Let us assume that you are an owner of a large daycare center in the Central Texas area. There are about 2,000 kids in the center, and you employ about 400 daycare teachers. Your daycare center is the top choice among parents because you are well known for providing quality service for a low price. To appreciate the hard work of daycare teachers and motivate them to work harder, you are planning to implement the Employee of the Year Award. However, since your competitive advantage is providing the service at a lower price, you do not want the prize to be costly. Describe your plan for the award and evaluate the award from the Expectancy Theory perspective.

1) Describe your plan. Make sure that you provide answers to the following questions. What will be the prize? What will be the selection criteria for the award winner? How many winners? Keep in mind that you do not want the cost of the prize to be too high.

2) Evaluate the award program from the Expectancy Theory perspective. Evaluate the program using all three factors (valence, instrumentality, and expectancy) in the theory. Be clear about valence, instrumentality, and expectancy factors in your evaluation. Were these factors high or low, and did the award motivate the teachers or not?