Last month, we followed along as Jane and Bob examined
motivation and how each team member is motivated
differently. Now, Jane and Bob are looking at how to
improve employee retention by creating an environment that
reduces stress while improving energy and morale.
Statistics consistently show that employees leave companies
more often because of unhappiness with their role or
environmental conditions rather than compensation.
What kind of environmental conditions?
Environmental stressors include change (especially big
changes), which can include:
• new department head
• downsizing
• merger or acquisition
• team member challenges
• new job responsibilities or project
Jane and Bob need to be aware that these issues cause
stress. While there isn’t anything they can do about these
conditions (when you need a new department head, you need
one!), they can be aware that they are stressful.
Then, there are home stressors.
Sometimes stressors are from employees’ home life. For
example, someone gets a promotion and all the sudden, he is
working very long hours. Maybe it’s not a problem with his
home life, or maybe it is. It’s important to be aware of
the possible problems that might arise that could cause
stress.
Having a star employee whose home life is a wreck is
eventually going to become Jane and Bob’s problem at work.
Be aware.
What stress does to a company
Stress causes energy drains in staff, reduced productivity,
increased mistakes, and a reduced amount of patience and
tolerance. Obviously, none of this is good for Jane and
Bob, the team, the company, the clients, or you.
With many people who are stressed, they don’t communicate
their issues, and so their course of action is flight or
fight. We already know that stress causes less tolerance,
and minor scrapes or big blowups are likely to occur
somewhere (fight). Let’s just hope it’s not with your most
important client.
When flight occurs, the employee simply leaves. Perhaps
the first time you are aware there was a problem was when
she resigns. By then, it’s too late.
The improving-energy-and-morale part
As we reduce stress, an individual’s energy and morale both
improve. It’s a direct inverse ratio: decrease one; the
other increases.
To continue on their path of decreasing stress and
improving energy and morale, Jane and Bob watch for areas
that might increase stress for an individual and then
address it. Ignoring it and hoping it will go away is more
likely to make the person go away, not the problem.
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Linda Finkle, CEO of INCEDO GROUP, works with innovative
leaders around the world who understand that business needs
a new organizational growth style. These innovative leaders
know that powerful cross-functional communication is the
highest priority and the strongest strategy for building
organizational effectiveness. To find out more, visit:
http://www.IncedoGroup.com
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