Over-attendance

The curious reverse of the workplace Absenteeism problem: Presenteeism...

We all know about the ever-growing external pressures that force us to work longer and longer hours. But we seldom notice one other pressure from within - the curious psychological need for some people to over-attend. This is so widespread that it has earned a formal definition: Presenteeism.

Obviously this can be seen as part of the puritan ethic, celebrating the virtues of hard work per se. At first glance, it looks like simple punctuality taken to an exaggerated level, too much of a good thing.

But our automated hi-tech culture has clashed oddly with puritanism, greatly confusing those who are loyally trying to do their best. First, we have the permanent sense of emergency generated by the email and mobile-phone way of life. Almost without a word of excuse or explanation, a manager can write-off our planned evening with a single text-message or one click on ‘CC’ or ‘FWD’, indicating something that looks like a crisis. So against our will, we often have to attend more than is sensible or healthy.

On top of this pressurisation, there is a further Puritan effect - guilt at going home while our colleagues are still at work. So we may over-attend for that reason.

And then perhaps deeper still is the psychological need to be needed, the dread of feeling redundant - mixed-in with genuine fear for our jobs, and a desperate urge to make gestures of loyalty and high performance. This leads us to generate an artificial sensation of heroic effort. “Do you realise how late I worked last night… Do you realise how early I got in this morning…”
It also leads to the bad habit of attending the workplace while ill.

And this is what has turned Presenteeism into a political issue, with unions worried about the cumulative effects on an employee’s health, and management chiefly alarmed at the potential spread of some infectious disease around the workplace.

But both sides are increasingly coming to accept that attendance while ill is a bad idea altogether. It stands to reason that unwell employees are not going to perform at anywhere near their full efficiency. At the least, this will have a harmful impact on team performance. At the worst, it could lead to some catastrophic error, with knock-on effects for the entire corporate output. And that is quite apart from possible long-term effects of a workforce below normal health levels.

Managers are now starting to see the sense of sending employees home if they are struggling to attend while ill - or sometimes, even if they are not ill, but there is simply nothing for them to do. It is worth noting generally that long hours do not always translate into more effective output, and that they may stem from inefficient time management anyway. Managers should also check that they are not setting an example of working over-long hours, which their employees are trying to emulate.

Key points about over-attendance

· Many employees have a psychological need to work long hours
· This is partly exaggerated loyalty and partly fear of redundancy
· It often leads to attendance while ill, which lowers performance

Carole Spiers - World Leading Authority on Corporate Stress.BBC Broadcaster. Motivational Speaker. Author.Carole Spiers Group gives authoritative advice on healthy corporate culture and the human aspects of workplace stress, including workplace bullying, post-trauma and organizational change.

Their publications and sales CDs have been sold globally and see their Stress Management catalogue - http://tinyurl.com/2xe4seTo sign up for their FREE stress management updates and stress tips, click http://tinyurl.com/29qr5p or for more information email info@carolespiersgroup.co.uk or telephone +44 (0) 29 8954 1593.

Check out their website - www.carolespiersgroup.co.uk

The Outsider as Mediator

Carole Spiers explains why impartiality is crucial in achieving compromise and re-starting dialogue.

Workplace stress often leads to situations where colleagues refuse to work together or even speak to each other. This could be anything from worry about a forthcoming merger to a dispute about pay or working conditions or a complicated argument between individuals or departments. At these times, mediation is an important first step to re-starting talks and avoiding costly work stoppages.

A good mediator needs several obvious qualifications (and qualities), such as credibility and trustworthiness, good communication and people-handling skills and ideally, specialist experience of mediation itself. But the key qualification is outsider status - the sheer fact of not being identified with either side. Also, if ‘familiarity breeds contempt’, then a new face around the building is liable to be treated with natural courtesy and consideration, a good atmosphere in which to launch a mediation exercise.

Being a neutral observer and listener gives the mediator powerful advantages, both on the rational problem-solving level and in the deeper irrational zone of suspicions, prejudices and repressed feelings.

On the rational side, the most obvious benefit is that the mediator will not be affected by the outcome of the dispute either way, so discussions can be entirely open and objective. It also removes a major obstacle to clear dialogue, and that is possible association with the various players in the dispute. By being a total stranger to everyone involved, the mediator can rightfully insist on a purely logical account of the events and the issues from their beginnings, with individuals identified by their job-title, rather than their name. In other words, it discourages lazy explanations that fall back on “Usual trouble when Sayeed gets upset” or “You know what Fatima is like.”

This reasonable pressure to communicate in proper boardroom style may lead to a clearer view of the problem, in which you may both see down to its roots for the first time. In addition, the outsider is able to contribute a fresh analytical perspective that may prompt a workable solution sooner rather than later.

On the irrational side - which tends to grow bigger as the dispute drags on - the neutral mediator represents an important channel for the discharge of emotion and the expression of strong feelings within a safe forum, which may assist in the de-escalation of the conflict. Also firmly in the irrational zone is shuttle diplomacy, where a proposition that would not be listened-to from the original negotiator, is acceptable if spoken by the mediator - literally, the very same words.

This demonstrates the function of mediation as a valuable lubricant, with the mediator occupying a non-judgmental role, not apportioning blame, and this may encourage rapport and revelations in confidence which can bring the perception of a grievance back into proportion.

Key points about impartiality in a mediator

• An outsider is not affected by the dispute, and so can be truly neutral
• Being a stranger, the mediator can demand a clear account of the dispute
• The non-judgmental atmosphere acts as a channel for unexpressed emotions

Carole Spiers - World Leading Authority on Corporate Stress.
BBC Broadcaster. Motivational Speaker. Author.

Carole Spiers Group gives authoritative advice on healthy corporate culture and the human aspects of workplace stress, including workplace bullying, post-trauma and organizational change.

Their publications and sales CDs have been sold globally and see their Stress Management catalogue - http://tinyurl.com/2xe4seTo sign up for their FREE stress management updates and stress tips, click http://tinyurl.com/29qr5p or for more information email info@carolespiersgroup.co.uk or telephone +44 (0) 29 8954 1593.

Check out their website - www.carolespiersgroup.co.uk

Workplace bullying

Workplace bullying is costing UK plc millions of pounds in lost production,absenteeism and poor industrial relations. CIPD survey makes interesting reading says Carole Spiers Leading International Authority on Corporate Stress. She recommends that organisations have a robust policy on workplace bullying and and as a professional speaker - www.carolespiers.com - Carole is doing her bit to raise the profile of this important issue. email Carole info@carolespiersgroup.co.uk if you would like more information on how to tackle workplace bullying.

Workplace Bullying

Office Bullying On The Increase
Jan 20 2008

"WORKPLACE bullying levels are sky high according to a report that claims four out of five workers have been victims.

New research by the Samaritans also revealed that a third of people who suffer are so stressed they have considered leaving their jobs.

The survey, carried out for Stress Down Day on February 1, found almost a third feel employers turn a blind eye to their employees' stress".

Leading Authority on Corporate Stress Carole Spiers says that If workplace bullying is an issue for your organisation then it is time to look at the root cause and implement a zero tolerance policy on bullying behaviour and violence in the workplace.For more information on how to achieve this go to: www.carolespiersgroup.co.uk

Motivational Speaker Carole Spiers Tell You How To Deal With Declining Employee Performance

Having to backtrack through the normal stages of training...

The training-up of a new team-member is a well-established process, conducted in a logical sequence of four stages: directing, coaching, supporting, delegating.

But when dealing with a case of declining performance, you may find yourself having to reverse the process and take the employee back one stage - or more.

One big obstacle is the emotive factor, often involving a clash of egos, with the manager growing impatient with the employee’s performance, and the employee sulking about percived injustices. But the way past this is very unemotive - a disciplined routine, where both sides define the situation with the utmost clarity and candour.

Mutually focusing on a specific

Instead of trying to rationalise the whole of what may be a big, complex problem, single-out one aspect of it for scrutiny.

If it’s a performance point, collect all the factual evidence in support. If it’s a behaviour, log the impressions you have received about it. This may be the first time the topic has received so much scrutiny from both angles - not only how the employee is deemed to have failed, but also how the organisation as a whole might have failed to provide adequate support.

Now invite the employee to a meeting, to try and pool your thoughts. First spell-out the problem precisely. The employee must listen carefully enough to be able to repeat back to you every point you have made. Then the employee must spell-out the problem, but from their own angle, and you repeat back their perception of the situation. (This may be the first time that you two colleagues have ever conversed on a meaningful level.)

Working towards a resolution

Now you must identify areas of agreement about the issue. If there is not enough common ground for you to work together, revisit the problem, and you may find you can both dig deeper into it and find a solution.

Then you have to judge how far to take the employee back down the training path, by judging their degree of commitment. They may have to go back to ‘directing’ level (maximum supervision). Or ‘coaching’ (progress-meetings). Or ‘supporting’ (extra resources made available). But hopefully, you will soon be back on the level of ‘delegating’ - the ideal deployment of manager and employee.

Carole Spiers is a sought-after International Motivational Speaker and BBC Broadcaster. She is a Leading International Authority on Corporate Stress and founder of Carole Spiers Group (CSG), one of the UKs leading stress management consultancies, whose psychological insights have improved productivity for clients such as Sainsbury’s, Unilever, Tecom (Dubai), the Bank of England, and many others.

CSG gives authoritative advice on healthy corporate culture and the human aspects of workplace stress, including workplace bullying, post-trauma and organizational change. Carole is Author of Tolley’s ‘Managing Stress in the Workplace’ and ‘Turn Your Passion Into Profit.’

Their publications and sales CDs have been sold globally and see their Stress Management catalogue - http://tinyurl.com/2xe4se
To sign up for their FREE stress management updates and stress tips, click http://tinyurl.com/29qr5p or for more information email info@carolespiersgroup.co.uk or telephone +44 (0) 29 8954 1593.
Check out their website - www.carolespiersgroup.co.uk

Millions Of Brits Take Their Work On Holiday - UK News Headlines

Millions Of Brits Take Their Work On Holiday - UK News Headlines Stress continues to blight many organisations and the long term effects of stress on employees brought about by taking their work on holiday will not help to reduce the cost of workplace stress or reduce the number of ill health retirements due to stress burnout. UK Stress Guru Carole Spiers is adamant that employees should ensure that they get two clear weeks away from work every year to enable them to recharge their batteries fully. For more information on personal stress management go to www.carolespiersgroup.co.uk

Motivational Speaker Carole Spiers explains that a healthy workplace culture comes from inspiration, not regulation

Just the other year, a startling new phrase ‘toxic culture’ became part of the verbal diet of HR departments and professional counselling teams. It was not actually describing anything very new. But it did put out a depressing signal about the general workplace atmosphere after so many decades of legislation about working hours and conditions, employee welfare and pollution control.

By now, it was supposed, sickness and absenteeism would have melted away, shopfloor violence would be unheard-of, strikes would be a distant memory, and team morale would have improved so much that the subject wouldn’t need mentioning.

Instead, managements are having to cope with cycles of low morale, leading to poor performance and profitability - which in turn threaten the jobs of good and bad employees alike.
What is their best route towards a healthy corporate culture ?

The regulations - all part of the problem

We’ve all heard of well-meant laws that turn out to have the opposite effect from the one intended (Prohibition in America, for example.) Well, it’s possible to see a parallel in the soaring piles of workplace regulations, originally designed to keep rogue-bosses in line, with the government effectively taking over large parts of their responsibilities.

But you can’t get something for nothing. If you inhibit the power of management to manage, you are tying the hands of the young leaders, and preventing them from making those bold, imaginative leaps which fuel innovation and create jobs. In other words, preventing them from applying necessary leadership.

In April 2007, Personnel Today reported a serious leadership crisis in UK business, with a majority of managers admitting that they felt under-confident about their leadership skills.
Let’s see how this works in practice.

Vacuum of command

A good young manager wants to show a prospective new client around the works. But owing to a technical fault, the temperature in the boiler-room is one degree hotter than permitted, and nobody may pass through. The visit has to be cancelled and the contract is lost, along with a number of new jobs.

How do we read this situation? Is it a case of men driven to their limit by appalling shopfloor conditions? No, they have walked out on a technicality, simply because they were allowed to. There has been a vacuum of command and they have felt no urge to support their employer.
If the manager had been allowed to manage, the workforce would have been assured of his goodwill in keeping the temperature comfortable, and probably wouldn’t have noticed a one-degree fluctuation. Even if they had, they would be likely to back him.

The management of change

That was one small and simple case, just to illustrate the point about conflicting loyalties. Many real-life cases revolve around a much bigger and more complex issue: the management of change.

Now this represents a massive challenge in confronting a workforce with unwelcome truths, and often having to explain what look like broken pledges, such as job-for-life.
It also represents a massive opportunity for managers to throw away the rule-book (because the rule-book can do so little about change) and provide active and inspiring leadership - sometimes in an eve-of-battle spirit that may encourage a bold, risk-taking attitude among people who had never thought that way before.

Change management is a wide brief that places great demands on your communication skills, your imagination, and your gift for making rapport with different human types. You may be having to introduce a low-tech workforce to unfamiliar new IT systems. You may be having to mastermind a big relocation, perhaps against strong resistance. You may be having to enforce the latest diversity laws with appropriate tact and sensitivity. You may be having to steer your team around the pitfalls of a merger or takeover.

The three standard responses to forthcoming change

Welcoming ...
Seeing the need for change. Able to understand the strategic aims driving it. Perceiving opportunities it can bring for their own career. These people are your natural allies. You could train them with formal change-management courses.

Resisting ...
Mistrusting the new and the untried. Wanting to cling to 'familiar furnishings'. Feeling cheated out of expectations based on no-change. These people need sophisticated counselling, using 'active listening' to diagnose their problems and frame solutions.

Undecided ... Agonising on the brink. Suffering from conflicting loyalties and contradictory impulses that inhibit performance. These people are suffering from a high degree of stress, requiring specialist interventions.

In managing corporate change as it affects your employees’ life and work, you are also demonstrating the steady change in the role of management itself. Away from coercion towards persuasion. Away from hierarchies towards the encouragement of empowerment through self-development. Away from petty rules sometimes enforced out of spite by the ‘little-guy-with-a-bit-of-power’, towards working with loyalty and love, like a craftsman.

Helping to create a corporate culture that is healthy physically, healthy mentally, healthy spiritually.

Carole Spiers is an International Motivational Speaker and founder of Carole Spiers Group, one of the UKs leading stress management consultancies, whose psychological insights have improved productivity for clients such as Sainsbury’s, Tecom (Dubai), Unilever, the Bank of England and many others. www.carolespiersgroup.com gives authoritative advice on healthy corporate culture and both the human aspects of workplace stress, including workplace bullying, violence, post-trauma, redundancy, absenteeism and stalled negotiations. Carole is Author of Tolley’s ‘Managing Stress in the Workplace’ and ‘Turn Your Passion Into Profit’

Their publications and sales CDs have been sold globally. To sign up for their FREE stress management updates and stress tips – click http://tinyurl.com/zxbgo or for more information email info@carolespiersgroup.com or telephone +44 (0) 29 8954 1593. www.carolespiersgroup.com

Meet Carole Spiers in person at her Self-Marketing Bootcamp ‘Turn Your Passion Into Profit’ in central London, Thursday June 28th 2007. And discover the fastest way to grow your new business, gain clients, boost profits – all on a zero budget! Click here http://www.turnyourpassionintoprofit.co.uk/ to book your space before all tickets are sold out.