Why employees (don’t) become managers: Employees’ desires and motivations behind succession to managerial positions in retail store environments

Abstract: This thesis thesis explores what desires and motivations lay behind employees’ succession to managerial positions in a store environment. Previous research focuses on how to develop good leaders, rather than how to make people want to become leaders, which is why this is an important topic. The method used is a qualitative case study at IKEA in Sweden, where a combination of qualitative questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used to collect empirical findings. The conclusion of this thesis revealed that a desire to develop oneself and a genuine interest in the job are reasons behind employees’ succession to managerial positions. In turn, these desires have the ability to generate internal motivation, which is the most sustainable type of motivation. However, the context in which the employee operates has a big effect on if the employees become motivated. There needs to be facilitating motivators present, such as support from the organization and a confidence in one’s own ability, in order for the motivation to actually be created. Further, other factors can create reluctance to become a manager, such as if the position comes with an unmanageable workload. If the reluctance is stronger than the motivation, succession to managerial positions will likely not occur, even though primary desires and motivation exist. There is a constant interplay between employees’ desires, motivation and reasons for reluctance, which are all influenced by the environment around them. Succession to managerial positions is most likely to happen when desires and motivators create an internal motivation which is stronger than and thereby outweighs the reluctance factors.