WORK MOTIVATION OF FAMILY AND NON-FAMILY EMPLOYEES AT SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES (SMEs)

The paper discusses the similarities and differences in the perception of the importance and satisfaction with various factors of work motivation in 72 family and non-family employees from 22 small and medium enterprises in the County of Varaždin. On the same sample the differences with respect to hierarchy within the enterprise were analysed. The perception of work satisfaction and employee motivation was compared with the perception of the company owners. The results show that family and non-family employees are motivated by different work motivation factors at varying degrees of satisfaction. Some of the differences obtained from the study may be attributed to hierarchical differences within the company, but the results also point to some specifics of the family employees' positions. Furthermore, significant differences have been found in the work motivation perception between employees at higher levels of hierarchy and those at lower levels of hierarchy, which is consistent with previous research studies. Finally, the results indicate that company owners, although they are aware of the differences between family and non-family employees, tend to overestimate the work satisfaction of both groups.