Abstract:

This work investigates how the motivation and commitment of people at work influence the management of educational institutions. Additionally, the role of the manager in the context of school administration is also studied. The case study method, applied to a Brazilian public higher education institution (HEI), was followed.

The data were obtained through a questionnaire survey, which included three scales:
(a) motivation for work following Herzberg's conceptual framework;
(b) organizational commitment following Meyer and Allen's conceptual framework; and
(c) management roles following Mintzberg's conceptual framework.

A sample of 61 workers was obtained, corresponding to 65% of the population of the higher education institution. Of the respondents, 38 (62%) were women, 31 (51%) are under 40 years of age, 42 (69%) are married, a large majority (97%) have higher education qualifications, and 29 (48%) were professors.

Regarding motivation at work, the professionals of the HEI feel professionally fulfilled, consider their work challenging and interesting, have professional growth and have been promoted, are satisfied with the supervision received, with the policies and administration of the HEI, and have a good interpersonal relationship with the management. However, they do not feel that their work gives them status, nor do they feel that their work is recognized by managers. The three items that generate the greatest professional satisfaction are professional achievement, professional recognition, and salary.

Regarding organizational commitment, HEI employees have a high affective commitment, moderate normative commitment, and low instrumental commitment. As far as the roles of the manager are concerned, the roles most frequently played are those of figurehead, liaison, disseminator, spokesperson, entrepreneur, resource allocator, and negotiator.

The case study carried out makes it possible to identify areas for improving the management of educational organizations, particularly in the human resources management domain. Clues for future research are also identified.

Keywords:

Higher education institutions, motivation, commitment, Mintzberg's Management Roles.