Management Skills II Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Management Skills II - Essay Example In this regard both organisation and individuals must take measures to alleviate such negative impacts of stress on the work performance. But before that the employees need to learn identify the signs which indicate that they are feeling stressed out. The employers also need to be aware of the signs of employee stress and the effects it has on the employees’ health as well as on the profits of the company. In this report we will look at the effects and outcomes of stress it has on the individuals and on organisation and how it can be managed best by both of them. Discussion General Stress Stress is defined as the way in how an employee feels when they have to respond to a change in demand in the workplace. Stress is a part of our life and it occurs when we faced with significant changes in our lives, whether it is positive or negative (NHS, 2013). There are some stresses which are okay, referred to as positive stress. The problem arises when the level of stress exceeds the thr eshold level of individuals affecting both the physical or mental behaviour of the people. Different employees have different abilities to cope with the stress. But there are situations which are categorized as being stressful, including financial worries, unemployment, work overload, relationships, balancing both work and family, parenting, health problems, caregiving, losses, competitiveness, exams, peer pressure and not having enough time to cope with the pressure (Bickerstaff, 2008, p. 42). Stress is how the employees respond to the normal stressors in the environment. Sources of Stress at Workplaces There can be a number of situations for stress to occur at the workplace. There are a number of categories of Job Stressors which the employees feel at the workplace. The first Category is Factors which are unique to the job. These include situations like Work overload or under load. Again the Pace, variety and the meaningfulness of the work is another factor. Again the Autonomy is also a major stress factor. If an employee doesn’t have the freedom to make his own decisions about his job then he will feel stressed out. The Physical environment of the workplace also plays an important role (NHS, 2013). Then Isolation at the workplace leaves an emotional effect on the employees who feels that he is working alone. The Second category is Role which the employees perform at the organisation. This may happen in cases of Role conflict which they face. This happens when there are conflicting job demands, or multiple managers or supervisors which the employee has to face. Role ambiguity may also lead to stress for the employee. It indicates the lack of clarity about the expectations, responsibilities etc. about the job (Canadian  Centre  for  Occupational  Health  and  Safety,  2000, p. 1). Again the level of responsibility that the employee is given also affects his morale. The Third category is the Relationship of the employee with his colleagues . These include his relationships with Supervisors, Subordinates, and Peers. Since an employee has to deal with them every day, any unhealthy relationship may affect the moral and leads to increased stress at the workplace. The fourth Category is the Career development. In this category, any under promotion would increase the stress level. Again the job security is another important factor. If the employee is under constant fear of losing the job because of the downturn in the economy or lack of job, it will increase the stre