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Wanted: Experienced Managers for Motivation Survey 
Form A

Management Survey - 

Motivation in Companies

We are students at the Peter F. Drucker Graduate Man-
agement Center at the Claremont Graduate School. Our 
class group is studying how management motivates 
employees in companies. We are interested in managers' 
opinions on motivational issues. We have designed three 
brief scenarios with related questions. The scenarios 
address issues which we have researched in the litera-
ture and about which want to learn much more. How do 
real managers experienced with real situations respond 
to these challenging issues? We do not expect all man-
agers to agree on correct answers, but we are hoping 
that some patterns might emerge. 

We would greatly appreciate it if you could please read 
each scenario and answer our questions. We anticipate 
this will take only 15-20 minutes. Please contact us if 
you have any questions about how to respond to the sur-
vey.

We appreciate your time and expertise. Any additional 
thoughts would be welcome. Also, if you would like a 
copy of the results, indicate this below. 

Please return this survey by November 18. Thank You


Gordon Szeto, Heidi Rowe, Sue Boltinghouse, Toshi Nakashima             
 

Note: Respond to either Form A or Form B but not both.

Please direct questions or response files to the
following email address:

boltings@cgsvax.claremont.edu

Please mail hardcopy responses to the following 
street address:

Susan Boltinghouse
The Claremont Graduate School
Peter F. Drucker Center
925 N. Dartmouth Avenue
Claremont, CA 91711-6184

 
Demographic Questions

Optional Questions

Name _________________________________ 

Company ______________________________

Phone Number _________________________

Fax Number ___________________________

EMAIL Address ________________________

Required Questions

1.  Gender ____Male ____Female      

2.  Type of Company_______________________
    (e.g. manufacturing, construction, financial, retail)

3.  Size of Company (number of employees)
    ____ Under 50  ____ 50-100 ____100-500   ____ Over 500

4.  Age (in years)
    ____ Under 25   ____ 25-35   ____ 36-55   ____ Over 55

5.  Years of Managerial Experience
    ____ Less than 2  ____ 2-5    ____ 5-10    ____ Over 10 

6.  Have you had significant managerial experience with
    the following? 
    (Check all that apply).
    ____ Sales  ____Marketing   ____Product Development         
    ____Finance
  
7.  Description of Managerial Position____________________

    ______________________________________________________

8.  Do you have an advanced degree in business 
    (e.g. MBA)? ____Yes ____No

9.  Would you like to obtain the results of our survey?
    ____Yes ____No 


Scenario 1 

How to Motivate Different Types of 
Salespeople in Your Branch

You have an MBA degree from the Drucker Center at the 
Claremont Graduate School and are 32 years old. You 
recently became the manager of three salespeople in 
your branch. It is your first experience at managing 
other employees. At the same time, you are a sales rep-
resentative and must adapt to your new dual responsi-
bility. You are interested in advice on how to manage 
effectively. Here is more information about your chal-
lenge. 

The sales force's long-term goals are to generate as 
many new customers and as much revenue as possible. 
Your group's task is to sell products to these custom-
ers or potential customers. Each Friday morning, you 
meet with your sales force. You check each person's 
previous weeks's performance and you set next week's 
short-term goals. You attempt to set an example for the 
group, and try to solve any problems that your sales-
people may have encountered. Your task is becoming 
increasingly more difficult because of the varying 
motivation of each individual in your group. Each indi-
vidual is profiled below.

Thomas, who is 29 years old, works very hard. He is an 
active contributor in meetings, and is very cooperative 
with you and others. In fact, he is one of the best 
salespeople among his colleagues. He sets his own goals 
which are higher than those given to him. Therefore, he 
requires little direction and you rarely need to advise 
him. 

Pat is the youngest sales representative, 24 years old, 
with one year at the company. Although Pat works very 
hard, Pat's performance is poor. Pat is required to 
persuade company presidents, mainly very powerful men, 
to purchase your product; and Pat has difficulty nego-
tiating with them. Pat's self-assessment is one of 
being very shy, not aggressive, and full of doubt about 
the ability to perform well in a sales role. 

Jack, on the other hand, is the oldest sales represen-
tative, at the age of 45, who is working under your man-
agement. Jack has reached a level in his career where 
his sales performance has levelled off. He has lost his 
passion for his job, but still works in order to support 
his family. Jack maintains his current customer base, 
but does not try to generate new clients. 

Questions - Scenario 1

1.  As a manager, how much of your effort should you 
spend working with Thomas? 
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not Much             Very Much

2.  Assume Thomas' concerns are building a career, 
obtaining job stability, and maintaining family com-
mitments. Which methods should you use to help him 
achieve these? 
Rank from 1 to 5 with 1 being least effective.
____Assist in Goal Setting
____Participation in Management Decisions
____Greater Responsibilities
____Monetary Rewards 
____Promotion

3.  Should Pat be ____transferred? ____fired? ____or does 
Pat have sufficient potential to become a successful 
salesperson?  Why? 
__________________________________________________

____________________________________________________

4.  Assume you will be retaining Pat. How effective would 
reward incentives be in motivating Pat?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Ineffective          Very Effective

5.  How effective would additional sales training pro-
grams be in motivating Pat?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Ineffective          Very Effective

6.  Are there other ways to motivate 
Pat?_____________________________________________

___________________________________________________

___________________________________________________

7.  Given the option, would you keep Jack in your group? 
____Yes ____ No

If no, why?__________________________________________

8.  How much can Jack be motivated to achieve higher 
goals (or is he stuck at his plateau)?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not At All           Very Much

9.  Assume you will be retaining Jack. How effective 
would job restructuring with new responsibilities be 
in motivating him?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Ineffective          Very Effective

10. How much should you use Thomas to help Pat and to 
motivate Jack?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not At All           Very Much

11. How much do you think that Pat and Jack would benefit 
from working together?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not At All           Very Much

Scenario 2 

Managing Group Dynamics which Resist Change

Bob Liter is a manager at American Lenders Corporation 
(ALC) where he oversees four people. He believes in a 
managing style which gives his workers substantial 
freedom. His weekly interaction with his group consists 
of a Monday meeting to discuss last week's progress and 
this week's goals. Once he assigns tasks to be done, he 
does not have much interaction with the group for the 
rest of the week. Recently, Bob had to replace Edward, 
who resigned. After several weeks of interviewing, Bob 
hired Mary Walker, an MBA graduate from Harrison Uni-
versity. Mary met all of Bob's desired job qualifica-
tions and was eager to start her career. His department 
got a new face which it had not had for over four years. 
As an added bonus, Mary had been trained in using Lend-
er's Aid TM, a new software program that ALC now 
required their departments to use to help process loans 
more efficiently.

Bob was very pleased with Mary's work. She was very pro-
ductive, enthusiastic, and cooperative. Whenever a new 
project came along, Mary was the first to contribute 
ideas. Her work was so strong that the company recog-
nized her with the "Worker of the Month" award for her 
second month at ALC. Bob was happy with his hiring deci-
sion. 

Bob's only problem at this point was that the others in 
his group, Mike, Rose, and Amy, refused to use Lender's 
Aid TM. They felt that their old system worked just 
fine. But ALC had set a nine month deadline for full 
implementation of the new software. Bob assigned Mary 
to show her co-workers the benefits of the program and 
to teach them how to use it. Mary encountered signifi-
cant resistance. Mike, Rose, and Amy were not willing 
to learn how to use this new system, especially from 
Mary, the newcomer and top performer. 

Four months later, Bob became concerned with his 
department. The surge in productivity it had enjoyed 
earlier had greatly declined. In reviewing his depart-
ment's individual performances, he found that Mary's 
productivity had slipped. Instead of Mary's enthusiasm 
and good work ethics raising the productivity of oth-
ers, the others' attitudes and work habits had lowered 
Mary's productivity. What has Bob done wrong?

Questions - Scenario 2

1.  How effective are Bob's managerial decisions?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Ineffective          Very Effective

2.  How much of the group's productivity problems are a 
result of Bob's "hands-off" management style?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not Much             Very Much

3.  Prior to hiring Mary, which methods should Bob have 
used to get his group productively using Lender's Aid 
TM? 
Rank from 1 to 4 with 1 being least effective.
____Financial Incentives        
____Group Participation in Implementation Decisions 
____Hiring person with Lender's Aid TM experience                       
____Group Training from Outsider 

4.  At present, which methods should Bob use to get his 
group productively using Lender's Aid TM? 
Rank from 1 to 4 with 1 being least effective.
____Financial Incentives                
____Group Participation in Remaining Decisions
____Threat of Demotion for Non-Performers                       
____Group Training from Outsider 

5.  If you had it to do over again, how likely would you 
be to hire Mary?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not Likely           Very Likely

6.  How much did Mary's assignment to train her co-work-
ers to use Lender's Aid TM have an impact on her pro-
ductivity?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
No Impact            Significant Impact

7.  If Edward were still working at ALC instead of Mary, 
how concerned would Bob be about group productivity?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Unconcerned          Very Concerned

8.  At present, how would you motivate Mary? 
____________________________________________________

____________________________________________________

____________________________________________________

Scenario 3

How to Influence Upper Management to
Promote Top Performer

Foundersclub is a leading company dominating a small 
product market. The seven founders, all males now in 
their mid-fifties, define a strong corporate culture 
emphasizing long working hours and significant social 
time with co-workers and clients. You were hired via 
referral five years ago and currently manage a group of 
skilled professionals who are working on the develop-
ment of Products X, Y, and Z. You have recently been 
notified of a new management position heading up the 
marketing and development of a new Product AA. The 
founders would prefer to hire from within and are look-
ing at two candidates with whom you have worked: John 
and Bill.

John is a seemingly tireless worker from the marketing 
group who has some product development background. He 
exhibits good judgement and fits in well with the cor-
porate culture. Friendly and impeccably dressed, John 
often lunches and golfs with the founders. Recently, 
while golfing with the CEO, John learned about Product 
AA prior to the official company announcement. 

Bill is the top performer in your group, whom you 
believe to be an even better candidate for the posi-
tion. He is not only friendly with good interpersonal 
and communication skills, but also really makes his 
mark with his technical expertise and superior ability 
to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of a situation. 
Bill's style, however, differs from those at Founder-
sclub. Bill often comes in early and takes work home, 
but he frequently leaves at 5:00pm to coach his daugh-
ter's soccer team. He also took five days of vacation on 
short notice during a busy production period to care 
for his youngest child during a bad illness. Bill is 
also an avid distance runner who spends his lunch hour 
running rather than dining with the company management. 
After lunch, he often appears hot and dishevelled, 
although he never runs on a day when he has to make pre-
sentations to customers. 

Recently, both John and Bill gave presentations as part 
of the Foundersclub Continuous Business Improvement 
program. Bill presented a thorough and insightful pro-
posal of how to overcome a long term production prob-
lem. If implemented, his plan would maintain quality 
and save Foundersclub 5% of its future manufacturing 
costs. John, however, stole the show with a timely and 
polished presentation of how to utilize established 
company marketing and sales techniques in marketing 
Product AA. The presentation was made just hours after 
the official announcement of the new Product AA oppor-
tunity. 

Your manager, one of the founders, is responsible for 
the promotion decision. He is highly impressed with 
John but has solicited your input. What do you tell him?

Questions - Scenario 3

1.  What do you tell your manager and what are the issues 
relevant to your recommendations? 

____________________________________________________

____________________________________________________

____________________________________________________

2.  Whom do you think the founders will hire?
    ____John   ____Bill 

3.  Are you, as a middle manager, in an effective posi-
tion to endorse your candidate? 
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Ineffective          Highly Effective

4.  How strongly would you promote your candidate? 
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Weakly               Very Strongly

5.  If Bill is passed over for promotion, what effect 
would this have on your own career?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
None                 Strong Effect

6.  If Bill is selected for promotion, what effect would 
this have on your own career?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
None                 Strong Effect

7.  If Bill is passed over for promotion, do you think he 
will leave the company?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not Likely           Very Likely

8.  If Bill is passed over for promotion, to what extent 
would the others in your group be demotivated?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not At All           Very Much

9.  If Bill routinely stayed late and never took vacation 
to handle family responsibilities, how much would his 
promotability be enhanced?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not At All           Very Much

10. If Bill never exercised at noon and frequently 
lunched with the management staff, how much would his 
promotability be enhanced? 
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not At All           Very Much

11. Are men in your group with family responsibilities 
likely to pattern their working hours and schedule 
after Bill's?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not Likely          Very Likely

12. How do you think Bill would rank his commitment 
shown by his working hours and schedule? 
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Insufficient         Quite Sufficient 

13. Do you think Bill's post running appearance would 
affect his ability to be a top manager at the com-
pany? 
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
No Effect            Very Negative Effect

14. How do you think Bill views the effect of his post 
running appearance on his ability to be a top manager 
at the company? 
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
No Effect            Very Negative Effect

15. Would a formal procedure for internal promotions, 
with posted objective criterion and rankings, be 
effective for making promotion decisions such at this 
one?
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not Effective        Very Effective

16. Would input from candidate peers and subordinates be 
useful for making promotion decisions such at this 
one? 
1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Not Effective        Very Effective

Final Questions and Comments 

1.  Please feel free to provide any comments and/or ques-
tions about any of the three scenarios or about the 
survey in general. 

____________________________________________________

____________________________________________________

____________________________________________________

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