Click above for unique team building programme
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
Stress-Related
Illness At Work Can No Longer Be Ignored By Organizations Striving To Be
Competitive. Why Does Health Matter?
Workplace stress, anxiety and burnout are becoming
more and more pronounced and widespread throughout the workforce. In July 20,
2000 the Economic and Business Roundtable on Mental Health published a study,
"The Unheralded Business Crisis in Canada - Depression at Work" that
showed that the cost of these and other mental illnesses at work is growing
exponentially. Unfortunately there are many other hidden costs that can also be
ascribed to this source of unhealth or "dis-ease". Organizations
where staff are working under conditions of debilitating stress or along side
others who are over-stressed experience:
- decreasing
employee satisfaction;
- increased
use of Employee Assistance Program services (EAP);
- social
and work disruption caused by individuals who under-perform or who are
often absent, increasing the stress on everybody;
- increased
conflict;
- lowered
innovation and collaboration and motivation;
- decreasing
meeting of deadlines; and
- most
serious of all, a reduced quality of customer service.
Clearly all these indirect costs add up to more
than those measured above. In fact, in Canada in 1999, the associated costs of
lowered productivity absenteeism and drugs prescribed specifically for these
illnesses are currently estimated over $8 billion. That is equivalent to 13.4
% off the annual operating profits of Canadian enterprises.
However all is not black. A study by Sears Roebuck in
the USA has shown that where there is an increase of 5% in employee
satisfaction, there occurs a 1.3% increase in customer loyalty. In turn this
provides an increase in the bottom line of 0.5%. So where staff and managers
begin to thrive, all other company success measures begin to move in the right,
more profitable direction. As health rises, innovation, collaboration and
productivity increase. Processes flow more smoothly. Staff retention is improved
dramatically.
What is really interesting about today's situation
is the wall of silence and denial about this in our organizations. In spite of
the scale of what this increasing "dis-ease" is costing, it is not
measured and little or no leadership attention or focus is given to this
scourge. Most of the executives we have spoken to about this issue, claim to
have it well under control. "We have a wonderful EAP program!" they
say.
It is possible to build healthy organizations. It
is also possible to measure your progress towards that goal with leading
indicators. The Sears study shows how these indicators predict future
performance.
Read further.............
- What Do We Mean By A Healthy Organization?
- What Are The Sources Of "Dis-Ease" In Organizations?
- How Do We Move Our Organizations To Health?
- The Competitive Edge
What Do We Mean By
A Healthy Organization?
Every human being or human system such as an
organization has three states on a continuum. At one end there is Distress or
Dis-ease in the middle is Normality and at the other extreme is Health.
A state of Distress or Dis-ease is that sum of
personal and work environmental conditions and stress that result in the
individuals in an organization performing individually and collectively below
expectations and potential as well as below the industry average. Where (2 + 2
< 4) In the human being this could be compared to an average couch potato.
The state of Normality is that condition where the
individual performance and the organizational performance is at expected levels
and comparable to the industry average. Where (2 + 2 = 4) e.g. a regular
exerciser or active sportsman or woman.
Health then, is that state in individuals and their
organizations that allows them to perform at levels far above what might
possibly be expected, even by themselves - certainly higher than any of their
competitors. This is where the organization becomes best in class,
regenerative, agile and resilient. (Where 2 + 2 > 4) e.g. a world class
athlete continually moving beyond his or her own limitations.
If no ongoing stimulation of the healthy system
takes place, this healthy system will gradually lapse into a new form of
normality, with its resulting restricting paradigms, fixed attitudes and
behavioral habits that naturally grow out of the new way of working.
What Are The
Sources Of "Dis-Ease" In Organizations?
Many studies of health at work have pinpointed that
there are two avoidable causes of stress in the organization. The reverse is
also true, that there are two dependable sources of generating health and
thriving in the workplace. The most important source of health is the
leadership style and behavior of the individual's immediate supervisor, the
second source is the organizational practices that spark creativity,
collaboration and the impulse to take initiative to make things happen in
extra-ordinary ways.
Our research with clients has continued to show
that the leadership behaviors that encourage health are:
- giving
vision and direction while allowing individuals freedom to innovate and
take personal initiative
- sharing
clear expectations of what is required
- giving
frequent recognition and praise for good work and consistent feedback on
performance
- resolving
conflicts fairly and appropriately
- encouraging
development and learning
- being
supportive , trustworthy and treating everyone with respect
The same research shows that the organizational
practices that create a compelling place to work are:
- clear
company goals and the celebration of all successes
- encouraging
participation in decision making
- having
shared values that are practiced throughout the organization
- supplying
the right materials, tools and equipment to do the job
- encouraging
communication and knowledge transfer
- clear,
fair rewards
How Do We Move Our
Organizations To Health?
As the Quality movement showed in the early 1980's
the route is clear. There are three vital management tasks needed. They are
Measurement, Attention and Focus.
Health is a leading indicator of future success. We
have created a Health Index that clearly shows where the individual employee
and the overall organization is on the scale of Dis-ease to Normality to
Healthy. The survey instrument asks every individual in the organization to
rate their own well-being and the supporting leadership behaviors and
organizational practices. These results not only reveal the departments where
stress is becoming destructive, but also the level of thriving, innovation etc.
It pinpoints in detail what interventions or training are required to move the
whole organization towards health.
Management Attention is needed to monitor both the
ongoing level of health and the interventions moving the organization towards
health.
The Focus on health is a focus on future success
and needs as much attention as sales and other short-term results. Focusing on
creating the desirable leadership behaviors and organizational practices that
support health have shown remarkable short-term results.
The move to health can happen fast. A consulting
company working with a trans-national retailer with 140 stores across Canada,
has in only six months after administering our an Employee Engagement Survey
and helping them follow a change process, they found that the turnover of their
store management dropped from 38% to 13% in six months.
The competitive edge today is the ability of an
organization to tap the creative brain-power of its employees and to help them
translate good ideas into customer centered products and services. Only in a
Healthy organization can this happen. Health is the underlying driver of all
success. Are enough leaders giving organizational health enough measurement,
attention and focus? Probably not. However this is not because it is difficult
or expensive. Our clients have proved it. Moving towards health saves a great
deal of money and releases human energy and creativity.
