FLIGBY at Military, Part 1: The Relevance of Measuring Intrinsic Motivation
Intrinsic Motivation: The Foundation of High-Performance Teams
As NATO adapts to a more complex global landscape, intrinsic motivation will become a core determinant of military success. By making intrinsic motivation a key component of personnel selection and development, NATO can build resilient, high-performing teams capable of excelling in extreme environments. Tools like FLIGBY, which measure and strengthen intrinsic motivation, will play a pivotal role in preparing armed forces to meet future challenges with unwavering commitment and cohesion.
In NATO’s increasingly dynamic operational environment, diverse groups—both multigenerational and interdisciplinary—are critical to achieving high performance. The ability to unite individuals with different skills, experiences, and perspectives requires more than technical proficiency; it demands a shared commitment to the mission. This is where intrinsic motivation becomes a decisive factor.
Intrinsic motivation—the internal drive to succeed fueled by personal values, purpose, and a sense of fulfillment—directly influences team cohesion, resilience, and long-term performance. Armed forces must prioritize understanding, measuring, and fostering intrinsic motivation to ensure that their personnel are aligned with the community’s mission and capable of thriving in the most demanding conditions.
Why Intrinsic Motivation Matters
Intrinsic motivation is the driving force that empowers individuals to pursue goals with passion and commitment, particularly in high-pressure environments such as military operations. For NATO, fostering intrinsic motivation among personnel is essential for ensuring alignment with the mission and enhancing team cohesion across diverse groups. As armed forces face increasingly complex challenges, understanding and leveraging intrinsic motivation will be key to achieving operational effectiveness and sustaining resilience in extreme conditions.
- Aligning Diverse Teams with a Unified Purpose – NATO forces are inherently diverse, comprising individuals from different nations, generations, and disciplines. Intrinsic motivation ensures that team members are driven by a shared sense of purpose rather than external pressures. This alignment fosters collaboration, reduces friction, and significantly enhances operational efficiency, highlighting the crucial role of each individual’s contribution to the team’s success.
- Mission Effectiveness in Extreme Environments – In challenging theaters of operation, external rewards may lose their influence in sustaining morale. In such situations, intrinsic motivation, rooted in personal commitment and belief in the mission, becomes the ultimate source of strength and perseverance during prolonged or high-stress operations.
- Resilience and Adaptability – Individuals with high levels of intrinsic motivation tend to exhibit greater psychological resilience and adaptability. Their internal drive enables them to remain focused and resourceful, even in the face of uncertainty or adversity, which is essential for maintaining operational effectiveness in extreme environments.
Intrinsic Motivation in Multigenerational and Interdisciplinary Teams
Armed forces’ teams often span multiple generations and disciplines, bringing together individuals with varying expectations, communication styles, and professional goals. Intrinsic motivation serves as the common ground that bridges these differences. Here’s why:
- Multigenerational Teams – Generational diversity can bring both opportunities and challenges. Younger personnel may value purpose and innovation, while seasoned leaders may prioritize stability and tradition. Measuring intrinsic motivation helps identify shared values and ensures that all team members feel a sense of connection to the mission.
- Interdisciplinary Collaboration – NATO’s reliance on joint operations means that personnel from different fields—logistics, intelligence, engineering, and combat units—must work together seamlessly. Intrinsic motivation fosters trust and mutual respect, crucial for effective interdisciplinary collaboration.
Pioneering Intrinsic Motivation Measurement
ALEAS Group, the developer of simulation-based technologies, is at the forefront of addressing the challenge of measuring intrinsic motivation in dynamic, operational contexts. Recognizing the importance of this capability for building high-performing, mission-ready teams, ALEAS has integrated a specialized layer into its solutions to assess and analyze players’ intrinsic motivational drivers.
In cooperation with Paramount’s CtrlMovie, ALEAS introduced this advanced layer in the interactive movie “Late Shift,” an experiential simulation that immerses participants in complex decision-making scenarios. By tracking players’ choices, reasoning, and emotional engagement, ALEAS can identify and measure the intrinsic factors that guide their actions. This data provides actionable insights into how individuals align with mission goals and team dynamics.
Preparing Armed Forces for Motivation Analysis
To fully integrate intrinsic motivation into team-building and selection processes, the military must invest in the following areas:
- Training Leaders to Recognize and Cultivate Motivation – Leadership training programs should include modules on understanding and fostering intrinsic motivation. Commanders and decision-makers must be equipped to identify motivational factors and use them to inspire their teams.
- Incorporating Motivation Metrics into HR Systems – Armed forces should integrate motivation assessment tools into their human resource systems. These tools can be used during recruitment, performance evaluations, and team composition planning to ensure that personnel are not only skilled but also deeply committed to the mission.
- Leveraging Simulation Tools – Platforms, like FLIGBY, provide a safe space to practice measuring and analyzing intrinsic motivation in a simulated environment. By presenting participants with complex leadership scenarios, people skills simulations reveal their underlying motivational drivers and offer actionable feedback to enhance their self-awareness and team-building skills.
