained by gender, education, or types of job to design effective human resources development programs. Methodology/Technique - Using survey method to collect data, 415 respondents who work in a manufacturing company were gathered and analyzed by applying descriptive and multivariate analysis. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivators were the subscales of work motivators. Findings – Results indicate that all generations are intrinsically motivated, in which Gen Y employees are found to have higher intrinsic motivators than Gen X and Baby Boomers. However, this study reveals that financial rewards are still considered as an important motivator for the three generations. Novelty - The study presents evidence that work motivators should not only be measured based on generational alone because other factors, such as gender, education, and types of job, can give impact to various outcomes. Type of Paper - Empirical Keywords: Intrinsic Motivators; Extrinsic Motivators; Financial Rewards; Gen Y; Gen X; Baby Boomers; Indonesian Workplace. JEL Classification: J28, J33, M52, M54.