CHAPTER-1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Throughout the eighties and into the nineties, work stress has continu continued ed to rise dramat dramatical ically ly in organiza organizatio tions. ns. The eighti eighties es saw employees employees stressing stressing out from working in a rapidly rapidly growing economy. During the nineties, beginning from the recession of 1992 till present day, employees are stressed by their own job insecurities in the face of massive downsizing and restructuring of organizations in order to be competitive on the global stage.
Thus, when the stress levels am ong the employees begin to rise as they deal with more and more clients, they would put up an even greater resistance to their own emotions. Over time, the professional may not be able to relax that emotional resistance. A ll ll
t he he i r
e mo mo ti ti on on s
t he he ms ms el el ve ve s, s,
w ou ou ld ld
r es es ul ul ti ti ng ng
be
m as as k ke ed
u lt lt im im at at el el y
in
a nd nd
m en en ta ta l
r e ta ta in in e ed d a nd nd
w it it hi hi n
e mo mo ti ti on on al al
disorders. In stressful times, employees are often displeased or a ng ng ry ry
at
s om om et et h in in g. g.
H o we we v e err,
t he he re re
a re re
us u ua a ll ll y
l im im it it ed ed
channel channels s in which which employ employees ees can expres express s their their views. views. Since Since opinions, views, and feelings cannot always be expressed to anyo anyone ne to chan change ge the the curr curren entt situat situatio ion, n, ther there e would would be an accumulation of anger and frustration within the individual. Up to a certain point, the anger would be released, usually at the wrong person or time, such as colleagues, clients, or family members. This symptom has a tremendous impact on society because there is a potential that it m ay hurt other people. S tr tr es es s i s a
co on n di di ti ti on on
o r f ee ee li li ng ng
e xp xp er er ie ie nc nc e d w he he n a
person perceives that demands exceed the personal and social resources the individual is able to mobilize.
1
A certain amount of stress is good for us as it can encourage change and activity. But if we are under too much stress our ability to function effectively suffers. When working in a team environment our stress is relayed to the rest of the team resulting resulting in a decline of team performance making
team team
build building ing
an
i m pe pe r a t i v e
goal .
Fo r
some
a
potential potential stressful situation leads to the effect of "riding on the c re re st st o f a w av av e" e" b ec ec au au se se i t g en en er er a te te s a c er er ta ta in in c he he mi mi ca ca l reactio reaction n in the body that that gives gives exhilar exhilaratio ation. n. For For others others,, the same circumstances circumstances lead to different different chemical reactions, reactions, which result in loss of performance. What is needed needed is environmental environmental and self-regula self-regulation. tion. Therefore stress management is a partnership between the employee and the employer. Isolation Isolation is a common side effect of working under tremendous tremendous stress. stress. For For many many servic service e practit practition ioners ers,, the clients clients that they they serve do not always readily welcome them. A prime example would be policemen who are shunned often by the public. Over time, time, a feel feeling ing of iso isola latio tion n and and rejec rejectio tion n would would enve envelo lop p the the perso person. n. The The natu natura rall thin thing g to do woul would d be to withd withdra raw w from from others who do not understand their plight, resulting in profound human
loneli nes s.
There
a re
muc h
other
short
term ,
psychological effects of stress that can be readily seen or felt.
Stress at workplace Feel Feeling ing stress stress in the the work work place place is a very very co comm mmon on issue issue in many many or orga ganiz nizat atio ions ns,, both both large large and and small small.. For For work worker ers, s, the the result result of such such stress stress is reduce reduced d job satisfa satisfactio ction. n. In extrem extreme e cases
this
can
degenerate
further
into
physical
and
psycho psycholo logi gical cal sympt symptom oms s such such as musc muscula ularr aches aches and and pains pains,,
2
weakened immunity, irritability and depression to name a few. This ultimately leads to feeling burnt out. For the organisation, organisation, there is also an impact. Firstly a worker that is suffering from stress and burn out will typically be quite unproductive because of absenteeism and/or less than satisfactory job performance. The impact on the organisation organisation will also vary depending on the type of role the worker worker engages in. For example a stressed stressed out s al al es es ma ma n
w ho ho
d ev ev el el op op s a
d et et ac ac hm hm en en t t ow ow ar ar ds ds
c li li en en ts ts
c an an
poten potentia tially lly affe affect ct the the publ public ic perc percep epti tion on of the or orga gani nisat satio ion. n. Similarly a stressed out worker involved in producing goods will not produce anywhere near his/her optimal output. There can also be an indirect impact on other fellow co-workers due to lower morale. Before one can look at how to deal with work place stress, it is important to look at the various sources of such stress. Stress will be either due to personal reasons or because of workplace issues. Personal stress can include anything unrelated to the actual workplace such as relationship issues, family conflicts, financ financia iall co conc ncer erns ns etc. etc. Wor orkpl kplac ace e stre stresse sses s will will be base based d on e i t h er er
the
nature
of
the
j ob ob
i t s el el f o r
the
n a tu tu r e
of
the
organization or both. The job itself may be too much of a load for the one person due to either lack of resources (people and equipment) or time. There may be some form of ambiguity as to
what
exactly
the
actual
role
of
the
job
is .
From
an
organizational perspective, there may be simply low morale due to
d ow ow ns ns iz iz in in g
o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io n wo orr ke ke rs rs
an nd d
m ay ay
f ai ai rl rl y. y.
Or
c os os t
a ls ls o
cu utt ti ti ng ng .
be
p er er h ap ap s
T he he
p er er ce ce iv iv ed ed t he he
m an an a ag g em em en en t as
a ct ct ua ua l
n ot ot
of
t re re at at in in g
c on on di di ti ti on on s
of
t he he t he he ir ir th e
workp workplac lace e are belo below w an ac acce cept ptabl able e stand standar ard. d. As work workpla place ce stress can be either either personal or organizational organizational,, addressing addressing and managing this stress will require a proactive approach from two 3
angles. Personally, there is a lot one can do to en sure that he/she is feeling content and happy including getting regular rest, exercising, eating well and even seeking professional help if necessary. If the stress is due to the nature of the role or o rg rg an an is is at at io io n, n, t he he n t he he w or or ke ke r m us us t s pe pe ak ak t o t he he r el el ev ev an an t authority, i.e. the manager or other individual, to discuss the concerns. If discussing this does not solve the issue, perhaps this the time to move on-there may be simply be not a good fit between the individual and the job, or the individual and the company.
We work with teams to help them understand the caus es of stress and how team-building initiatives can help them cope with it.
Stres Stress s relat related ed time time off off work work co cost sts s or organ ganiza izati tion ons s billio billions ns of pounds. To this can be added the effects of individual reduction of
p ro ro du du ct ct iv iv it i t y, y,
o p p o r t u n i ty ty,
and
i mp mp ai ai re re d the
j ud ud gm gm en en t, t,
i mp ac t
that
p oo oo r can
d ec ec is is io io ns ns ,
all
have
l os os t
on
the
organizations culture and customers, etc.
Management’s Role in Reducing Work Stress E mployee
stress
can
have
an
enormous
imp ac t
on
an
organ or ganiza izatio tion n in term terms s of co cost st.. As many many studie studies s have have shown shown,, there is a high correlation between stress and job performance. At mode modera rate te leve levels ls,, stre stress ss is bene benefi ficia ciall in that that it ca can n cause cause individuals to perform their jobs better and attain higher job perform performanc ance. e. Howeve Howeverr, at high levels, levels, stress stress1 1 can decreas decrease e productivity instead. This is the case often seen in employees at
many
o r g an an i za za t i on on s .
F u r t h er er m or or e , 4
a s id id e
from
c o s ts ts
associated with lost productivi ty, ty, there are costs with respect to s tr tr e es s ss- re re l at at ed ed
a b se se nt nt ee ee is is m
an nd d
o rg rg an an i za za ti ti on on a all
m ed ed i ca ca l
expen expense ses. s. Speci Specific fical ally ly,, thes these e inclu include de co cost sts s of lost lost co compa mpany ny time, increase in work-related, disrupting production, increase in health care costs and health insurance premiums, and most impor importa tant ntly ly,,
decre decreas ase e
in
produ producti ctivit vity y.
Ther There e
are are
nume numero rous us
methods that organizations organizations could adopt to reduce undue stress in their employees. However, measures taken to counter this proble problem m
are are
usual usually ly
tailo tailore red d
speci specifi fical cally ly
for for
the the
part particu icular lar
organiza organizatio tion. n. Theref Therefore ore,, this report report has chosen chosen two separa separate te a ct ct io io ns ns
w hi hi ch ch
a re re
f un un da da me me nt nt al al
t o m os os t o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io ns ns
t ha ha t
manage manageme ment nt ca can n take take Reduc Reductio tion n of Emplo Employe yee e St Stre ress ss as an Organiz Organizati ationa onall Po Policy licy.. The first first step step any organiz organizatio ation n should should take to help its employees reduce and cope with stress is to incorpo incorporat rate e into into the compan company y policie policies s a positiv positive e and specifi specific c intent on reducing undue stress. This would indicate that top management is committed to such a stress reduction program. Furthermore, the amendment to the policies should also include recognition that this initiative will benefit the achievement of other other or organ ganiza izati tion onal al goals goals by enha enhanc ncing ing the the produ product ctivi ivity ty of employees employees through lowered stress levels. After the inclusion of the
b road
mis si on
goal
of
red ucin g
emp loyee
stres s,
management should draft out plans which specifically lay out the provisions to accomplish that goal. As earlier mentioned, t he he re re
a re re
p ro ro vi vi si si on on s
m an an y
a pp pp ro ro ac ac he he s t o s tr tr es es s r ed ed uc uc ti ti on on ,
s ho ho ul ul d d et et ai ai l
o nl nl y
t he he
m et et ho ho ds ds
t hu hu s
s pe pe ci ci fi fi c
t he he
t o t he he
organisation. For example, they could specify that employees measures for the individual. In any case, the most important b eg eg in in ni ni ng ng
s t ep ep
is
a
t ot ot a l
re e-- ex ex am am in in a att io io n
a nd nd
re ev v is is io io n
of
company policies, plans, and procedures to enhance employees’ o wn wn
m et et ho ho ds ds
of
c op op in in g
w it it h 5
s tr tr es es s, s,
a nd nd
s im im ul ul ta ta ne ne ou ou sl sl y, y,
p ro ro mo mo te te
an
o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io na na l
c li li ma ma te te
w hi hi ch ch
a ct ct iv iv el el y
a ss ss is is ts ts
employees to minimize their stress.
Fun Fu n d am ame e nt ntal al
Tech Te chni niq q ue ues s
to
Empl Em ploy oyee ee
S tr tres ess s
Reduction One method method managem management ent can employ employ to alleviat alleviate e employ employee ee s tr tr e es s s is p re re s su su r e s
t o m ak ak e of
t he he m
w or or k .
f it it te te r
T h er er e
t o d ea ea l w it it h
a re re
t h r ee ee
t he he
basi c
e ve ve r yd yd ay ay
m a na na g e m e n t
techniques that would accomplish this goal. Managers should be clear about their expectations expectations of employees employees and clearly clearly convey convey thes these e
expe expecta ctati tion ons s
to each each
pers person on..
Secon Se condl dly y,
manag managem emen entt
should devise a performance-evaluation-feedback system such that each employee would be aware of his / her performance level based on the feedback received. Lastly, employees should be fully fully capable capable of perfor performin ming g their their job tasks. Stress arises when employees do not possess the necessary skills to carry on w it it h
t he he
p ro ro g r a ms ms
w or or k are
a ss ss ig ig ne ne d essential
to
t he he m. m.
to
Th e err e eff or or e e,,
r e d uc uc i ng ng
j ob ob -t -t r a in in in in g
a nx nx i et et y
and
s t r es es s
a ss ss oc oc ia ia te te d w he he n e mp mp lo lo ye ye es es f ee ee l t ha ha t t he he y d o n ot ot p os os se se ss ss sufficient sufficient skills or knowledge knowledge to perform perform the job that they were h ir ir e ed d
f or or.
U nd nd er er g o
p er er i od od ic ic
p hy hy s ic ic al al
a nd nd
ps y yc ch ho o lo lo g ic ic al al
examinations examinations and personnel personnel surveys to ascertain ascertain current stress l ev ev el el s. s.
A no no th th er er
a lt lt er er na na ti ti ve ve
w ou ou ld ld
be
to
p ro ro vi vi de de
p er er so so na na l
counsel counseling ing to employ employees ees to identif identify y undue undue stress stress levels levels and then to advise any corrective measures. Wor ork k stre stress ss place places s a very very high high toll toll on both both emplo employe yees es and employers. An employee subjected to high levels of stress could experience both physical and mental side effects. Physical side effec effects ts
such such
as
hyper hyperte tens nsion ion,,
coro co ronar nary y
disea disease se,,
infec infecti tion ons, s,
ulcers could greatly decrease the lifespan of the person. The
6
psychological psychological effects such as repressed repressed emotions, emotions, anger, anger, and i so so la la ti ti on on
h av av e
a
d ir ir ec ec t
n eg eg at at iv iv e
i mp mp ac ac t
on
o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io na na l
productivity. Thus, organisations have a great responsibility in redu reducin cing g the the stre stress ss of thei theirr empl employ oyee ees, s, and and in gene genera rall are concerned about their well being. There are numerous methods to counter the stress problem. The report has cited only the basics which are applicable to most organisations. The first step for management is to set out the intention to reduce employee employee s tr tr es es s
as
an
o rg rg an an is is at at io io na na l
g oa oa l. l.
P ro ro vi vi si si on on s
d et et ai ai li li ng ng
t he he
organisation’s planned approach should be drafted. Informing emplo employe yees es of manag managem emen ent’ t’s s expec expecta tati tion ons s is on one e meth method od to redu reduce ce a large large port portion ion of the the anxi anxiet ety y empl employ oyee ees s may may have have a bo bo u t
thei r
subor subordin dinat ates es
j ob ob s .
S e c o n dl dl y,
feed feedba back ck
on
m a na na g e m e n t
thei theirr
perf perfor orma mance nce..
must
p ro ro v i de de
Mana Ma nage geme ment nt
should should also also prov provide ide job job train trainin ing g for for all all empl employ oyee ees s to enab enable le t he he m t o
b et et te te r
p er er fo fo rm rm
t he he ir ir
j ob ob s a nd nd
re ed d uc uc e t he he
s tr tr e es ss
associ ass ociat ated ed with with the the feel feeling ing of inade inadequa quacy cy to perf perfor orm m on one’ e’s s duties. Stress is one of the principal causes of lost productivity productivity,, social breakd breakdown own and and ill-h ill-hea ealt lth. h. Adver Adverse se pres pressur sures es at work work or in social situations can cause it. Stress is incre increasi asing ngly ly reco recogn gnize ized d as a heal health th and and sa safet fety y at work issue. Employers can now face claims in the civil courts for damages for the breakdown of an employee's mental health. There could also be additional employment related effects with victims seeking compensation in the industrial tribunal courts for unfair dismissal, for a detriment because of a stress-related deterior deteriorati ation on in their their health health or for having having complai complained ned about about stress at work. work. The The or organ ganiza izatio tion’ n’s s main main obli obligat gatio ions ns are: are: to ensure, under the Health and Safety at Work Act etc, as far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety at work of 7
its employees, by ensuring that employees have a safe place of work, safe equipment and appliances with which to work and also a safe system of work to comply with health and safety l eg eg is is la la ti ti on on
a pp pp ro ro pr pr ia ia te te
to
i ts ts
w or or kp kp la la ce ce
to
c ar ar ry ry
o ut ut
r is is k
assessments (and this could increasingly be taken to include stress audi audits) ts) and put put in place place appr appropr opria iate te prote protect ctiv ive e and and preventive measures as part of the risk assessment, it must ensure that its employees receive proper instruction, training a nd nd s up up er er vi vi si si on on a nd nd a re re k ep ep t f ul ul ly ly i nf nf or or me me d o f h ea ea lt lt h a nd nd safety issues which may affect them and the steps which they should take to guard against health risks not to dismiss unfairly employees with two or more years service, whether on health grounds or otherwise not to dismiss or subject to a detriment, employees, regardless of length of service, on specified health and safety grounds. In addition to the legal case, the business arguments for taking care of an employee's mental health, of which unhealthy stress is only one manifestation, include ethical considerations such as respecting and valuing the individual, allowing for his or her unique personality differences and allowing for balance between corpora corporate te and privat private e life so as to ensure ensure contin continued ued health health,, commitment and motivation.
Now a days new stress management course has also been introduced. It aims at raising awareness awareness of stress, its causes, affects and techniques for managing it. Participants will identify their own stressors and stressors in the organization prior to f or or mi mi ng ng a p er er so so na na l a ct ct io io n p la la n t o f ir ir st st c op op e w it it h a nd nd t he he n reduce their stress levels.
8
Part Pa rtic icipa ipant nts s will will revie review w the the many many pote potent ntia iall daily daily stre stresso ssors rs,, coming not only from physical events but also social situations, o ur ur
wo orr k ,
g en en er er a l
l iv iv in in g, g,
o ur ur
f ee ee l in in gs gs ,
o ur ur
t h ou ou g ht ht s
a nd nd
perce percept ption ions. s. Mo Most stly ly these these stres stressor sors s are are perce perceiv ived ed to be in balance. The response we generate can be both positive and negat negative ive and and is char charact acter erize ized d by the the sc scale ale of the the perc percei eive ved d importance. In order to survive, be energized and be creative. It is when the balance is wrong , however, however, that difficu lties arise.
Everyone's response to stress will be different because each individual is unique. So, a person who is a high achiever may find it easier to cope with the pressures of an executive role than someone whose expectations are in another direction, and vice versa. Some people thrive in situations that others find totally overwhelming. It is the degree of adoption that people have to make to a situation, which determines whether they react positively or negatively and find they either go forward or fail to cope.
All pressure is not harmful. A certain amount of pressure can enhan enhance ce
perf perform orman ance ce..
Butt Bu
exce excessi ssive ve,,
unre unrelen lenti ting ng
pressure results in individuals experiencing stress.
9
negat negative ive
Work Work stress is a very extensive extensive topic ranging ranging from research research on t he he
s ou ou rc rc es es
of
s tr tr e ss ss ,
t he he
e ff ff ec ec ts ts
of
s tr tr e es s s, s,
t o w a ys ys
on
managing and reducing stress.
This report will focus first on the effects of stress at work, both mentally and physically. It will explain why management s ho ho ul ul d b e c on on ce ce rn rn ed ed
w it it h r is is in in g e mp mp lo lo ye ye e s tr tr es es s a nd nd
w il il l
describe some actions management can take to alleviate work stress. It will also focus on the different techniques of reducing stress.
Objectives: This study will focus on Stress in an organization, organization, fundamental fundamental t ec ec h n iq iq ue ue s
of
r e d uc uc i ng ng
s tr tr e s s ,
the
c a us us e
of
s tr tr e s s
for
employees and management’s role in reduction of stress in an o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io n. n.
It
w il il l
a ls ls o
i nc nc lu lu de de
t he he
d if if fe fe re re nt nt
m od od el el s
to
measure ones stress level.
Methodology: referr vario various us manag managem emen entt book books s Concep Con ceptual tual Bas Base: e: To refe (Managin (Managing g stress stress), ), HR Journa Journals ls (HR Focus, Focus, Harvar Harvard d Busine Business ss Review, and Human Capital)
Secondary Data: Management books, Internet, Consultants, Academicians, Business Reviews
Primary Prim ary Data: The The proje project ct is basic basical ally ly a sample sample surv survey ey conduct conducted ed in NTPC. NTPC. The motive motive of select selecting ing this this public public sector sector unit is due to its rapidly changing environment. The emphasis was given on the quality of the questionnaire; the questionnaire consis consiste ted d of questi question ons s relat related ed to stres stress s at vari variou ous s leve levels ls of m an an a g em em en en t ,
i ts ts
o p ti ti m u m
level, 10
and
d e g re re e
of
s t r es es s .
Questionnaire consisted of sector specific questions on how to deal with stress & its effect on productivity and job satisfaction.
CHAPTER-2 ABOUT THE ORGANISATION NTPC - AN OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION: N a t i on on a l c on on st st it it ut ut es es
a
T h e r m al al m eg eg a
P o w er er
n at at io io na na l
C o r p or or a t i o n
c ap ap ab ab il il it it y
in
L td td ., t er er ms ms
( NT NT P C) C) o f p ow ow er er
generating utility in India and has also earned commendable inter interna natio tional nal reco recogni gniti tion on.. The The or organ ganiza izatio tion n is owne owned d by the the Government of India and has been accorded the 'NAVARATNA' statu status s by the the Gove Govern rnme ment nt of India India.. 'Nav 'Navra ratn tna' a' mean means s 'Nine 'Nine Gems' Gems'.. Gove Govern rnmen mentt of Indi India a give gives s this this stat status us to nine nine best best performing public sector units. This number has increased to eleven. Amongst the eleven eleven,, the other ten are -
Indian Oil Corporation.(IOC)
Steel Authority of India Ltd.(SAIL)
Gas Authority of India Ltd.(GAIL)
Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd.(VSNL)
Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd.(BHEL)
11
Oil & Natural Gas Corporation.(ONGC)
Mahanagar Telephone Telephone Nigam Ltd.(MTNL)
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd.(BPCL)
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.(HPCL)
Indian Petrochemical Corporation Ltd.(IPCL)
NTPC is the only Navratna with 100% equity holding by the government.
NTPC's ranking world-wide is as under : 1 st in Power Generation Capacity in India. 3 rd in Efficiency among Navaratnas in India. 7 th in Capacity in Asia-Pacific. 9 th in Thermal Power Generation in the world. 15 th in Power Generation in the World.
SOURCE: Seminar on 'Global Electricity Utility Benchmarking 1997' conducted by Market Line Internationa l Ltd.,U.K. N TP TP C
w as as
e st st ab ab li li sh sh ed ed
a nd nd
a ut ut he he nt nt ic ic at at ed ed
in
1 97 97 5, 5,
to
accelerate power development in India. Since then it has been p er er fo fo rm rm in in g c or or po po ra ra te te
u ns ns cr cr u pu pu l ou ou sl sl y r es es po po ns ns ib ib il il it it y
u ni ni nt nt en en ti ti on on al al ly ly
by
of
a dd dd in in g
w el el l, l, n ot ot to
be
it
t he he
h ar ar mi mi ng ng
p ol ol lu lu ti ti on on
of
t he he t he he
f ul ul fi fi ll ll me me n t s oc oc ie ie ty ty
of
e ve ve n
e nv nv ir ir on on me me nt nt
through its by-products or consistent generation of reliable and quality power. The The area areas s of oper operat ation ion of this this prem premie ierr ente enterp rpri rise se may may broadly be outlined outlined as engineering, engineering, procurement, procurement, construction, construction, proje project ct
manag managem emen ent, t,
erec erecti tion on,, 12
commi co mmissi ssioni oning, ng,
opera operati tion on
&
mainten maintenance ance.. The compan company y also also execut executes es transm transmissi ission on lines lines and sub-station packages in India and abroad and has secured several several contracts contracts from within the country country and the international international market. Over the past two and half years decades, NTPC has become I nd nd ia ia 's 's p ri ri me me p ow ow er er h ou ou se se . I t h as as c on on tr tr ib ib ut ut ed ed 1 8, 8, 44 44 0 M W electricity to the India's total generating capacity of 94,055 MW power power through through 15 coa coal-ba l-based sed power plants plants and 7 gas-bas gas-based ed p ow ow er er p la la nt nt s. s. A no no th th er er 3 20 20 0 M W o r m or or e i s u nd nd er er v ar ar io io us us stage stages s of co const nstru ruct ctio ion. n. Thus Thus,, NTPC NTPC's 's capac capacit ity y is 20% of the the t ot ot al al c ap ap ac ac it it y o f I nd nd ia ia . I ts ts c on on tr tr ib ib ut ut io io n t o t he he t ot ot al al p ow ow er er generation of India i.e.,4,48,406 MW is 1,13,840 MW which is m or or e
tha n
25%
of
the
total
g e n e r a t i on on
of
I n d i a. a.
NTP C
genera generates tes more more than than 1/4th 1/4th of the total power power gener generatio ation n of India. That is why it is said that every fourth bulb is lighted by NTPC. NTPC added a capacity of 940 MW during the year 19989 9. 9.
This
a d di di ti ti o n
is
through
V i nd nd h y a c ha ha l - I I
( 5 0 0M 0M W ) ,
Kayamkulam (230MW) & Unchahar-II(210MW). With With this, this, the installe installed d capacit capacity y of the corpor corporatio ation n has risen risen to 17,73 17,735M 5MW W plus plus 705M 705MW W of Ba Badar darpur pur Po Powe werr Proje Project ct , which makes the total installed capacity equal to 18,440MW.A generating capacity of 1115MW is to be added during the year 1999-2000. In India, electricity is produced through various resources such as coal, gas, diesel, water, windmill, nuclear energy etc. O ut ut o f w hi hi ch c h c oa oa l a nd nd g as as c on on tr tr ib ib ut ut es es n ea ea rl rl y 7 0% 0% , w at at er er contributes nearly 26% and other resources 4%. In this, NTPC contributes only through coal and gas as much as 25.4% of the total coal and gas power generating generating capacity of India. The first 13
p ow ow e r
s ta ta ti ti on on
of
NTPC
was
c o m m i s si si o n e d
at
S in in gr gr a u li li ,
Sonebhadra district of U.P. U.P. with an installed capacity of 200MW, 200MW, in 1982. 1982.(De (Deta tails ils of se secto ctorr-wis wise e contr contribu ibutio tion n to India' India's s tota totall power power is given given in Annexure Annexure-I -I and detail details s of all the
existin existing g
projects and projects under construction of NTPC is given in Annexure-II).
HIERARCHICAL STRUCTURE The Registered Office of the Company also known as NTPC Bhavan is located at Scope Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi. T he he c om om pa pa ny ny i s h ea ea de de d b y C ha ha ir ir ma ma n & M an an ag ag in in g D ir ir ec ec to to r (CMD) with Functional Directors including Director (Technical), Director (Personnel), Director (Finance), Director (Operation), Director Director (Commercial) and Director (Projects). The CMD is also assisted assisted by General General Manager (Planning) (Planning) and Executive Director (Vigilance) at the corporate level.
The Th e
comp co mpan any y ha has s 33-Ti Tier er Ma Mana nage geme ment nt Sy Syst stem ems s
namely: 1. Corporate Corporate Level Management Management 2. Regional Regional Level Level Management Management 3. Different Different Site Level Management Management At Corporate Level, Level , the CMD heads its team of Directors and is
a ss ss is is te te d
by
G en en er er a l
M an an ag ag er er
( Pl Pl an an ni ni ng ng )
a nd nd
E xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve
Director (Vigilance). At
Regiona Regionall
Level Level,,
t he he
r eg eg io io ns ns
a re re
h ea ea de de d b y E xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve
Directors, who intern report to CMD. There are in all 5 regions Eastern Eastern Region Region (ER), (ER), Western estern Region Region (WR), (WR), Norther Northern n Region Region (NR), Southern Region (SR) and National Capital Region (NCR).
14
At Site Level , the sites are under the direct control of General General Managers or Additional General Managers, who in turn report to respective Executive Directors.
CORPORATE MISSION NTPC' NTPC's s missi mission on is to make make avai availab lable le relia reliable ble and and qualit quality y p ow ow er er
in
i nc nc re re as as in in gl gl y
l ar ar ge ge
q ua ua nt nt it it y.
T he he
c om om pa pa ny ny
w il il l
spearhead the process of accelerated development of the power s ec ec to to r
by
p la la nn nn in in g
a nd nd
e xp xp ed ed it it io io us us ly ly
i mp mp le le me me nt nt in in g
p ow ow er er
project projects s and opera operatin ting g statio stations ns eco econom nomica ically lly and efficie efficiently ntly.. The company will augment its power generation through tie-ups w it it h
o th th er er
o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io ns ns
in
a re re as as
of
c on on ve ve nt nt io io na na l
e ne ne rg rg y
sources as well as non-conventional energy sources. NTPC will contr contribu ibute te to e xp xp er er ie ie nc nc e
all-r all-roun ound d
an nd d
secto se ctorr
e xp xp er er ti ti se se
impro improve veme ment nt
w it it h
o th th e err
by
shar sharing ing its its
o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io n s s..
T he he
compa co mpany ny will will part partic icipa ipate te in the the exec execut utio ion n of powe powerr proje projects cts a br br oa oa d, d,
if
n ec ec es es sa sa rry y
in
c ol ol la la b bo o ra ra ti ti on on
w it it h
o th th e err
re ep p ut ut ed ed
organizations.
CORPORATE OBJECTIVES
To add generating capacity, within the prescribed time and cost.
To operate and maintain power stations at high availability ensuring minimum cost of generation.
To m ai ai nt nt ai ai n t he he f in in an an ci ci al al s ou ou nd nd ne ne ss ss o f t he he c om om pa pa ny ny b y managing the financial operations in accordance with good commercial utility practices.
15
To
d ev ev e ell op op
ap pp p ro ro pr pr i at at e
c om om me me rc rc ia ia l
p ol ol ic ic y
l ea ea di di ng ng
to
remunerative tariffs and minimum receivable.
To function as a responsible Corporate Citizen and discharge r es es po po ns ns ib ib il il it it y
in
r es es pe pe ct ct
of
e nv nv ir ir on on me me nt nt
p ro ro te te ct ct io io n
a nd nd
rehabilitation.
To adopt appropriate Human Resources Development policy leading to creation of a team of motivated and competent power professionals.
To
atta attain in
self se lf-su -suff ffici icien ency cy
in
tech techno nolo logy gy
and
disse dissemin minate ate
knowledge essentially as a contribution to other constituents of the power sector in the country.
To
d ev ev e ell op op
R e se se ar ar ch ch
an nd d
D ev ev el el op op me me nt nt
f or or
a ch ch ie ie v in in g
improved plant reliability. reliability.
To expand the consultancy operations and to participate in ventures abroad.
To p ar ar ti ti ci ci pa pa te te i n s oc oc ia ia l j us us ti ti ce ce a nd nd r em em ov ov in in g t he he
s oc oc ia ia l
inequality.
CORPORATE VISION NTPC, a front runner in the Indi an power sector; to be one of the largest and best power utilities of the world; and thereby contribute to India's emergence as one of the world's leading economies.
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT The R & D center at Noida continues to play an important role in economic power generation. The center has entered into a
MO U
w it it h
B h ab ab ha ha
A to to m ic ic
16
R e s ea ea rc rc h
C en en tte er ;
A us us tr tr a li li an an
G ov ov er er nm nm en en t
f or or
a
s tu tu dy dy
on
c oa oa l
c ha ha ra ra ct ct er er is is ti ti cs cs ;
Insti Institu tute te for for Indu Indust stria riall Rese Resear arch, ch, Delhi Delhi;; Cent Centra rall
Tr ir ir em em e
Mecha Me chanic nical al
Engineering Research Institute (CMER), Durgapur and a number of other organisation.
NTPC & THE GOVERNMENT NTPC signed the Memorandum of Understanding with the G ov ov er er nm nm en en t o f I nd nd ia ia i n 1 98 98 7 f or or t he he f ir ir st st t im im e. e. N TP TP C h as as entered into a MOU with the government with commitment for ef fici ent
p erformanc e
and
ensuring
fair
r eturn
to
the
invest investmen ment. t. The organi organisat sation ion has been been rated rated "excell "excellent ent"" for e le le ve ve n c on on se se cu cu ti ti ve ve y ea ea rs rs e ve ve r s in in ce ce t he he i nc nc ep ep ti ti on on o f M OU OU system in the country. country.
QUALITY POWER Th e
E ng ng in in ee ee r in in g
D iv iv is is io io n
of
t he he
c om om p an an y
ha as s
b ee ee n
awarded ISO-9001 certification by the internationally reputed c er er ti ti fi fi ca ca ti ti on on
b od od y
M /S /S
L lo lo yd yd 's 's
R eg eg at at ta ta
Q ua ua li li ty ty
A ss ss ur ur a nc nc e
Ltd.(L Ltd.(LRQ RQA), A),U. U.K. K. All stat statio ions ns of NTPC NTPC in the the Wes este tern rn Regio Region n located located at Vindhy Vindhyach achal, al, Kawas, Kawas, Jhanor Jhanor-Gan -Gandhar dhar,,
Korba Korba and
Balco Ba lco Capti Captive ve Po Powe werr Plant Plant has also also been been awar awarde ded d ISO-90 ISO-9002 02 certification by the Bureau of Indian Standards.
GREEN POWER NTPC NTPC has take taken n a numbe numberr of initia initiati tive ves s to impro improve ve the the performance of its stations in line with its environmental policy. T he he se se
i nc nc lu lu de de
m on on it it or or in in g, g,
i ns ns ti ti tu tu ti ti on on al al
e nv nv ir ir on on me me nt nt al al
s tr tr en en gt gt he he ni ni ng ng , a ud ud it it
r ev ev ie ie ws ws ,
e nv nv ir ir on on me me nt nt al al r en en ov ov at at io io n
a nd nd
retrofitting, ecological impact monitoring and afforestation. One of the examples of this is ash utilization utilization by changing it into fly ash bricks.
17
SOCIAL POWER NTPC, as a responsible citizen, is making constant efforts to
i mp mp ro ro ve ve
t he he
s oc oc io io -e -e co co no no mi mi c
s ta ta tu tu s
of
P ro ro je je ct ct
A ff ff ec ec te te d
Persons (PAPs).The PAPs are sensitized to the change in the social matrix of the area through a greater consultation process by formation of Village Development Advisory Committees and b et ter
t ra n s p a r e n c y
through
establishment
of
Public
Information Center (PI). PAPs are encouraged to participate in planning and implementation of Rehabilitation and Resettlement ( R & R ) a ct ct iv iv it it ie ie s. s. F o r i mp mp ro ro vi vi ng ng R & R a ct ct iv iv it it ie ie s, s, t ra ra in in in in g workshops are organized regular
POWER OF SKILL NTPC's apex training organisation, the Power Management Institute
(PMI)
at
Noida,
was
set
up
to
provi de
vital
manageme management nt develo developme pment nt suppor supportt to meet meet the challen challenges ges in the Indian power sector. It imparts high-end training through i ts ts
m a n ag ag e m e n t
d e v e l o p me me n t
programs ,
r es es ea ea r c h
a nd nd
consultancy. PMI and the Training Centers at various projects organized about 189 training programs covering nearly 4,170 participants participants during the year 1998-99. PMI has tied up with IIT, IIT, Delhi for an accredited course in M.Tech in Power Generation Te c hn hn o l o g y
and
has
p l an an s
for
suc h
tie-ups
with
other
universities for MBA in power management. Arrangements have also also been been made made to impar impartt Po Powe werr Engine Engineer ering ing Gradu Graduat ation ion in association with BITS, Pilani, for employees having Diploma in Engineering.
18
REWARDS OF POWER NTPC has continuously won awards year after year which shows how dedicated its people are and how do they follow up the rules and regul ations of the company.
Its employees have been winning the Prime Minister's Shram Awards for thirteen years in succession.
The The Corp Corpor orat ation ion has has also also been been rece receivi iving ng Gove Govern rnme ment nt of India's Meritorious Productivity Award year after year. year.
NTPC's pavilion at the India International Trade Fair, 1998 bagged the Best Pavilion Award in the Public Sector category for the third consecutive year. year.
The quiz team of NTPC has won the second runner-up trophy at
the
p re re s t i g i ou ou s
national
B ra n d
E q u i ty ty
Q u i z, z,
1 9 98 98
organized by the Economic Times.
The Sco Scope pe Award Award for "Excel "Excellen lence ce in Contri Contributi bution on to Public Public Sector Management" - individual category for the year 199697 has been given to the CMD, NTPC.
Jawahar Lal Nehru Memorial Award for controlling pollution in 1994.
Safety Safety Awards Awards from from sever several al State State Safety Safety Counci Councils-N ls-Nati ationa onall Safet Safety y Coun Council cil of India India,, Briti British sh Safet Safety y Coun Council cil & Natio Nationa nall Safety Council, U.S.A.
Family Welfare Awards by FICCI.
19
EMPLOYEE RELATIONSHIP E mp mp lo lo ye ye rr- em em pl pl oy oy ee ee
r el el at at io io ns ns
in
N TP TP C
c on on ti ti nu nu e
to
be
cordial and harmonious throughout throughout the life of the organisation. organisation. B el el ie ie vi vi ng ng
in
t he he
p hi hi lo lo so so p hy hy
of
p ar ar ti ti ci ci pa pa te te
m an an a ag g em em en en tt,,
employees at all level interact with the management through structured as well as informal meetings. MOU has been signed with employ employee ee ass associa ociatio tions ns or unions unions for introdu introductio ction n or the self-contributing Superannuation Benefit (Pension) Scheme. The The tota totall human human stre strengt ngth h of the the co corp rpor orat atio ion n stan stands ds at 23674 as on 31st March 1999, as against 23585 as on 1998 in various power plants and establishment located in various parts of the countr country y. The overall overall Manpow Manpowerer-MW MW ratio ratio for the year year 1998-99 was 1:1.18. The turnover rate of the executives during the year was as low as 0.81% compared to 1.28% during the previous year.
FUTURE PLANS The corporation has drawn up an ambitious plan for the new millennium millennium to become a 30,000 MW company by 2007 A.D. and 40,000 MW by 2012. NTPC has at present 16 projects in hand to achieve this target.
THE OBJECTIVES The study undertaken regarding the Organizational role stress was to know about the major dimensions of stress which the exec execut utiv ive’ e’s s
expe experi rien ence ce
o r g an an i z at at i on on .
The
while while perf perfor ormin ming g
p r i m ar ar y
o b je je c t i v e s
thei theirr of
the
role ro les s
in
stud y
the the thu s
conducted with the help of National Thermal Power Corporation are as under: •
To identify and m easure the ten dimensions of Role
20
Stress as given below in NTPC: 1. Inter Inter Role Role Distan Distance ce (IRD) (IRD) 2. Role Role Stag Stagnat nation ion (RS) 3. Role Expectation Expectation Conflict Conflict (REC) (REC) 4. Role Role Eros Erosio ion n (RE) (RE) 5. Role Role Overlo Overload ad (RO) 6. Role Role Isolatio Isolation n (RI) (RI) 7. Persona Personall Inadequ Inadequacy acy (PI) (PI) 8. Self-Ro Self-Role le Distance Distance (SRD) (SRD) 9. Role Role Ambiguit Ambiguity y (RA) (RA) 10. Resource Inadequacy (RIn) And further to identify the Role Stress, which is mostly experienced by the executives in NTPC. •
To study the variation of Role Stress in accordance with the level of responsibility of executives in NTPC.
•
To study the variation of Role Stress in accordance with the age of executives in NTPC. Through this study an effort has been made to identify the
most prominent role stress among the executives in NTPC. Also an assessment of the relationship of role stress with age and level of responsibility has been made. This will help the HRD department to deal with the prevalent situation.
21
CHAPTER-3 ABOUT HR NTPC
HR VISION 22
“TO ENABLE OUR PEOPLE, TO BE A FAMILY OF COMMITTED WORLD CLASS PROFESSIONALS, MAKING NTPC A LEARNING ORGANIZATION.” ORGANIZATION.”
Performance Leadership
To contin continuou uously sly improve improve on projec projectt execut execution ion time and c os os t i n o rd rd er er t o s us us ta ta in in l on on g r un un c om om pe pe ti ti ti ti ve ve ne ne ss ss i n generation.
To operate & maintain NTPC stations at par with the bestr un un u ti ti li li ti ti es es i n t he he w or or ld ld w it it h r es es pe pe ct ct t o a va va il il ab ab il il it it y, y, reliability, reliability, efficiency, productivity and costs.
To effect effective ively ly lever leverage age Informa Informatio tion n Technolo echnology gy to drive drive process efficiencies.
To aim for perfor performanc mance e excell excellence ence in the diversi diversifica ficatio tion n businesses.
To embed quality in all systems and processes.
23
Human Resource Development:
To enh ance org ani zati onal perform anc e by i ns ns ti ti tu tu ti ti on on al al iz iz in in g a n o bj bj ec ec ti ti ve ve a nd nd o pe pe n p er er fo fo rm rm an an ce ce management system.
To align individual and organizational needs and develop busine business ss leaders leaders by impleme implementin nting g a career career develo developmen pmentt system.
To enhance commitment commitment of employees by recognizing recognizing and rewarding high performance.
To build and sustain a learning learning organization organization of competent competent world-class professionals.
To insti institu tuti tion onal alize ize core core valu values es and and create create a cult cultur ure e of team team buil buildin ding, g, empo empower werme ment nt,, equit equity y, inno innova vatio tion n and and open openne ness ss which which would would moti motiva vate te emplo employe yees es and enab enable le achievement of strategic objectives.
Financial Soundness: Soundness :
To maintain and improve the financial of NTPC by prudent management of the financial resources.
To c on on ti ti nu nu ou ou sl sl y s tr tr iv iv e t o r e ed d uc uc e t he he c os os t o f c ap ap it it al al t h r o u gh gh p r u d en en t m a n ag ag em em en en t of deployed f u n d s, s, leve levera ragin ging g oppo opport rtuni unitie ties s in dome domest stic ic and inte intern rnat atio ional nal financial markets.
To develop appropriate commercial policies and processes which would ensure.
Remunerative tariffs and minimize receivables.
To c on on ti ti nu nu ou ou sl sl y s tr tr iv iv e f or or r ed ed uc uc ti ti on on i n c os os t o f p ow ow er er generation by improving operating practices.
Sustainable Power Development:
24
To c on on tr tr ib ib ut ut e t o s us us ta ta in in ab ab le le p ow ow er er d ev ev el el op op me me nt nt discharging corporate social responsibilities.
by
To l ea ea d t he he s ec ec to to r i n t h e a re re as as o f r e es s et et tl tl em em en en t a nd nd r eh eh ab ab il il it it at at io io n a nd nd e nv nv ir ir on on me me nt nt p ro ro te te ct ct io io n i nc nc lu lu di di ng ng effe effect ctiv ive e as ashh-ut utili ilizat zatio ion, n, peri periphe phera rall deve develo lopme pment nt and and energy conservation practices.
To lead developmental efforts in the Indian power sector through through efforts efforts at policy advocacy, advocacy, assisting assisting customers customers in reform, disseminating best practices in the operation and management of power plants etc.
CORPORATE OBJECTIVES
To realize the visi on and mission, eight key corporate objectives have been identified. These objectives would provide the link between the defined mission and the f unctional strategies.
Business Portfolio growth:
To furthe furtherr co cons nsoli olidat date e NTPC’ NTPC’s s posit positio ion n as the the leadi leading ng p ow ow er er g en en er er a ti ti on on c om om pa pa n ny y i n I nd nd ia ia a nd nd e s ta ta bl bl is is h a presence hydropower segment.
To b r o a d b a s e t h e g e n e r a t i o n m i x b y e v a l u a t i o n conventional conventional and non-conven non-conventional tional sources of energy to ensure long run competitiveness and mitigate fuel risks.
25
To dive divers rsif ify y ac acro ross ss the the power power value value chain chain in India India by considering backward and forward integration into areas such such as power power tradin trading, g, transmi transmissio ssion, n, distribu distributio tion, n, coa coall mining, coal beneficiation, etc.
To develop a portfolio of generation assets in international markets.
To establish a strong services brand in the domestic and international markets.
Customer Focus:
To foster a collaborati collaborative ve style of working with customers, customers, g ro ro wi wi ng ng t o b e a p re re fe fe rr rr ed ed b ra ra nd nd f or or s up up pl pl y o f q ua ua li li ty ty power.
To expa expand nd the the rela relatio tions nship hip with with exist existin ing g cust custom omer ers s by offe offeri ring ng a bouq bouquet uet of se serv rvice ices s in addit addition ion to supp supply ly of p ow ow er er e . g g.. t r a d dii ng ng , e n er er gy gy c on on s su u lt lt in in g, g, d is is tr tr ib ib ut ut io io n consulting, management practices.
To expand the future customer portfolio through profitable diver diversif sific icat ation ion into into downs downstr trea eam m busin busines esses ses,, inte interr alia alia retail distribution and direct supply.
To e n su su re re r a p pii d c om om me me rc rc ia ia l d ec ec is is io io n m ak ak in in g , u s sii ng ng customer specific information, with adequate concern for the interests of the customer. customer.
Agile Corporation :
To e n su su re re e f fe fe c ti ti ve ve ne ne s s i n b us us in in e es s s d ec ec is is io io ns ns a nd nd respon responsiv sivene eness ss to changes changes in the busines business s enviro environme nment nt by :
A dopti ng a development.
Continu Continuous ous and coo coordin rdinate ate assessme assessment nt of the busine business ss environment to identify and respond to opportunities and threats.
To develop a learning co-organization having knowledgebased competitive edge in current and future business es.
port folio
ap proac h
26
to
new
busi ness
To effectively leverage Information Technology to ensure speedy decision-making across the organization.
EMPLOYEE BENEFIT 1 . LEAVE TRAVEL CONCESSION All employees & their family member employed in the regular e st st a bl bl is is h hm m en en t i nc nc lu lu d in in g a p ro ro ba ba ti ti on on e err, a l ie ie n h ol ol de de r, a deputationist, and a person appointed on contract for a period of two years or more, with one year’s continuous service.
ENTITLEMENT: ‘Entitle Class’ means the class and mode of travel applicable as per travel traveling ing allowan allowance ce rules rules of the company company subject subject to the st c on on d it it i on on t h a t t h e t r a v el el b y a i r o r 1 c l a s s A C b y ra i l permissible to employees in the grade of E6 and above.
2. MEDICAL ATTENDENCE & TREATMENT RULES: RULES :
27
Applicability All regular employees, trainees and apprentices (other than Act apprentices) and their family members.
TREATM TREA TMEN ENT T AT PL PLAC ACES ES WH WHER ERE E FUL ULL L FL FLED EDGE GED D COMPANY HOSPITALS/DIS HOSPITALS/DISPENSARIES PENSARIES EXIST. All employ employees ees and their their family family members members are entitl entitled ed to free free m ed ic al a ttendan ce and treatm en t in NTPC hospitals/Dispensaries
3. ENCASHMENT OF EARNED LEAVE
Admissible to all regular employees 75% of total EL is treated as encas hable.
4. HALF PAY LEAVE Executive, supervisor & workmen are entitled to HPL @ 20 days per calendar year HPL is not admissible to Trainees/ apprentices and employee on contact Half pay for this purpose means half of the basic day. day. All other allowance are paid in full.
5. Admissible Benefits/Facilities Benefits/Facilities The sponsored employee is normally expected to stay in the a cc cc om om mo mo da da ti ti on on a va va il il ab ab le le w it it h i ns ns ti ti tu tu ti ti on on w he he re re s tu tu dy dy i s undertaken. However if any accommodation is not provided by the institute, some assistance towards HRA as prescribed under the riled in lieu may be sanctioned.
Examination fee Traveling allowance All of pocket allowance
28
6. RE REIM IMBU BURS RSME MENT NT OF ME MEMB MBERS ERSHI HIP P PROFESSIONAL BODIES/ INSTITUTES
FEES FE ES FO FOR R
Reim burs em ent of m embershi p fees for profess iona l bodie bodies/I s/Inst nstitu itute tes s is admiss admissibl ible e to exec execut utiv ives es in respe respect ct of professional bodies/ Institutes duly registered in India or setup under under and and ac act/ t/sta statu tue e in India India and which which is rele releva vant nt to the the concerned executive profession/ field of work and allied field. The scheme provid es for reim burs em ent of members membership hip/adm /admissi ission on fee and annual/p annual/peri eriodi odic c institut institutes es for which the reimbursement may be allowed is limited to two in case of executives in the rank of managers and above and one for executive in the ranks of deputy manager and below.
7. INTER NET CONNECTION MEMBERSH IP OF BODIES/INSTITUTES:: BODIES/INSTITUTES
IN L IEU OF P R O FE S S I O N A L
To assist executives and employees in selection grade in their p ro ro fe fe s si si on on al al d ev ev e ell op op me me nt nt a n nd d t o m ak ak e N TP TP C a l ea ea rn rn in in g organ or ganiza izatio tion, n, it has been been decid decided ed to reimb reimbur urse se char charge ges s for for inter interne nett co conn nnec ecti tion on at resid residen ence ce on produ producti ction on of proo prooff of payment subject to a maximum of Rs 2000/- per annum, in lieu of one membership of professional body/ Institutes
8) EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT SCHEMES The company provides opportunities and facilities to employees to obtain the following qualification:
Qualification equivalent to class 8 th
Qualification equivalent to Matric
Qualification equivalent to Graduation.
29
9) Workers Education Scheme The scheme operated in collaboration collaboration with the central board of w or or ke ke rs rs e du du ca ca ti ti on on , c ov ov er er s a ll ll e mp mp lo lo ye ye es es i n t he he w or or km km an an category irrespective of their educational qualification. B oo oo ks ks a nd nd s ta ta ti ti on on ar ar y a re re p ro ro vi vi de de d f re re e o f c os os t t o a ll ll t he he participants participants in the program. Thirty minutes minutes times off per day is given for attending classes. On the successful completion of the course the participants are awarded certificates to that effect. The participants adjusted first second and third best trainees are given cash awards from Rs 51/- to 201/-
EMPLOYEE SERVICES
HR DEPAR DEPARTME TMENT NT act as employ employer er of the organizat organization ion on the behalf of the management. The functions dealt by hr ranges from from recruit recruitmen mentt to provide provide traini training ng to regular regularizin izing g variou various s entitle entitlemen ments ts of employ employees ees to provide provide traini training ng to regular regularizin izing g various entitlements of employees, marinating good employee r el el at at io io n, n, w el el fa fa re re p ra ra ct ct ic ic es es , i mp mp le le me me nt nt at at io io n o f v ar ar io io us us H R i ni ni ti ti at at iv iv es es o f t he he c om om pa pa ny ny, f ur ur ni ni tu tu re re a nd nd s it it ti ti ng ng s pa pa ce ce t o employees, providing residential accommodation to employees company school, guest house, ladies club, Liason with RWA and p ar ar t i c ip ip at at e in v a r i ou ou s a c ti ti v it it i es es c on on c er er n ed ed with social responsibility of the company. company. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
HR Employ Employees ees Bene Benefit fits s HR Employ Employees ees Serv Service ices s HR Employees Employees Relation Relation and and Welfare Welfare HR Industrial Industrial Engineering Engineering and Employee Employee Developm Development ent Publi Pu blic c Relat Relation ions s L aw aw S ec ec ti ti on on R aj aj - Bh Bh as as ha ha Corporate Corporate Social Responsibilit Responsibility y HR Employ Employee ee Development Development Centre Centre
30
VARIOUS HR SECTION AT BTPS mp or or ta ta nt nt s ec ec ti ti on on o f H R An emp employ loyee ee ser servic vices es i s a n i mp department which provides the employees at BTPS a variety of services in order to them perform their duties to their level best. We did our training in HR department and tried to analyze the the se serv rvice ices s envir environ onme ment nt ov over er ther there. e. The The vari variou ous s se servi rvice ces s provided by this section are as follow s:
House Allotment Lease Tele Communication Dispatch BTPS Canteen Stationary and Furniture Meeting and function arrangements Rent payment for employees houses
HOUSE ALLOTMENT H ou ou se se a ll ll ot ot me me nt nt f ac ac il il it it y i s o ne ne o f t he he e mp mp lo lo ye ye es es s er er vi vi ce ce s provided provided to the employees employees at BTPS by the HR department. department. This facility can be availed by every according to hid entitlement. This is one interest of the employees that whether they want to avail the facility or not.
LEASE H ou ou se se a cc cc om om mo mo da da ti ti on on f ac ac il il it it y a t BT PS PS i s p ro ro vi vi de de d t o b ot ot h Exercise as well as non-executives. In case, if the employees have their own house or wants to live outside the premises of the company then”
The exec utives can take lease i ns tead of accommodation provided to them by the company A nd nd t h e n o n - ex ex e c u ti ti ve ve s a re re g iv iv e n H R A (h (h o u s e allowance) in plac e of house accommodation f acility. acility.
the rent
WHAT IS LEASE Lease is the contract of house or accommodation for a given period of time.
31
TELECOMMUNICATION BTPS BTPS provide provides s its employ employees ees with the communi communicati cation on facilit facility y that varies for different level of employees. The basic communication facility provided by BTPS is to all level employee, offices, departments, townships, CISF security and all the other areas within its premises is the intercom facility, communication becomes so easy and the time factor is saved to a great extent. Videoconferencing and fax are also included in the services p ro ro v i de de d b y H R- ES ES a t BT P S t o i ts ts e n t i tl tl ed ed e m p l oy oy e e s . Videoconferen Videoconferencing cing at BTPS has been made possible though BRI lines. A part from intercom facility all the executives and above are also provided with the landline and mobile facility according to the entitlements. Lower level executive are provided with the c el el l p ho ho n e a n d l a n d li li n e f a c il il i ti ti e s w h i le le t h e u p p e r l ev ev e l executives can procure both mobile phones as well as landline facility.
DISPATCH Dispatch is one of the major services provided by the HR—ES. This is an important medium, which facilitates communication both externally as well as internally to it and in the station. The importa important nt mails mails are deliver delivered ed to departm department ents s and concer concerned ned people through messengers specially empl oyed for the purpose. Various types of documents are received as well as dispatched. The documents includes
Postal Official Non-official Registry Speed Post Parcel Courier
32
EMPLOYEE RELATION AND WELFARE This department handle; the relation of industrial relation and welfare of employees and workers. Employee relations may be defined defined as those those policie policies s and practic practices, es, which which are concer concerned ned with the management and regulation of relations between the organization, the individual, staff member and group of staff within the working environment. So employee relations is all about maintaining harmonious relationships between employers and employees and employees. Employee relation’ strategy in t he he c om om pa pa n ny y i s a im im ed ed a t f os os te te r in in g a m ai ai nt nt ai ai ni ni ng ng a g oo oo d r el el at at io io ns ns hi hi p b as as ed ed o n c on on ce ce rn rn f or or p ro ro du du ct ct iv iv it it y, y, e mp mp lo lo ye ye e g ro ro wt wt h a nd nd d ev ev el el op op me me nt nt a nd nd w el el fa fa re re c on on si si st st en en t w it it h t he he growth of the company. In conducting industrial relations the management lay emphasis in participative style involving the union/association for sharing of information and participation in d ec ec is is io io n m ak ak in in g. g. S ui ui ta ta bl bl e f or or um um s a re re c re re at at ed ed f or or v ar ar io io us us interest groups to interact on matters on mutual concern and thus thus deve develop lop a se sens nse e of part partici icipa pati tion on and and belo belongi nging ngs s to the the organ or ganiza izatio tion n in the the day day to day day work working ing.. Ever Every y empl employ oyee ees s is given importance and a status in order to gives feeling of being i mp mp or or ta ta nt nt a nd nd a s ta ta tu tu s i n o rd rd er er t o g iv iv es es f ee ee li li ng ng o f b ei ei ng ng importa important nt to the organiz organizati ation on in achiev achieving ing the organiz organizati ationa onall goals and objectives:
Sound employees relation are based on:
33
Effective mechanism for communication and participation. A safe effective work environment. Commitment and motivation of all staff.
Objectives of this department
To safeguar safeguard d the intere interest st of labor labor and managem management ent by fostering highest level of misunderstanding and good will among different section of the plant. To a v o i d i n d u s tr tr i a l c o n f li li ct ct o r s t r i f e a n d d ev ev e l o p harmonious relations which are essential for productivity of workers. To lesse lessen n the the tend tenden ency cy of high high turn turn ov over er and and freq freque uent nt absenteeism.
Participants of employee relations are:
Workers Workers and their organ ization Manders and their association Government
This department also handles misconduct of employees, whic which h
incl includ udes es
loss loss,,
w as aste te
of
comp co mpan any’ y’s s
prop proper erty ty,,
misbehaving with peers, superiors or subordinates when an employee disrupts the office with aggressiveness and abusive behavior affecting the morale and performance of others, an employee has a leave abusive problem or other time and attendance problem. Theft, violence and conv co nvict ictio ion n of a crim crimina inall of offe fenc nce e duri during ng the co cour urse se of emplo employm ymen entt
and and
willf willful ul
diso disobe bedie dience nce
34
to
reas reason onab able le
employer requests have been kind of conduct, which gas traditionally been viewed as serious conduct
Minor conducts are handled by giving warnings and memos. If the misconduct is of medium nature, is a charge sheet is prepared against the person and an enquiry committee is set u p f or or i nv nv es es ti ti ga ga ti ti on on , a ft ft er er t he he c om om pl pl et et io io n o f w hi hi ch ch t he he p un un is is hm hm en en t i s d ec ec id id ed ed . I f t he he m is is co co nd nd uc uc t i s o f s er er io io us us nature, the person is suspended and then a charge sheet is prepare prepared d against against the person and an enquir enquiry y committ committee ee is set-up for investigation, after the completion of which may be dismissed.
CHAPTER-4 ABOUT STRESS "Stress is very much a part of a manager's job. He must learn not only to cope with it, but use it to help him work better". Modern life is full of stress. As an organisation becomes more c om om pl pl ex ex ,
t he he
p ot ot en en ti ti al al
f or or
s tr tr es es s
i nc nc re re as as es es .
U rb rb an an iz iz at at io io n, n,
industrialization, and increase in scale of operations are some of
t he he
re ea a so so ns ns
f or or
r is is in in g
s tr tr e es s s. s.
S tr tr e es ss
is
an
i ne ne vi vi ta ta bl bl e
consequence of socio-economic complexity and to some extent it is a stimulant as well. People experience stress, as they can no longer longer have complet complete e contro controll ov over er what what happens happens in their their lives. They’re being no escape from stress in modern life; we need need to find ways ways of using using stress stress producti productivel vely y, and reducin reducing g dysfu dysfunc nctio tional nal stre stress. ss. Even Even as stres stress s is inev inevita itable ble in toda today' y's s complex life, so is it necessary for human progress. It is like a music musical al instr instrume ument nt,, wher where e an opti optimum mum stres stress s is neede needed d to 35
p ro ro du du c e
g oo oo d
m us us ic ic ,
l oo oo se se
w ir ir e es s
( le le s s
s tr tr e es s s) s)
w ou ou ld ld
n ot ot
produce the notes and too much tautness (too much stress) might result in screeching. A distinction has been made between productive or functional stress (stress for creative creative work, entrepreneurial entrepreneurial activities etc.) and dysfunc dysfunctio tional nal stress stress (stres (stress s of boredo boredom, m, unmanage unmanageable able conflicts, over worker etc. the former has been called estruses and the latter distress. Rapid Rapid industr industriali ializat zation ion and mechan mechanizat ization ion have have changed changed the way of life of humans at home and at work. The corporate rat rac e
is
m a de de
e xe xe c u utt iv iv e es s
to
a rre e
order
su uff fe fe ri ri ng ng
to
ra t t l e
f ro ro m
p eo eo p le le .
s tr tr e ss ss
More
a nd nd
and
more
s tr tr e es s ss- in in du du c ed ed
problems problems like hypertension hypertension,, increased increased turnover turnover,, absenteeism, absenteeism, decreased decreased productivity productivity etc. this has created a lot of panic. It is thus necessary to understand executive stress. A manger's role is es esse sent ntia ially lly to get get resou resourc rces es from from owner owners, s, work work from from the the worker and convert the resources and work into results. This role looks very simple. But in practice it is very complicated because neither the resources nor the work is given - it has to b e e x tr tr a ct ct ed ed . T h us us , i t i s s ai ai d, d, ' i f y o u a r e g o i n g t o b e a manager, you will have to face tension. If you do n ot want tension, be a consultant" . Tension or stress is thus inevitable for a manager. An or orga ganiz nizat atio ion, n, two indivi individua duals ls may may be ident identica icall rega regard rding ing their position, position, but may differ in terms of the abilities, motives, motives, moods and above all the personality personality as a whole. These persona persona diffe differe rence nces s p re re d is is po po si si ng ng
inter interact act
with with
c on on di di ti ti on on s
organ or ganiza izatio tiona nall f or or
s tr tr e es ss
fact factor ors s
e xp xp er er i en en c ce es
influence the overall performance of the individual.
36
and and t ha ha t
creat create e m ay ay
ROLE STRESS Interest in organizational stress has increased a great deal in recent years. years. There has been a spate of writings writings on managerial managerial and executive stress. Resear Researche chers rs came came with with the definit definition ion of role role as the position position o cc cc u up p ie ie d
by
a
p er er s on on
as
d ef ef in in e ed d
by
t he he
e xp xp ec ec ta ta ti ti on on s
of
significant persons, including the role occupant, indicates that there are inherent problems in the performance of a role, and therefore stress is inevitable. S in in c e
the
c on on c ep ep t
of
“role”
is
i n e x t r i c ab ab ly ly
l i nk nk e d
with
‘expectations” ‘expectations”,, the organizationa organizationall factors factors and context assume importance
due
to
thei r
infl uenc e
on
the
mould in g
of
prescri prescripti ptions ons and proscri proscriptio ptions ns asso associat ciated ed with a particu particular lar,, position. position. These could be looked looked upon as structural structural components components organizational processes. Authoritative organizational structure and control systems area potent source of stress as they are seen to breed dependency, afford little scope for initiative an creativ creativity ity in role enactme enactment nt and channel channelize ize behavio behaviors rs alo along ng narrowly defined paths. In the concept of role proposed above, several variables are involved he self, the other roles, the expectations held by the other roles, the situations in which there is no conflict among the variables. The very nature of role has built in potential for conflict conflict these these variab variables les.. The very nature nature of role role has p ot ot en en ti ti al al
built built in
f or or c on on fl fl ic ic t o r s tr tr es es s. s. T hu hu s c o nf n f li li ct ct i s a n at at ur ur al al
vari variabl able e in ro role le perfo perform rman ance ce.. Kann Kann an Quin Quinn n ( 1970) 1970) have have propo propose sed d a respo respons nse e infe inferr rred ed defini definiti tion on of stres stress s exper experime iment nts s or no noxio xious us
stimul stimulus us with with
37
and and “ an
gene genera rall resul results ts
in
psychological psychological change, change, behavior behavioral al change, change, perceptual perceptual change, affective affective
change an in both
overt overt
cognitive cognitive
and intrapsychic intrapsychic
coping efforts. “ Role conflict” has been defined in terms, of conflicting expectations. The main characteristic of conflict is the incompatibility of some variables relating to the role of an i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l
w hi hi c h
m an an y
h av av e
s om om e
c on on s eq eq ue ue n c ce es
f or or
t he he
individual’s role performance. The word ‘strain’ has been used in the literature to denote the effect of stress on the individual. The word ‘pressure’ has also been used. Buck (1972) (1972) define defines s ‘job ‘job pressu pressure’ re’ as the resulta resultant nt psychol psychologi ogical cal state of the individual when the perceives that (1) conflicting forces and incompatibility commitments are being made upon him in connection with his work, (2) at least one of the forces of demands is an induced one, and (3) the forces and recurrent or stable over time. Several studies have shown that role stress or
p re re ss ss u urr e
is
ve err y
b ad ad
f or or
m en en tta al
a nd nd
p hy hy si si ca ca l
he ea a lt lt h. h.
Altho Although ugh co conf nfli lict, ct, ro role le and and stain stain have have been been given given diffe differe rent nt c on on no no ta ta ti ti on on s, s, w e d o n ot ot f in in d a ny ny u se se i n m ak ak in in g s uc uc h f in in er er distinctions, and shall u se them interchangeably. Role Role co conf nflic lictt or stre stress ss need need no nott nece necessa ssari rily ly be negat negative ive.. As Klausne Klausnerr (1968) (1968) has suggest suggested, ed, success success in busine business, ss, sports, sports, and politic politics s depends depends on stress stress-see -seeking king tenden tendency cy.. Kiretz Kiretz and M oo oo s ( 19 19 74 74 ) h av av e p ro ro po po se se d t hr hr ee ee f ac ac to to rs rs i n t he he e ff ff ec ec t o f stress: kind of adjustment required, perception of control over stress-source stress-source,, and valence (loss-for example in death, vs. gain – f or or e xa xa mp mp le le , i n m ar ar ri ri ag ag e o r b us us in in es es s) s) . B er er na na rd rd ( 21 21 96 96 8) 8) propose proposed d two types types of stress stress:: ‘dystre ‘dystress’ ss’ (unplea (unpleasant sant stress stress)) and ‘estruses’ (pleasant (pleasant stress). Stress is a necessary factor in the success of people in organizations. However, if the stress experienced goes beyond a particular level, it may adversely
38
a ff ff ec ec t
t he he
i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l’ l ’s
p er er fo fo rm rm an an ce ce
a nd nd
p sy sy ch ch ol ol og og ic ic al al
a nd nd
physical health. Several systems of classification have been used to discuss role conflict and stress. Kahn and Quinn (1970) have classified role stress under tree main headings: expectation generated stress in
w hi hi c h
they
i n c lu lu d e
rol e
a m b i gu gu i ty ty
and
rol e
c o n f l ic ic t :
expectations expectations resource discrepancies, discrepancies, in which they include role over ov erlo load, ad,
respo respons nsib ibili ility ty-a -aut utho hori rity ty
dilem dilemma ma
and and
inade inadequa quate te
technical information; and role and personality. We find it more functional to use the two main role constellations as areas of conflict and stress. Marshall Marshall and Cooper (1979) have suggested suggested seven sources and therefore classification of managerial stress: (1) job (working conditions, conditions, overload) overload) (2) Organisational Organisational role (role ambiguity ambiguity, role conflict conflict,, respon responsib sibilit ility y, etc.), etc.), (3) relati relations onships hips at work work (relationships with superiors, relationships with colleagues (4) career development (lack of job security, status incongruity), (5) Organ Organiza izatio tiona nall struc structu ture re and climat climate e (7) the the indivi individua duall (psyc (psycho home metr tric ic
char charact acter erist istics ics,,
beha behavio viorr
patte pattern rns, s,
self self-help -help
literature). In view view of the the two propo propose sed d co conce ncept pts s of ro role le syste systems ms (role (role space and role set), we shall discuss role conflicts or stress under these two categories. categories. Five main role stresses or conflicts conflicts in the role space of an individ ual have been identified. 1.
Self-role distance: distance : This is the conflict between the selfconcept and the expectations from the role as perceived by the role occupant. If a person occupies occupies a role, which he may subsequently find conflicting with his self-concept, he feels the stress. For example, a usually introvert person, who is
39
fond of studying and writing, may have self-role distance if he accepts the role of a salesman in an organizatio n and come to realize that the expectations from the roles would include his meeting people and being social. Such conflicts are fairly common, although these may not be so severe. 2.
IntraInt ra-rol role e
confli con flict: ct:
S in in c e
the
i nd nd i vi vi du du a l
l e a rn rn s
to
deve develop lop expe expect ctat ation ions s as a resul resultt of his his so socia cializ lizat ation ion and and identification identification with significant others, others, it is quite likely that he sees some incompatibility between the two expectations from his
own
rol e.
i nc nc om om pa pa ti ti bi bi li li ty ty
Fo r
ex amp le,
b et et we we e en n
t he he
a
profess or
e xp xp ec ec ta ta ti ti on on s
m ay
of
s ee
t ea ea ch ch in in g
students and that of doing research. These inherently may not be conflicting but the individual may perceive these as incompatible. . 3.
Role Stagnation: As the individual grows physically, he also grows in the role he occupies in an organisation. With the advancement of the individual, his role changes and with this this chan change ge in ro role le,, the the need need for for his his takin taking g his his new new ro role le becom becomes es cruc crucial ial.. This This is the the prob proble lem m of ro role le growt growth. h. This This becomes becomes an acute problem especially especially when an individual has occupied a role for a long time, and he enters another role in which he may feel less secure. However, the demand of the new role is for the individual to out-grow his previous role and oc occu cupy py the the new new ro role le effec effecti tive vely ly.. This This produ produce ces s so some me stress in the individual.
Role
s t a g n a ti ti on on
also
i n c l ud ud es es
s tr tr e s s
r e l at at e d
to
career
progression. Marshall and Cooper (1979) have commented on this type of stress in the American context. context. A lot of this is true of India, India, as Ma Mars rsha hall ll and and Coop Cooper er (1979 (1979)) have have co comme mment nted ed,, c ar ar ee ee r p ro ro gr gr es es si si on on i s p er er ha ha ps ps a p ro ro bl bl em em b y i ts ts n at at ur ur e. e. A t 40
middle middle age, age, and and usual usually ly middle middle-ma -mana nage geme ment nt leve levels, ls, ca care reer er becom becomes es more more prob proble lemat matic ic and and
most most exec execut utive ives s
find find thei theirr
progr progres ess s slowe slowed, d, if no nott ac actu tuall ally y stop stoppe ped. d. Job oppo opport rtun unit itie ies s becom become e fewe fewerr, thos those e jobs jobs that that are are avail availab able le take take longe longerr to maste masterr, past past (mist (mistak aken en?) ?) decis decision ions s ca cann nnot ot be revo revoke ked, d, old old knowle knowledge dge and and meth method ods s becom become e obsol obsolet ete, e, ener energie gies s may may be flaggin flagging g
or demande demanded d for family family activiti activities es and there there is the the
‘press’ of fresh young recruits to face in competition. The fear of demotion or obsolescence can be strong for those who know they have reached their career coiling – and most will inevitably suffer some erosion of status before they finally retire. From the company perspective, on the other hand, McMurray (1973) puts the case for not promoting to a higher position if there is doubt that the employee can fill it. In a syndrome he labels ‘the executive neurosis’, he describes the over-promoted manager as grossly over working to keep down a top job, and at
th e sam e
c on on s eq eq ue ue nc nc es es
time of
h i de de
t hi hi s
hi s
f or or
i n s e c u ri ri ty ty,
h is is
w or or k
a nd nd
p o i n ts ts
p er er fo fo r ma ma nc nc e
to
the
a nd nd
th e
company. company. Age is no longer revered revered as it was – it is becoming becoming a ‘ yo yo un un g
m an an ’s ’s
w or or l d’ d’.
T he he
ra p pii d it it y
w it it h
w hi hi ch ch
s oc oc ie ie ty ty
is
developing technologically economically and socially) is likely to mean that individuals will now need to change career during their their working working life life (as companie companies s and product products s are having having
to
do). Such trends breed uncertainty and research suggests that older older worker workers s loo look k for stabili stability ty.. Unless Unless manage managers rs adapt adapt their their expectat expectation ions s to suit new circums circumstan tances ces career career develo developme pment nt s tres s,
esp ec ia lly
in
la ter
li fe,
increasingly common experience.
41
is
likely
to
b ec ome
an
4.
Inter-role Distance: Distance : An individual occupies more than o ne ne r ol ol e. e. T he he re re m ay ay b e c on on fl fl ic ic ts ts b et et we we en en t wo wo r ol ol es es h e occupies. For example, an executive often faces the conflicts betwe between en his his or orga ganiz nizat atio ional nal ro role le as an exec execut utiv ive e and and his family family role as the husba husband nd from
his
w if if e
and
and the fathe fatherr. The demands demands
c h i ld ld r en en
to
share
h is is
t i me me
may
be
incom incompat patibl ible e with with the the or organ ganiza izati tion onal al dema demand nds s on him him for for spend spendin ing g a lot lot of time time on Orga Organis nisati ation onal al probl problem ems. s. Such Such inter-role conflicts are quite frequent in modern society when the the indiv individu idual al is incre increas asing ingly ly oc occu cupyi pying ng mult multipl iple e ro role les s in various organisations and groups. Marshal Marshalll
and Coope Cooperr (1979) (1979) have have mentione mentioned d two proble problems ms
regardin regarding g manager’ manager’s s relatio relationsh nships ips with with his family family and wife: wife: time and spillover of stress from one to the other. Rappel and Paul (1971) found that the majority of wives in their middleclass sample saw their role in relation to their husband’s job as a cooperat cooperative ive,, domestic domestic one; all said that that they derive derived d
their their
sense of security from their husbands (only two men said the same of their wives). Barber (1976) interviewing five directors’ directors’ wives wives finds finds similar similar attitu attitudes. des. Gowler and Legge Legge (1975) (1975) have have dubbed this bond ‘the hidden contract’ in which the wife agrees to act as a ‘supportive ‘supportive team’ team’ so that
her husband husband can fill the
demanding demanding job to which he aspires. aspires. Handy (1975) supports supports the i de de a t ha ha t t hi hi s i s t yp yp ic ic al al , a nd nd t ha ha t i t i s t he he p at at h t o c ar ar ee ee r success for the manager concerned. 5 . Role Boundness: Boundness : If an individual feels highly obligated to the expectations of significant role senders, and sacrifices his own interests, preferences, values, comforts etc., he may be sa said id to be ro role le boun bounde ded. d. He may may exper experie ienc nce e the the co confl nflic ictt between his tendency to li ve as a person, and live as a role. For
42
example, in the traditional Indian homes, the boys experienced the conflict between their “son role” and their living as persons persons giving preferences to their “son role”. Indian culture promoted such role bounded ness. .
Role Set Conflicts An
i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l
o cc cc up up yi yi ng ng
a
p ar ar ti ti cu cu la la r r ol ol e
m ay ay
h av av e s om om e
expectations from his role. Interacting with him (role senders) m ay ay
have
q ui ui t e
d if if f er er en en t
e x pe pe c t a t i o n s
from
h i m. m.
S uc uc h
incompat incompatible ible expect expectatio ations ns and other other proble problems ms arising arising in the role set are called role set stress or conflicts. Some of these discussed below. As Marshal and Cooper (1979) have pointed out, role ambiguity exists when an individual individual has inadequate information information about his work role, i.e. where there is lack of clarity abou t the work objec objectiv tives es as asso socia ciate ted d with with the the ro role le,, about about work work co colle lleagu agues es'' e x p ec ec ta ta ti ti on on
of
the
w or or k
rol e
and
about
the
s c op op e
and
respo respons nsibi ibilit litie ies s of the the job. job. Kahn, Kahn, Wolfe, olfe, Quin Quinn, n, Snoe Snoek k and and Rosenthal (1964) found in their study that men who suffered from from role role ambigui ambiguity ty experie experience nced d lower lower job satisfa satisfactio ction, n, high job-related tension, greater futility and lower self-confidence. French and Caplan (1973) found, at one of NASA's bases, in a sample
of
205
vol unteer
eng ineers,
scientists
and
administrators, that role ambiguity was significantly related to low job satisf satisfac actio tion n and and to feel feelin ings gs of job-r job-rel elate ated d thre threat at to o ne ne 's 's m en en ta ta l a nd nd p hy hy si si ca ca l w el el ll- be be in in g. g. T hi hi s a ls ls o r el el at at ed ed t o i nd nd ic ic at at or or s
of
p hy hy si si ol ol og og ic ic al al
s tr tr a in in
s uc uc h
as
i nc nc re re as as ed ed
b lo lo od od
pressure and pulse rate. Margolis, Kroes and Quinn (1974) also found a number of significant relationships between symptoms or
i nd nd ic ic at at or or s
of
p hy hy s ic ic al al
an nd d
m en en tta al
i ll ll
he ea a lt lt h
w it it h
r ol ol e
ambiguity in their representative national sample (n-1496). The 43
stres stress s indic indicato ators rs rela relate ted d to ro role le ambig ambiguit uity y were were depr depres esse sed d m ood,
low ered
s e l f- e s t e e m
life
diss atis fac tion,
job
dissatisfaction, low motivation to work and intention to leave the
j ob ob .
Whils t
t h es es e
w er er e
not
very
s tr tr o n g
s ta ta t i s t i c al al
relationships they were significant and do indicate that lack of role clarity may be one among many potential stress’s at work. Kahn (1973) feels that it is now time to separate out distinctive elements of role ambiguity for individual treatment (just as he and
his
res earc h
' re re s po po ns ns ib ib il il it it y ') ') .
He
team
have
s u gg gg es es ts ts
done t ha ha t
for
t wo wo
'overl oad'
and
c om om po po ne ne n tts s
a re re
invo involve lved; d; thos those e of pres presen ent, t, and and futur future-p e-pro rospe spects cts ambig ambiguit uity y (much of the material he assigns to the latter is here included under 'role stagnation'). 2 . Role overload: overload : When the role occupant feels that there are too many expectations expectations from the significant roles in his role set, he experiences 'role overload'. They measured this stress by asking questions about the feeling of people whether they could possibly finish work given to them during the modified work day and whether they felt that amount of work they did m ig ig ht ht
i n te te rf rf e re re
w i th th
how
well
it
was
d o n e. e.
Mos t
of
the
executi executive ve role role occ occupan upants ts experie experience nce role role overlo overload. ad. Kahn Kahn and Quinn (1970) have suggested some conditions under which role overload is likely to occur. According to them, role overload is l ik ik el el y t o o cc cc ur ur m or or e i n t he he a bs bs en en ce ce o f m ec ec ha ha ni ni sm sm o f r ol ol e integration, in the absence of power of role occupants, in the large variations variations in the expected output and when delegation or assistance cannot procure more time. Marshall and Cooper (1979) have summarised the recent work on quantitative quantitative and qualitative qualitative overload. Quantitative Quantitative refers to having 'too much to do' while qualitative means work that is
44
'too difficult'. (The complementary phenomena of quantitative and qualita qualitativ tive e underl underload oad are also hypoth hypothesiz esized ed as potenti potential al s ou ou rc rc e o f s tr tr es es s b ut ut w it it h l it it tl tl e o r n o s up up po po rt rt iv iv e r es es ea ea rc rc h evidence). Miller (1969) has theorized that 'overload' in most s ys ys te te ms ms l ea ea ds ds t o b re re ak ak do do wn wn , w he he th th er er w e a re re d ea ea li li ng ng w it it h single biological cells or individuals in organizations. In an early s tu tu dy dy
F re re n ch ch
an nd d
C ha ha p pll ai ai n
( 19 19 70 70 )
f ou ou nd nd
t ha ha t
o bj bj ec ec ti ti ve ve
quantitative overload was strongly linked to cigarette smoking (a sign of tension and risk factor in CHD). Persons with more phone calls, office visits and meetings per given unit of work time were found to smoke significantly more cigarettes than persons with fewer such engagements. engagements. In a study of 100 young coronary patients Russek and Zohman (1958) found that 25% h ad ad b ee ee n w or or ki ki ng ng a t t wo wo j ob ob s a nd nd a n a dd dd it it io io na na l 4 5% 5% h ad ad worked at jobs which required (due to work overload) 60 or m or or e h ou ou rs rs
p er er
w ee ee k .
T he he y
ad dd d
th a att
a lt lt h ou ou gh gh
p ro ro l on on ge ge d
emot emotion ional al strain strain proce proceed eded ed the the atta attack ck in 91% of the the ca case ses s s im im il il ar ar
s tr tr es es s w as as
o nl nl y o bs bs er er ve ve d i n 2 0% 0%
o f t he he c on on tr tr ol ol s. s.
Bresl Breslow ow and and Bu Buel elll (1960) (1960) have have also also repo report rted ed findin findings gs which which support a relationship between hours of work and death from coronary diseases. In an investigation of mortality rates of men in California they observed observed that workers workers in light industry industry under the age age of 45 who
are in the the job more more than 48 hour hours s a week
have twice the risk of death from CHD compared with similar workers working 40 or under hours a week. Another substantial i nv nv es es ti ti ga ga ti ti on on
o n q ua ua nt nt it it at at iv iv e
w or or kl kl oa oa d w as as
c ar ar ri ri ed ed
o ut ut
by
Margolis, Kroes and Quinn (1974) on a representative national sample of 1496 employed persons aged 16 or older. They fond tha t
o v e r l oa oa d
was
s ig ig n i fi fi c an an t l y
r e l at at e d
to
a
n u m be be r
of
symptoms or indictors of stress; escapist drinking, absenteeism from work, low motivation to work, lowered self-esteem and an 45
absence of suggestions to employers. The result from these and other studies (Quinn, Seashore and Mangione, 1971; Porter and Lawyer, Lawyer, 1965) 1965) are relatively relatively
consistent consistent and indicate
that this
factor is indeed a potential source of occupational stress that affects both health and job satisfaction. T he he re re
i s a ls ls o
s om om e e vi vi de de nc nc e t ha ha t ( fo fo r s om om e o cc cc up up at at io io ns ns )
'qualitative' overload is a source of stress. French, Tupper and Muel Mueller ler (1965 (1965)) look looked ed at quali qualita tativ tive e and and quant quantit itat ativ ive e work work overlo overload ad in a large large univers university ity.. Qualita Qualitative tive overlo overload ad was not significantly linked to low self-esteem among the administrators but was significantly correlated for the professors. The greater the 'quality' of work expected of the professor the lower the self-esteem. They also found that qualitative and quantitative overlo overload ad were were correl correlated ated with achieve achievement ment orient orientatio ation. n. More More interestingly it was found in a follow-up study that achievement o ri ri en en ta ta ti ti on on
c or or re re la la te te d
( Br Br o ok ok s
an nd d
r ep ep or or te te d
an
Mu ue e ll ll er er,
v er er y
s tr tr on on gl gl y
1 96 96 6) 6) .
a ss ss oc oc ia ia ti ti on on
of
w it it h
s er er um um
u ri ri c
a ci ci d
S ev ev er er a l
o th th e err
s tu tu di di es es
ha av ve
q ua ua li li ta ta ti ti ve ve
w or or k
o ve ve rl rl oa oa d
w it it h
cholest cholestero eroll level; level; a tax deadlin deadline e for acco account untant ants s (Friedm (Friedman, an, Rosenman and Carroll, 1958) and medical students performing a
m ed ed ic ic al al
e xa xa mi mi na na ti ti on on
u nd nd er er
o b se se rv rv a ti ti on on
( Dr Dr e ey y fu fu s ss s
a nd nd
Czacke Czackes, s, 1959). 1959). Fren French ch and and Capla Caplan n (1973 (1973)) summa summari rize ze this this research research
by suggesting suggesting that both qualitative qualitative and quantitativ quantitative e
o ve ve rl rl oa oa d
p ro ro du du ce ce
p sy sy ch ch ol ol og og ic ic al al t en en si si on on ,
a nd nd
l ow ow er er
at
l ea ea st st
p hy hy si si ca ca l
s el el ff- es es te te em em ,
n i ne ne
s tr tr a in in ; t hr hr ea ea t, t,
d i ff ff er er e en nt j ob ob
sy ym m pt pt om om s
d is is sa s a ti ti sf sf ac ac ti ti on on ,
e mb mb ar ar ra ra ss ss me me nt nt ,
of j ob ob
h ig ig h
cholest cholestero eroll levels, levels, increa increased sed heart heart rate, rate, skin resist resistance ance and m or or e s mo mo ki ki ng ng . I n a na na ly ly zi zi ng ng t hi hi s d at at e h ow ow ev ev er er o ne ne c an an no no t i gn gn or or e
the
v it it a l
i n t er er a ct ct i v e
r el el at at i o n s h i p
of
the
job
and
employee; objective work overload for example should not be
46
viewed in isolation isolation but as relative relative to the individual's capacities capacities and personality. personality. 4.
Role Isolation: Isolation : In role stress, the role occupant may feel that that ce cert rtai ain n ro role les s are are psych psycholo ologic gical ally ly near near to him, him, while while some other roles are at a distance. The main criter ion of role-role distance of frequency and ease interaction. When linkages are strong, the role-role distance distance will be low. In the a bs bs en en c ce e
of
s tr tr o ng ng
l i nk nk a ag g e, e,
th e
r ol ol ee- ro ro le le
d is is ta ta nc nc e
c an an
ther theref efor ore, e, be meas measure ured d in term terms s of exist existing ing and and desir desired ed l in in ka ka ge ge s. s. T he he g ap ap b et et we we en en t he he d es es ir ir ed ed a nd nd t he he e xi xi st s t in in g linkage linkages s will indicate indicate the amount of distanc distance e between between the two roles. Marshall and Cooper (1979) have suggested one main source of managerial managerial stress connected connected with relationships relationships at work. French and Caplan (1973) define poor relations as those which include low trust, low supportiveness and low interest in listening to and
trying
to
deal
wi th
probl ems
that
confront
the
organizational member. The most notable studies in this area are by Kahn, et al. (1964), French and Caplan (1970) and Buck (1972). Both the Kahn, et al. and French and Caplan studies came to roughly the same conclusion that mistrust of persons one worked with was positively related to high role ambiguity which led to inadequate communications between people and to psychological strain in the form of low job satisfaction and to f ee ee l in in g
of
j ob ob -r -r e ell at at ed ed
t hr hr e ea at
to
o ne ne 's 's
w el el l
b ei ei ng ng .
It
wa s
interesting to note, however, in the Kahn, et al. study that poor relatio relations ns with one's one's subord subordinat inates es was signifi significant cantly ly relate related d to feelin feelings gs of thre threat at with with col colle leagu agues es and and supe superi rior ors s but but no nott in relationship to threat with subordinates.
47
Buck (1972) focused on the attitude and relationship of workers a nd nd
m an an ag ag er er s
l ea ea de de rs rs hi hi p s tr tr u uc c tu tu re re .
to
t he he ir ir
q ue ue st st io io nn nn ai ai re re T he he
i mm mm ed ed ia ia te te on
b os os s
u si si ng ng
c on on si si de de ra ra ti ti on on
c on on si si d er er a ti ti on on
f ac ac to to r
w as as
F le le is is hm hm an an 's 's
a nd nd
i ni ni ti ti at at in in g
a s so so ci ci at at ed ed
w it it h
behaviors behaviors indicative of friendship. friendship. He found that those workers workers who felt felt that that their their boss boss was low on 'conside 'considera ration tion'' report reported ed feeling more job pressure. Workers who were under pressure reported that their boss did not give them criticism in helpful way, played favorites with subordinates and 'pulled rank' and took took advan advanta tage ge of them them when whenev ever er they they got got a chanc chance. e. Bu Buck ck concludes that the 'lack of considerate behaviour of supervisors appea appears rs to have have co cont ntri ribut buted ed signi signific ficant antly ly to feel feeling ings s of job pressure. 4.
Role Ro le Er Eros osio ion n : A r ol ol e o cc cc u up p an an t m ay ay f ee ee l t ha ha t s om om e
functions which he would like to perform are being performed by some other role. The stress felt may be called 'role erosion'. Role erosion is the subjective feeling of an individual that some important role expectations he has from his role do not match with the expectations other roles have for him. Role erosion is likely to be experienced in an organisation which is redefining its role an creating new roles. In several organisations which were redefining their structure, the stress of role erosion was inevitably inevitably felt. In one organization, organization, one role was abolished abolished and two roles were created to cater to the executives and planning needs. This led to a great stress in the role occupants of both roles who experienced role erosion.
inadequacy : Role inadequacy refers to two types of 5 . Role inadequacy: feelin feelings; gs; a) that that the ro role le oc occu cupa pant nt does does no nott have have adequ adequate ate resources to perform the role effectively, and (b) that he is not
48
f ul ul l y
e q u i p p ed ed
( l ac ac ks ks
i nt nt e r n a l
r e s o u rc rc es es )
for
e f fe fe c t i v e
performance of the role.
ROLE STRESS It is an atte attempt mpt to co compa mpare red d the the or organ ganiza izati tion onal al ro role le stre stress ss a mo mo n g
e x e c ut ut i v e s
of
the
Pe r s o n n e l
a nd nd
A d m in in i s t r a ti ti on on
d ep ep ar ar tm tm en en t o f t he he C or or po po ra ra te te O ff ff ic ic e o f t hr hr ee ee P ub ub li li c S ec ec to to r Organis Organisati ations ons,, namely namely Gas Author Authority ity of India India Limited Limited (GAIL), (GAIL), E ng ng in in ee ee rs rs
I nd nd ia ia
L im im it it ed ed
( EI EI L) L) ,
a nd nd
I nd nd ia ia n
O il il
C or or po po ra ra ti ti on on
Limited (IOC). An attempt was also made to the respondents were were
clas classif sifie ied d
acco ac cord rding ing to thei theirr
desig designat natio ion n
cate ca tegor gories ies -
senior managers, middle managers and junior managers of the middle management - as specific to the hierarchical positions in t he he ir ir
r es es pe pe ct ct iv iv e
o rg rg an an is is at at io io ns ns .
S uc uc h
a
c la la ss ss if i f ic ic at at io io n
w as as
basically made to find out whether it was the position of the re es s po po nd nd en en ts ts
in
t he he
o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io na na l
h i er er a rc rc h hy y
w hi hi c h
wa s
contributing to the stress to the individuals. According According to Srivastava , and Sen.
(1995), stress results from
a combination of various individual characteristics (such as age, achie achieve veme ment nt stresses stresses
need need,,
type type
of
pers person onal alit ity) y)
and
orga or ganiz nizat ation ional al
(role conflict, conflict, role role ambiguity). ambiguity). Stress Stress may also also result
from from a variet variety y of organiz organizati ationa onal, l, supervis supervisory ory,, individ individual, ual, and work factors. Kahn, Wolfe, Quinn, Snock, and Rosenthal (1964) identified two primary factors of organizational stress, nearly role ambiguity ambiguity and role conflic conflict. t. Selye Selye (1956), (1956), the father of modern stress, defined stress as the non-specific response of t he he b od od y t o a ny ny d em em an an d m ad ad e u po po n i t. t. M cM cM ic ic ha ha el el ( 19 19 78 78 ) d ef ef in in ed ed i t i n t er er ms ms o f t he he p ro ro du du ct ct o f a d yn yn am am ic ic m is is ma ma tc tc h b et et we we en en a n i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l a nd nd h is is o r h er er p hy hy si si ca ca l, l, s oc oc ia ia l, l, a nd nd p sy sy c ho ho l o g i c al al
e n v i ro ro n m e n t .
S tr tr e s s, s,
in
general,
is
the
psychological psychological or physiological physiological reaction that occurs when people 49
perceive perceive an imbalance imbalance between the demands placed upon them and their capacity to met those demands, and stress, specific to work environments, is the reaction of individuals to new or threatening factors in their work environment. The personality c harac teris tic s
of
the
individual,
the
envi ron menta l
characteristics, i.e., the stimulus of the external force active on the organism, and the person environment interaction, i.e., the o ve ve ra ra ll ll
p re re va va il il in in g
e th th os os
of
i nt nt er er pe pe rs rs on on al al
b eh eh av av io io rs rs
-
it
is
contended that stress can originate from an o these factors or in co combi mbinat natio ions ns there thereof of.. In othe otherr word words, s, it or orig igin inat ates es from from organizational demands, which are experiences by a individual. Recent
rev i ews
of
l i t e ra t u r e
have
ex ami ned
various
organizational variables and their effects on work stress. These include factors intrinsic to the job (e.g. boredom, information overload, time pressures, etc.) role in the regularization (e.g. under under promot promotion, ion, over-p over-prom romoti otion, on, lack lack of securit security y, etc.) etc.) and organizational organizational climate (lack of participation, participation, pressures towards conformity, conformity, etc). etc). the person-environment paradigm emphasizes emphasizes t he he v ie ie w t ha ha t h av av in in g t oo oo l it it tl tl e t o d o i s a s s tr tr es es sf sf ul ul f or or t he he indiv individu idual al as bein being g ov over erlo loade aded d with with work work.. As an indiv individu idual al p he he no no me me no no n, n,
s tr tr e es ss
is
a
p er er s on on a all
re es s po po ns ns e
to
a
c er er ta ta in in
variation in the environment. S in i n gh gh a nd nd S in in gh gh ( 19 19 92 92 ), ), s ay ay t ha ha t i n a n o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io n, n, t wo wo individuals may be identical regarding their position, but may differ in terms of the abilities, motives, moods and above all the personality as a whole. These personal differences interact with organizational factors and create predisposing conditions f or or
s tr tr e s s
e x pe pe r i e n c es es
tha t
may
i n f l u en en c e
the
ov e r a l l
performance of the individual. Another important dimension of t he he
o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io n
is
i ts ts
p sy sy ch ch ol ol og og ic ic al al
50
a tm tm os os ph ph er er e
i .e .e ., .,
i ts ts
climate climate.. organiz organizati ationa onall climate climate has been been studied studied in terms terms of those those chara charact cter erist istics ics that that dist disting ingui uish sh the the or organ ganiza izatio tion n from from other organizations and that influence the behaviour of people in the origination. Each organization differs from the other not only only in stru struct cture ure but also also in the the atti attitu tudes des and and beha behavio viour ur it elici elicits ts in peop people le..
Litwin Litwin and St Strin ringe ger r (1968) (1968) stat stated ed that that
organizational climate refers to a set of measurable properties of the work environment, perceived directly or indirectly by the people who live and work in its environment and ass ume to influe influence nce motiv motivat atio ion n and and beha behavio viour ur of the emplo employe yee. e. They They i de de nt nt if if ie ie d s tr tr uc uc tu tu re re ,
n in in e
d im im en en si si on on s
r es es po po ns ns ib ib il il it it y, y,
of
o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io na na l
r ew ew ar ar d, d,
r is is k, k,
c li li ma ma te te
w ar ar mt mt h, h,
v iz iz .
s up up po po rt rt ,
conflict, identity and standards. According to study by Ahmed and Jha (1989), human beings prefer jobs that possess characteristics like variety, autonomy, a nd nd
t as as k
s ig ig ni ni fi fi ca ca nc nc e. e.
I nc nc re re as as ed ed
p ar ar ti ti ci ci pa pa ti ti on on
in
d ec ec is is io io n
making have a significant negative effect on role conflict and role ambiguity. Social support also plays a moderating role in reducing individual stress. In other words, persons with high social social suppor supportt are ass assume umed d to expres express s a lower lower stress stress-str -strain ain relat relatio ions nship hip.. Thei Theirr stud study y also also reve reveale aled d that that the the emplo employe yees es lower lower in the organi organizati zationa onall hierar hierarchy chy experie experience nce more more stress stress and stra strain in but less less supe superv rviso isory ry suppo support rt than than the the emplo employe yees es higher in to hierarchy. The employees who had risen from lower ranks (those of workers, workers, for example) example) have little experience experience of manpower -management, need to drive hard to achieve targets set by management, and are also influenced by the workers unions. The employees in the higher grades, however, do not have to face such situations.
51
The stress stress an individual individual expresses expresses as a result result of the fact that ther there e are are too too many many expe expecta ctati tion ons, s, rega regardi rding ng his his or her ro role le,, from the significant others in his role set. Bharti, Bharti, Nagara Nagarathn thnamma amma,, and Reddy Reddy (1991) (1991) a nd nd A hm hm ad ad a nd nd Khanna
(1992) found that occupational stress was significantly
related related to job satisfa satisfactio ction: n: greate greaterr stress stress acco accompan mpanied ied with lower lower satisfa satisfactio ction. n. Howeve Howeverr, the latter latter study study also also found found that occ upa ti onal
s tress
was
neg atively
relat ed
with
job
involvement. According to Venna (1993) the factors, which can a ff ff ec ec t
th e
d ev ev e ell op op me me nt nt
of
t en en si si on on
in
P ub ub li li c
S ec ec to to r
U ni ni ts ts
emplo employe yees es,, may may eithe eitherr be pers person onal al and and /or /or envi enviro ronme nment ntal. al. Pers Pe rson onal al facto factors rs are are those those facto factors rs which which are are relat related ed to the the i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l
e .g .g .
a ge ge ,
s ex ex ,
i nt nt el el li li ge ge nc nc e, e,
p hy hy si si ca ca l
a bi bi li li ty ty,
e t. t.
Environmental factors are those factors, which are related to the the surr surrou oundi nding ngs s of the the indiv individ idual ual e.g. e.g. famil family y, cult culture ure,, job job environment, etc. Stress is the most frequently used word in the workplace today, raising raising tempers, tempers, lowering lowering productivity productivity,, and having an insidious insidious i mp ac t
on
both
morale
and
bottom li nes .
Ac c ordin g
to
Chakraborty, Chakraborty, Director of Management Centre for Human Values at the the India Indian n Inst Institu itute te of Ma Manag nagem emen ent, t, Calcu Calcutt tta, a, value values s in corpora corporatio tions ns have have col collap lapsed, sed, and stress stress is a reperc repercussi ussion on of that. In other words, if the values are put back into corporate life, the stress will disappear Bose 1996). According to Selye, Selye , top stress stressors ors at work work include, include, ov overlo erload, ad, deadlin deadline e pressu pressures res,, demanding bosses, non-performing juniors, competitive pairs, excessive touring, domestic disharmony. Most of all, it is the increasing uncertainty in today's corporate world that is leading to so much much exec execut utiv ive e stres stress. s. Anoth Another er fact factor or that that can badly badly stress employees whether they feel useful n a organization or
52
peripheral. To really bring about long-term stress relief, it will mean acknowle acknowledgi dging ng that that stress stress will be constan constantt compani companion on demanding constant attention (Bose 1996). A 1993 study by Northwestern National Life Insurance Company concluded that job stress generally is a consequence of two key ingredients: ingredients: a high level of job demands and little control control over one's work. An atmosphere where employees are empowered, where where they they have have more more co cont ntro roll ov over er ho how w they they perf perfor orm m thei theirr w or or k, k, r ed ed uc uc es es t he he r is is k o f b ur ur no no ut ut a nd nd s tr tr es es s c on on si si de de ra ra bl bl y ( Froilan Froiland d 1993), 1993), Bharti Bharti,, Nagarat Nagarathnam hnamma, ma, and Reddy Reddy (1991) (1991) found that occupational stress was significantly related to job s tu tu p e f a c ti ti o n :
G r e a te te r
s t r es es s
satisfaction.
Organizational
o r g an an i z at at i on on al al
d em em a nd nd s ,
a c c om om pa pa n i ed ed s tress
w hi hi ch ch
are
with
l o w er er
ori gi nates
from
experienced
by
an
individual. S ri ri va va st st a va va ,
Ha g gtt av av et et
an nd d
S en en
( 19 19 9 4) 4)
fond
tha t
m id id dl dl e
manager managers s suffer suffer maximall maximally y in organiz organizatio ational nal role role stress stress and anxiety, anxiety, followed by workers and top managers. The liability or difficu difficulty lty in meetin meeting g the variou various s expectat expectation ions s caused caused stress stress.. The study also revealed that the same stressful event can be perceived quite differently by top mangers, middle managers, and even by workers, this perception may depend on what the situation situation means to individuals at their own level. An evaluation o f t he he s it it ua ua ti ti on on b y e ac ac h o f t he he m i n r el el at at io io n t o t he he ms ms el el ve ve s determines the degree of stress they face. Stress-in terms of adver adverse se effe effect, ct, its its co cost st to human human resou resourc rces es,, mate materia rial, l, and progres progresss- is tremend tremendous ous.. Managem Management ent within within an organiz organizati ation on should function so as to maximize the coordination of human resources and work system and to minimize conflict.
53
A study by Froiland (1993), suggested that greater autonomy, team work and balanced workload can have significant impact on reducing workload can have a significant impact on reducing stres stress s on emplo employe yees es.. Grea Greate terr auto autono nomy my impli implies es givin giving g the the employee some autonomy and listening to his or her ideas. To give them the job and let them figure out how to do it, or let them do it in small, self-managed self-managed teams rather rather than through through a highly bureaucratic pyramid structure. This helps reduce stress. Te am am s c an an s er er ve ve a s a m ec ec ha ha ni ni sm s m t o i nc nc re re as as e c on on tr tr ol ol a nd nd communication. Work teams give employees more ownership of their jobs. Most of us draw emotional support not j ust from families and friends but from the people with whom we work. Downsizing and restructuring efforts tear apart those support systems, producing stress. We're beginning to move away from a
more more
trad traditi ition onal, al,
hiera hierarc rchic hical al
manag managem emen entt
struc structu ture re,,
to
empowerment. But as a switch to empowerment is a stressor in itsel itselff, beca becaus use e it repre represe sent nts s a very very signif signific ican antt chang change e and and change causes stress. The 1991 study by Northwestern National Life Insurance Insurance Company also found that the most stressful stressful part of
t h e j ob ob
was
too
muc h work , long
hours
and
d e a d l i ne ne
pressu pressure res. s. The The study study also also foun found d that that empl employ oyee ees s who who were were expected to work overtime became less productive and were more
prone
to
burnout.
Ye t
reducing
hours
was
not
recommended as a cure for job stress. Thus, it is not lesser w or or ki ki ng ng h ou ou rs rs t ha ha t w il il l h el el p r ed ed uc uc e s tr tr es es s b ut ut a b al al an an ce ce d workload workload.. There' There's s the mistake mistaken n belief belief that that long long hours hours equal equal high productivity. In most cases that's simply not true ( Froiland 1993). Workplace stress is endemic to a market economy: Do it better, faster, faster, before the competition competition overtakes overtakes you. The Big Four self
54
care skills (eating well, staying physically fit, not smoking and maintaining a desirable weight) that are at the core of most stress-managem stress-management ent programs, programs, actually have a negligible negligible effect o n p eo eo pl pl e' e' s a bi bi li li ty ty t o c op op e w it it h w or or k p re re ss ss ur ur es es a nd nd r a pi pi d change. According to the findings of Essi Systems inc. (ESI) in San Francisco, a stress-research consulting firm, the only factor with any significant impact on a person's ability to withstand w or or k p re re ss ss ur ur es es i s w ha ha t Esther Esther Orioli Orioli Pres Preside ident nt (ESI) (ESI) ca calls lls " Personal Power" - having control over your time, resources, important information, work load and so on. According o him it's not the volume of work or work demand that makes people sick, it is the extent to which they they feel they (lack) control over over their work and their workplace. As the pace and intensity of work increases, so does the need for control. In
o rd rd er er
to
t ac ac kl kl e
t he he
o rg rg an an iz iz at at io io na na l
a sp sp ec ec ts ts
e ff ff ec ec ti ti ve ve ly ly,
researchers recommend the use of stress audits like: •
Redesign the task
•
Analyze the work roles and establish goals
•
Include the employee in career development.
It is, is, ther theref efore ore,, no nott surp surpri risin sing g that that faced faced with with the the co compl mplex ex nature of stress and how to deal it, it is difficult to answer the q ue ue st st io io ns ns
a bo bo ut ut
t he he
e ff ff ec ec ti ti ve ve ne ne ss ss
of
s tr tr es es s
m an an ag ag em em en en t. t.
Furthermore, adding this complex organizational picture to the a lr lr ea ea dy dy
c om om pl pl ex ex
m ak ak ee- up up
of
t he he
i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l, l,
t he he
q ue ue st st io io n
becomes becomes even even harder harder to answer answer.. There There is, however however,, enough enough evidence to work on the premise that well carried out stress m an an a g em em en en t
i n t e r v en en ti ti on on s
by
a pp pp ro ro p ri ri at at e l y
q ua ua l i fi fi ed ed
practitioners are beneficial for the individual and organization. Employees need to be made more aware of the issues to make
55
informed decisions about investment in stress management. For them, the effective stress management is one that will reduce or minimize role ambiguity and role expectation conflict, thus minimizi minimizing ng absentee absenteeism ism and prematu premature re retirem retirement ent,, and will m ax ax im im iz iz e
e mp mp lo lo ye ye e
p ro ro du du ct ct iv iv it it y
a nd nd
l ea ea di di ng ng
to
i nc nc re re as as ed ed
company profits.
Personality Characteristics Play an important role n the development of stress. Jenkins ( 19 19 71 71 )
a rr rr iv iv ed ed
at
a
c or or on on ar ar y
p ro ro ne ne
B eh eh av av io io ur ur a l
p at at te te rn rn .
Individuals Individuals who are subject to this syndrome are characterized characterized by extreme competitiveness, an urge to achieve, aggression, haste, haste, impatie impatience nce,, restle restlessne ssness, ss, hyperl hyperlate aternes rness, s, tensio tension n and time pressure. Rose Roserm rman an and and
Frie Friedma dman n
calle ca lled d
this this ment mental al and beha behavio viora rall
pattern, pattern, the type A behavior behavior. Some psychologists psychologists feel that this type type of beha behavio viora rall is an extr extrem eme e vari varian antt of what what is so socia cially lly highly recommended and positively rewarded. Other think that Type-A ype-A behavi behavior or is dysfunc dysfunction tional al and tat the better better jobs are only for the quiet, detached, contemplative Type -B (Mathews, 1982). Glass (1977) has theorized that A -types demonstrate hyperresponsiveness with regard to challenging situations, meaning that they always expose themselves to fight situations. If they fail to succeed, they will, much more so than B-types, start to achieve achieve less less and experi experienc ence e learned learned helpless helplessnes ness. s.
Luzarus Luzarus
found that the way in which a person interprets a situation is of great importance for the occurrence or non-occurrence of stress
56
proble problems ms.. The The inter interpre preta tati tion on of a situat situatio ion n is relat related ed to an individuals personality structure. A very competitive person will regard a situation in which he had the worst of it as more threatening than someone who is not competitive. Other Other persona personalit lity y characte characterist ristics ics which which are of signific significanc ance e in s tr tr es es s
r es es ea ea rc rc h
a gg gg re re ss ss io io n, n,
a re re
r ig ig id id it it y, y,
d og og ma ma ti ti sm sm ,
c on on fo fo rm rm is is m, m,
a ut ut ho ho ri ri ta ta ri ri an an is is m, m,
s up up pr pr es es si si on on i nt nt er er na na l
of
v er er su su s
external control etc. (Winnubst, 1984).
Role Overload It is described as a condition in which the individual is faced with a set of obligations which require him to do more than he is able to in the time available (ales, 1969). In the case of too many many activit activities ies,, we speak speak of quantit quantitati ative ve overloa overload, d, when when an individual has perform tasks that are too difficult for him, we speak of qualitative overload (French and Caplan, 1972). The bearer may be bombarded by expectations; a force which he even eventu tuall ally y ca cann nnot ot co cope pe with. with. A se sensi nsible ble tact tactic ic then then is to organize organize 'role negotiation' negotiation' or 'role bargaining' (Harrison, (Harrison, 1973) w he he re re
by
th e
t hr hr e ea a te te ne ne d
i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l
t ri ri es es
to
o rg rg an an iz iz e
hi
obligations with or without outside help. In research on middle management (Van Vucht Tijssen et al, 1 97 9 7 8) 8) , r ol ol e o ve ve rl rl oa oa d w as as s ho ho wn wn t o b e r el el at at ed ed t o p hy hy si si ca ca l complain complaints ts and even even more more clearly clearly to greate greaterr obesit obesity y, higher higher blood pressure and more smoking. Thus
role
o v e r l oa oa d
is
an
e l em em en en t
to
be
r e j e c t ed ed
w i th th in in
organizations, especially because of the higher risk of illness and exha exhaust ustio ion. n. Ho Howe weve verr, it is still still not clea clearr whet whethe herr se self lf-i nf nf li li ct ct ed ed
o ve ve rl rl oa oa d a nd nd
o ve ve rl rl oa oa d i nf nf li li ct ct ed ed
significant difference.
57
by
o th th er er
m ak ak e a
Role Conflict I t i s t he he s im im ul ul ta ta ne ne ou ou s o cc cc ur ur re re nc nc e o f t wo wo o r m or or e s et et s o f pressu pressure res, s, such such that that co compl mplian iance ce with with on one e would would make make more more difficult compliance with the other (Kahn et al, 1964). some p ro ro fe fe ss ss io io ns ns
a re re c ha ha ra ra ct ct er er iz iz ed ed b y a h ig ig he he r d eg eg re re e o f r ol ol e
conflict than others. To be in a role conflict situation is often associ ass ociat ated ed with with litt little le job-s job-sat atisf isfact action ion,, obes obesit ity y and a highe higherr coronary coronary risk (Kahn et al, 1964; Shirom et al, 1973 and Caplan et al, 1975). Role conflict emerged as an important stressor (Shar (Sharma ma,, 1983) 1983),, altho althoug ugh h ther there e are indic indicat atio ions ns that that this this is more the case for the white collar professions than for blue collar factor workers.
Role Ambiguity S om om et et im im es es
p eo eo pl pl e
w or or ki ki ng ng
in
o rg rg an an iz iz at at i on on s
do
no t
ha av ve
sufficient information about what they are expected to do and especially about how they a re to perform a task. In
t he he
D ut ut ch ch
r es es ea ea rc rc h
on
m id id dl dl e
m an an ag ag em em en en t
( Va Va nv nv uc uc ht ht
Tijssen et al, 1978) ambiguity emerged as the most powerful stressor. Too much role ambiguity correlated significantly with psychological and psychosomatic complaints, with higher heart beat frequency, with concern for personal functioning and with higher absenteeism. I n I nd nd ia ia , c on on tr tr a rry y t o t he he f in in di di ng ng s o f D as as ( 19 19 82 82 ) w ho ho h a as s reported that role ambiguity is not a significant cause of stress, the researchers researchers
in general general have expresse expressed d as serious serious concern concern
about role ambiguity as a stress inducing factor (Pareek and Rao, 1981).
58
Role Stagnation and Midlife Crisis The feeling of being fixed in their role within the organization is one of the most frightening experiences. More threatening is monoton monotonous ous work work or work lacking lacking in challen challenge ge
(Korn (Kornhau hauser ser
1965;; Shepherd, 1971). M id id dl dl e
a ge ge
e m p lo lo y e e s
is
an
e sp sp ec ec ia ia ll ll y
p a r t i c ul ul a rl rl y
for
p ro ro bl bl em em at at ic ic those
in
p er er io io d
m i dd dd l e
f or or
an d
m an an y h i g he he r
manageme management. nt. Room at the top of the pyramid pyramid is limited limited;; as a result, employees get frustrated exactly during that period of their life when their career opportunities.
Absence of Social Support Relations with others, both at home and work, are often crucial for
an
em pl oyees
w el l
b ei ng .
In
res earc h
on
middle
management, it was found that inadequate willingness of others to help at work is related to considerably more smoking as well as to anxiety about one's own functioning, job dissatisfaction and physical complaints (Van Vucht Tijssen et al, 1978). Good relationship between employer and employee serves as a shield against the occurrence of stress. Das (1982) has reported a signif significa icant ntly ly negat negativ ive e co corr rrel elat atio ion n of so socia ciall suppo support rt an open open communication with the felt stress.
Role Incompatibility In there there is not fit between between an individuals individuals capabilities capabilities p os os si si bi bi li li ti ti es es p re re se se nt nt ed ed a de de q u a t e
c oo oo r d i na na t i on on
e nv nv ir ir on on me me n t, t,
t h en en
and the
b y t h e j o b a n d i f t he he re re i s n o s uc uc h b e t w ee ee n
s tr tr a in in s
l ik ik e
59
the
i n d i vi vi d ua ua l
a nx nx ie ie t y,
and
the
d ep ep re re ss ss io io n
a nd nd
dissat dissatisf isfac acti tion on
have have
an
increa increasin sing g
chan chance ce
of
occur oc curre renc nce. e.
General improvements in the organization cannot be effectively made if the possibilities and wishes of those involved are not considered. considered. Adequate adjustment adjustment of the individual to hours job envir environ onme ment nt and and vice vice vers versa a is ther theref efor ore e impo import rtant ant.. Thus Thus is often
not
the
case
and
the
in div idua l
c
c onsequ ently
experiences strain.
CHAPTER-5 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research is an academic activity and as such the term is used in technical sense. “Research comprises defining and redefining p ro ro bl bl em em s, s,
f or or mu mu la la ti ti ng ng
h yp yp ot ot he he si si s
or
s ug ug ge ge st st ed ed
s ol ol ut ut io io ns ns ,
collect collecting, ing, organiz organizing ing and evaluat evaluating ing data, data, making making deduct deduction ion and reac reachin hing g co concl nclus usio ions ns;; and and at last, last, ca care reful fully ly testi testing ng the the conclu conclusio sions ns to dete determi rmine ne wheth whether er they they
fit fit
the the
form formula ulatin ting g
hypothesis. The research on Organisational Organisational Role Stress in National Thermal Thermal Power Corporation Limited consisted of following steps:
DATA COLLECTION: COLLECTION :
60
Data was collected by using various methods. For the purpose of fulfilling the objectives of the study and for completing the proje project, ct, both both primar primary y and and se secon condar dary y sourc sources es of data data were were collected.
PRIMARY SOURCES •
Questionnaire
Keeping in view the objectives of the study, a questionnaire (as given in appendix-1) was selected. There are fifty questions in all. All the questions are small in size and arranged logically. The
language
is
si mple
and
easy
to
understand.
The
q ue ue st st io io nn nn ai ai re re i s e xh xh au au st st iv iv e. e. I t c ov ov er er s a w id id e a re re a, a, s o t he he dimensions of Organisational Role Stress could be determined appropriately. T he he
re es s po po nd nd en en ts ts
w er er e t ol ol d t o m ar ar k
t he he i r a ns ns we we r s i n t he he
questionnaire itself on the basis of the scale given in it. The scale sca le co cove vere red d the wide range range from the most posit positiv ive e to the the most negative answer. These questions helped us to have an insight into the ongoing s ou ou r c e
of
role
s tr tr e s s
and
als o
the
i d ea ea s
of
the
various
executives on how to overcome role stress •
Interview
Informa Informatio tion n was also obtaine obtained d by inform informal al conver conversat sation ion with t he he
e xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s .
T h ey ey
w er er e
i nt nt er er vi vi ew ew ed ed
p er er s on on a all ly ly.
T he he
questions asked were discussed at length so as to gain access to their idea on role stress.
SECONDARY SOURCES •
Records of the Personal and Human Resource
61
Department of NTPC. •
Manuals of the company. company.
•
Official reports.
•
Annual reports
•
Other mimeographed materials.
•
NTPC magazines, journals & bulletins.
SAMPLING I n t he he b ac ac kd kd ro ro p o f t he he o bj bj ec ec ti ti ve ve s s et et , a s am am pl pl e s tu tu dy dy w as as c on on d uc uc te te d
in
Ba d da a rrp p ur ur.
T he he
s am am e
w as as
r e st st ri ri ct ct ed ed
to
t he he
corporate corporate centers centers of NTPC-Engine NTPC-Engineering ering Office Complex, Complex, A-8A, Sec-24, NOIDA & BADARPUR. The The sa sampl mple e units units were were the the exec execut utiv ives es work workin ing g in these these two two corpora corporate te center centers. s. Survey Survey being being restri restricte cted d to the corpor corporate ate cente centers rs becau because se major majorit ity y
of the the exec execut utiv ives es were were avail availabl able e
there. In
order
to
get
ample
and
vari ed
information
on
the
Organisational Organisational Role Stress, the executives executives from level E1 to E7, i.e. i.e., from from junio juniorr most most exec execut utiv ives es up to the the Depu Deputy ty Gene Genera rall Manager, were chosen. The questionnaires were given to the executives and their cooperation & help was procured to get it filled. The sample size was kept ten per cent. The executives were chosen at random taking care of the fact that ten p ercent of the e xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s a re re s el el ec ec te te d f ro ro m e ac ac h l ev ev el el ( E1 E1 -E -E 7) 7) s o a s t o maintain proportionality among the different levels. Care was
62
also also take taken n so that that all all the the depa depart rtme ment nts s were were co cove vere red. d. The The sampling sampling method method thus thus adopte adopted d was “Stra “Stratifi tified ed Propor Proportion tionate ate Random Sampling”. It
was
ass um ed
that
the
s am pl e
selected
was
tru e
repre represe sent ntati ative ve of the the proj projec ectt and and popul populat atio ion n vari varian ance ces s are are equal equal.. Bias Biases es that that might might have have arri arrive ved d while while answe answeri ring ng the the questionnaire are very low.
COLLECTION OF THE QUESTIONNAIRES Suffic Sufficie ient nt time time was was given given to the the respo respond nden ents ts to answe answerr the the questionnaire. Most of the questionnaires were collected after an hour.
P ROBLEMS
FACED
WHILE
COLLECTING
AND
FILLING THE QUESTIONNAIRES QUESTIONNAIRES:: •
Some of the respondents were hesitant to answer the questionnaire.
•
They tried to shrink away from filling the questionnaire and always wanted more time in this regard, they a lways tried to avoid us.
•
Some respondents did not want to answer the questionnaire, so they left it unanswered.
•
Where the respondents did not find the relevant answer in the choice provided, they added their own choic e or left it unanswered.
63
TABULATION After all the questionnaires were collected back, the responses were tabulated. The evaluation sheet (as given in appendix-2) was used for the purpose. Each answer of the respondent was tabulate tabulated d to its respec respectiv tive e catego category ry.. Thus Thus the value value of each each dimension of role stress in case of individual executives were calculated. Further, mean and percentage for all the role stress were calculated so as to obtain the values for the organization as a whole. The sample was further further divided on the basis of age ( ab ab ov ov e 4 0 a n nd d
b el el ow ow
4 0) 0) an an d l ev ev el el
e xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s a nd nd
m ea ea ns ns
a nd nd
( E1 E1 -E -E 4 a nd nd
p er er ce ce nt nt ag ag es es
E5 5-- E7 E7 )
of
w er er e c al al cu cu la la te te d i n
respect of those categories.
ANALYSIS In this this se sect ction ion,, the the infor informat matio ion n obta obtaine ined d by the the proce process ss of t ab ab ul ul at at io io n w as as re ell at at io io ns ns h hii ps ps
a na na ly ly ze ze d, d,
t ha ha t
e x is is t
s o a s t o i de de nt nt if if y t he he a mo mo ng ng
conclusions were arrived at.
64
d if if fe fe r e en nt
g ro ro up up s
p at at te te rn rn a nd nd
of t he he
CHAPTER-6 FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS
LEVEL WISE ANALYSIS OF STRESS In case of executives executives at level E1 stress level is alarmingly alarmingly high only for REC and RO, it is at the medium level for all other s tr tr es es s t yp yp es es
i t i s a la la rm rm in in gl gl y h ig ig h a nd nd r eq eq ui ui re re s i mm mm ed ed ia ia te te
interventions. Inter role distance is experienced experienced at a rightly higher level than the median value, and so are role isolation, sell role distance, r ol ol e
a mb mb ig ig ui ui ty ty
an nd d
re es s ou ou rc rc e
i na na de de q ua ua cy cy.
T he he
f un un c ctt io io na na l
negot negotiat iatio ion n decki decking ng ro role le clas classif sifica icati tion on from from vari variou ous s so sour urce ces s then defining it in the light of such classification. In case of level E3 role overload is at an alarmingly alarmingly high level. Even role isolation isolation is at a level higher higher than the medium and so is perusal inadequacy. It seems they need proper orientation of 65
adequate preparation and warning when assigned roles at this level. Role slimming and role negotiation would be functional approaches here together with. At this level, again the role stress is experienced at levels lower than the median value supported supported after the norms. norms. It is slightly slightly higher after norms. It s slightly higher than the median, only i nc nc as as e
o f i nt nt er er
r o le le
d is is ta ta n nc c e, e,
r ol ol e o v er er lo lo ad ad
a nd nd
s el el f
r ol ol e
distance. The functional strategies of dealing with this would involves role negotiation, role slivering and role interpretation to some extent. At this this leve level, l, the the ro role le stre stress ss expe experie rienc nced ed is lowe lowerr than than the medium value suggested by the norms for all the stress types other other than than role role overloa overload d and persona personall inadequ inadequacy acy which which are both experienced at the higher ads of the medium va lue. It means that at such "high level, the executives have too many jobs on hard because they just didn't have to do their own jobs but they have to supervise the work of their subordinates may cause the executives executives to experience experience personal personal inadequacy inadequacy.. The functional strategies of dealing efficiently with this conclusion would involve role slivering and time management.
Analysis of the stress type Here the stress is experiences at the medium level.
Inter Role Distance: This conflict arise due an individual or certifying more than one role. Such inter-role conflicts are q ui ui te te
f re re qu qu en en t
in
m od od er er n
s oc oc ie ie ty ty
w he he n
t he he
i nd nd iv iv i du du a all
is
increasi increasingly ngly occ occupy upying ing multipl multiple e roles roles in variou various s organiz organizati ation on a nd nd g ro ro up up s. s. T hi hi s i s e xp xp er er ie ie nc nc ed ed a t t he he h ig ig he he r a nd nd o f t he he medium save by executives at level E1 and E2 and E6 level experiences it at the medium level.E3's score for IRD is low and
66
E5 even lower than the standard standard low value. Executives Executives at level E4 experience IRD at the lower end of the medium. Therefore we can say experience of IRD E1, E2 and E7 is high. E6
: Medium level stress
E4
: Lower than medium level stress
E3
: L ow
E5
: Very low.
If we consider the age groups of the executives as well as we notice that it is the executives who are above 40 years of age of experience IRD to a larger extent. This could be due to the fact that they have important responsibilities from the home front. A functional strategy of dealing with this type of stress would be role negotiation.
Role stagnation: This refers to the individuals’ reluctance to 8 0 off the old role to a dap t to th e new one. This is alarmingly high for level E1 for executives at all other levels it is either at the medium level or even lower than that. It means that that the exec execut utiv ives es at NTPC NTPC co corpo rpora rate te ce cent nter er,, have have large largely ly adapted their expectations to suit new circumstances and are n ot ot
l ik ik el el y
to
e xp xp er er ie ie nc nc e
c au au se se d
d ev ev el el op op me me nt nt
s tr tr es es s. s.
T he he
obtained reader score of 4.5 is level than the medium some of 5.
Role expec expectation tation confl conflict: ict: This type of role stress rises when there are conflicting expectations demands by different role senders (persons having expectations from the role). This conflict conflicting ing expecta expectation tion may be from from the boss, boss, subordi subordinat nates, es, pears or clients. Here the medium score was 3 which is lower than the norms (4), so it seems that executives as a group or as a whole are largely bothered by role expectation conflict. 67
I nd nd iv iv id id ua ua ll ll y
a cr cr os os s
v ar ar io io us us
l ev ev el el s
of
e xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s
t oo oo ,
r ol ol e
expectation conflict is lower than the norms.
Role erosion: It refers to the stress arising of the occupant's feeling that some functions which he would like to perform are being performed by some other role. It is the subjective feeling of an individual that some important role expectations he has from his role do not match with the expectations other roles have for him. Our obtained medium value coincides with the norms. The stress level experienced by our sample is at the same medium value as that that experi experienc enced ed by the population population on which norms were set. Across the levels too, role erosion is experie experience nced d by by all all the levels levels at levels levels toughl toughly y arou around nd
the
medium only. A functional approach of effectively dealing with it would be role enrichment.
Role overload: It arises when the role occupant feels that there are too many expectations from the significant roles in his role set. Role overload is likely to occur more in the absence of mechanism of role integration, in the absence of power of the the ro role le oc occu cupa pant nts, s, in the the large large vari variati ation ons s in the expe expecte cted d output and when delegation or assistance cannot procure more time. Again our obtained medium value of 3 coincides with the norms. Therefore the stress level experienced by own sample is at the same value as that experienced by the popula tion on w hi hi ch ch n or or ms ms w er er e s et et . A cr cr os os s t he he l ev ev el el s, s, r ol ol e o ve ve rl rl oa oa d i s experienced to an alarmingly high extent by the executives at l ev ev el el E 3. 3. E xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s a t l ev ev el el E 6 a nd nd t ho ho se se a t l ev ev el el E 7 a ls ls o experience role overload higher than the norms. It seems that at higher levels, the executives don't just have to take care of their own assigned tasks but they also have to supervise the work of their subordinates subordinates hence they experience large amount
68
of
r ol ol e
o ve ve rl rl oa oa d. d.
A
f un un ct ct io io na na l
a pp pp ro ro ac ac h
of
e ff ff ec ec ti ti ve ve ly ly
dealing with this would be role slimming.
Role isolation: The obtained medium value of s in lower than that given in the norms (6). However going acr oss the levels, we observe that role isolation is experienced at a higher extent than the norms by executives at level E1, E2, E3, E4. While executives at level E5 (1) experience it at very low level. A f un un ct ct io io na na l s tr t r at at eg eg y t o d ea ea l w it it h t hi hi s w ou ou ld ld b e r ol ol e negotiation. hi s t yp yp e o f s tr tr es es s a ri ri se se s i n a Personnel Perso nnel inade inadequacy quacy:: T hi perso person n ou outt of a feel feelin ing g that that he is no nott fully fully equippe equipped d (lacks (lacks internal resources) for effective performance of the role. This feelin feeling g give gives s rise rise to inten intense se feel feelin ing g of stre stress ss.. The The obta obtaine ined d m ed ed iu iu m v a lu lu e o f 3 f al al ls ls b el el ow ow t h e n or or m s v a l e o f 4 w hi hi ch ch equipped to handle the tasks assigned to them. however across the the leve levels ls we no noti tice ce that that exec execut utiv ives es at leve levell E1 exper experie ience nce persona personall inadequ inadequacy acy to an alarming alarmingly ly large large extent extent.. Besides Besides,, e x e c ut ut i o n s
at
level
E3,
E4
and
E7
e x pe pe r i en en ce ce
p e r s on on a l
inadequacy at a level higher than the norms value of medium. I t i s t he he e xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s a t l ev ev el el E 5 w ho ho se se m ed ed iu iu m o f p er er so so na na l inadequacy is at an extreme low of 1 which has brought down t he he
e nt nt ir ir e
s ou ou rc rc e
f or or
p er er so so na na l
i na na de de qu qu ac ac y. y.
A
funct function ional al
approac approach h of effecti effectivel vely y dealing dealing with this would be role role linkage.
Self role distance: distance: This This is the the co confl nflict ict betwe between en the the se self lf concept and the expectations from the role as perceived by the r ol ol e o c cu cu p an an t. t. I f a p er er so so n o cc cc u up p ie ie s a r o le le w hi hi ch ch h e m ay ay subsequently subsequently find conflicting conflicting with his self concept, he feels the stress. Our sample has obtained a medium score of 4 against the norm of 5. Hence serves that our sample experiences self 69
role distance to a lesser extent as compared to the population on which norms was set. However, going across the executive levels, SRD is experienced at an alarmingly high rate level by executives at level E1. Executives at level E6 also experience s el el ff- ro ro le le
d is is ta ta n nc ce
at
a
l ev ev e l
h ig ig he he r
f un un ct ct io io na na l s tr tr at at eg eg y o f d ea ea li li ng ng
t ha ha n
w i th th
t he he
m ed ed iu iu m .
t hi hi s w ou ou ld ld
be
A to
develop role integration. ri se se s Role ambi ambiguity guity:: I t a ri
w he he n t he he re re i s l a ck c k o f c l a ri ri ty ty
about the work objectives associated associated with the role, about work colleagues' expectations
of the work role and about the scope
a nd nd r es es po po ns ns ib ib il il it it ie ie s o f t he he j ob ob o ur ur s am am pl pl e h as as o bt bt ai ai ne ne d a medium value of 2 which is lower than the norm valu e of 3. Acros Across s the the leve levels ls we no noti tice ce that that leve levels ls lowe lowerr the the manage manager' r's s level (ES) experience higher role ambiguity (against norm) with level E1 again again having having an alarmingly alarmingly high value. value.
Levels e5, e5, E6,
E7 the executives serve to be clear ab out the various aspects of their their work. work. A functi function onal al strate strategy gy of effec effectiv tivel ely y deal dealing ing with this would be role classification.
Resource inadequacy:
It arises arises out of a feeling feeling of
the
role ro le oc occu cupan pantt that that he does does no nott have have adequ adequat ate e resou resourc rces es to perform the role effectively. Our sample has obtained a medium value coinciding coinciding with the the norms. norms. Across Across
the levels levels it is again
the levels lower tan E5 which experience resource inadequacy to
a
larger
e x te te n t
w i th th
level
E1
e x pe pe r i en en c in in g
alarmingly high extent.
Variety 1. Overa Overall ll stress stress serve serve = add? add? 2. Scores interpre interpretation tation - if if low? High? High? Or medium? medium?
Age wise analysis 70
it
to
an
Age-w Age-wise ise anal analysi ysis s of the the diffe differe rent nt type types s of stre stress ss from from the the t as as te te , i t i s c le le ar ar t ha ha t i n e xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s b el el ow ow 4 0 y ea ea rs rs o f a ge ge , stress is experienced at a lower medium vale than the norms (medium). The medium value o our sample for executives lower than 40 years of age is lower than that of the norms for IRD, RS, REC & PI, for RE, RO, RI & RA & RI it is experienced at the mediu medium m leve levell and and it is expe experie rience nced d at sligh slightl tly y highe higherr leve levell incase of SRD. A functional strategy of effectively dealing with this would be role integration. S im im il il ar ar ly ly
f or or
ex e ec cu utt iv iv e es s
ab bo ov e
40
y e ar ar s
o f a ge ge
s t re re s s
is
e xp xp er er ie ie nc nc ed ed a t a l ow ow er er m ed ed iu iu m v al al ue ue a s c om om pa pa re re d t o t he he norms. The medium value of our sample for executives above 40 years of age is lower than that of the norms for IRD, RS, REC, RI, SRD. For RE, PI, RA & RI the medium value coincides with the norms and it is slightly higher in case of RO. So it s ee ee m s
t ha ha t
t he he
ex e ec cu utt iv iv e es s
f ee ee l
t ha ha t
t he he r e
a re re
t oo oo
m an an y
expectations from the significant roles in their role set. There is a positive correlation observed between age of the executives and their levels. So it seems that as the executives progress in age, they also progress in the organizational hierarchy (i.e, get timely promotions) and as the level increases they have to take c ar ar e
of
not
j u st st
thei r
ow n
subordinates subordinates and and therefore therefore
job
b ut ut
a l so so
s u p e r v i se se
them
the experience experience of work work overload. overload.
Also the complexity and member of tasks increases with the level.
71
CHAPTER-7 DISCUSSIONS 2x2 Anova was carried out for each of the 10 types of role stress to find out the effects of age and level individually as w el el l
as
th e
c o m bi bi n e d
e f f e c ts ts
of
age
an d
o r g a ni ni za za t i on on a l
hierarchical level on the perception and role stress. Significant d if if f er er en en c e
was
found
i nc nc as as e
of
PI
for
th e
2
levels .
The
executives at levels E1 -E4 suffered from significantly higher stress of PI as compared to executives at levels E5-E7. In a study to study the effect of bureaucracy on role stress across 3 levels
of technocrats, technocrats, it was
experienced experienced
found that cover cover level subjects subjects
more organizati organizational onal role stress than than middle level
or upper level subjects. For all other types of stress, neither age or learnt individually nor the combined effect of the two comes out to be significant. T hi hi s s tu tu dy dy w as as u nd nd er er ta ta ke ke n t o s tu tu dy dy t he he d if if fe fe re re nt nt t yp yp es es o f o r g an an i z at at i on on al al
r ol e
s t r e s s es es
e x pe pe r i en en c ed ed
by
the
N TP TP C
executives. Further the executives were divided into different categories on the basis of their age (above 40 Vs below 40) and their hierarchical levels in the organization (E1 - E4 Vs E5 –E7) and an attempt was made to study the effect of age and level on the different different types of role role stress stresses es being being measur measured. ed. The
72
interaction effects of the age and the level as ORS were also explored as (E1-E4) Vs (E5-E1) because the former comprise the working level executive categories of the latter are group h ea ea ds ds . I t w as as a ss ss um um ed ed t ha ha t e xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s w it it hi hi n e ac ac h o f t he he groups would experience similar types of stresses due to similar working conditions. It was assumed that the group heads would exper experie ience nce simila similarr kinds kinds of measu measure res s and and the subor subordi dina nate tes s would would suffe sufferr from from a diffe differe rent nt and and hence hence the 2 grou groups ps were were d em em ar ar ca ca te te d. d.
It
w as as
h y po po th th es es iz iz ed ed
t ha ha t
t he he
2
w ou ou ld ld
d if if fe fe r
significantly significantly in the overall overall as well as the different different types of role s tr tr e es ss
e x pe pe ri ri en en ce ce d .
S im im il il ar ar l y, y,
it
wa s
h y po po th th e es s iz iz ed ed
t ha ha t
executives above 40 years of age and those below 40 years of age would experience different types of stress to a significant extent. When analysing the different types of role stresses measured, it was found that (in terms of the absolute figures ) Role erosion was found to be the highest (median -9) but when compared to the norms, it was found that the median value suggested by the norms was also 9. For all the other stress types, the median value obtained for own sample is either coinciding with that given in the norms or i s l ow ow er er t ha ha n t ha ha t, t, i .e .e ., ., f or or I RD RD a nd nd R I t he he m ed ed ia ia n v al al ue ue obtained is coinciding with that given in the norms, i.e., 5 and 5 respectiv respectively ely,, whereas whereas
in case of RS, the value value obtained obtained in
4.5 which is lower than the medium value given in norms, i.e., i.e., 5. Similarly for REC (obtained median = 3; norms = 4); Ro (obtained (obtained median = 2; 2; norms norms = 3); RI (obtaine (obtained d median = 5; n or or ms ms = 6 ); ); P I ( ob ob ta ta in in ed ed (obtained (obtained
m ed ed ia ia n = 3 ; n or or ms ms = 4 ); ); S RD RD
median = 4; 4; norms norms = 5);RA 5);RA (obtained (obtained
norms = 3);
73
median = 2;
So it se seem ems s that that the the exec execut utiv ives es at NTPC, NTPC, exper experie ience nces s ro role le stress that is mostly lower than that given in the norms. It is however higher than the low value of stress given in the norms. These These result results s indicat indicate e that that the execut executive ives s experie experience nce a near near facilita facilitatio tion n amount amount of stress, stress, which which must must be enhanci enhancing ng their their performance in general. Analyzing the role stress across the hierarchical levels (E1-E7), it was found that executives at level E1 suffer from alarmingly high high amoun amountt of stres stress s and and the the situa situati tion on calls calls for for imme immedi diate ate i nt nt e r v e n t i on on s. s.
Going
d e e p er er
into
th e
p r o f i le le s
of
t h es es e
executions, executions, it was found that these executions executions have rise to the level E1 from supervisory supervisory levels. They were mostly in their late 40s. The transformation from S10 -E1 level required a change in the job profile and hence was perceived perceived to be very stressful. The progre progressio ssion n age and respons responsibil ibiliti ities es at home home front front night night hour also contributed to the overall stress experienced. Another inter interes esti ting ng obser observa vati tion on rela relate ted d to the the unusu unusual al low low leve levels ls of stress found incase of execution at level E5. Executives at level E6 were also found to have low levels of stress. The stress levels for different stress types varied greatly both across the hierarchical levels (E1-E7) and across the different stress types (ERD etc.) The stress levels however didn't differ significantly amongst the 2 levels (E1 -E4 Vs E5-E7) and the 2 age groups (above 40 Vs below 40) 2 x 2 Anova Anova was carried carried for each of 10 10
types of role stress stress to
find the effects of age and level individually as w ell as the combined effect of age and hierarchical level on the perceived role stress. Significant results were obtained for the effect of level individually on RO and the interaction effect of the age 74
and
the
level
for
R
PI.
So,
it
ca n
be
deduced
tha t
the
exec execut utio ions ns at leve levels ls E1-E4 E1-E4 expe experi rien ence ce RO at a signif signific ican antly tly higher level than the executives at levels E5-E7. F or all the other other stre stress ss type types, s, neith neither er age no norr the the or organ ganiza izatio tiona nall leve levell were found to give significantly different levels of stress. Exec Execut utive ives s E1 exper experie ience nce ro role le stre stress ss to an alarm alarming ingly ly high high extent. extent. Only for REC and RO the stress is at the medium value. value. F o r R S, S, R E, E, P I, I, S RD R D a nd nd R A, A, R IN IN i t i s e xp xp er er ie ie nc nc ed ed t o e ve ve r higher higher degree degree than than that that given is the the ‘HIGH’ ‘HIGH’ t he he se se
e xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s
w er er e
i nt nt er er vi vi ew ew ed ed
of norms. norms. When When
p er er so so na na ll ll y
a nd nd
p ro ro be be d
further it was found that they had risen from the organizational levels, i.e. from supervisory supervisory to the executives, executives, over a period of y e a rs rs .
They
were
a ll ll
i s their
l at at e
40s.
A cc cc o r d i ng ng
to
the
organisational promotion policy, to be promoted further to level E2, a minimum of graduation degree was required which most of
t he he m
d id id n’ n’ t
h av av e
( th th ey ey
w er er e
m os os tl tl y
d ip ip lo lo ma ma
h ol ol de de rs rs ;
perh perhaps aps this this led led to the the stre stress ss and and fear fear of ro role le stagn stagnat atio ion) n).. T he he re re
w er er e
o rg rg an an is is at at io io na na l
p ol ol ic ic ie ie s
w hi hi ch ch
e na na bl bl ed ed
t he he m
to
convert their diploma to degrees (BS-BLTS Pilani scheme) but a ft ft er er b ei ei ng ng o ut ut o f/ f/ fr fr om om s tu tu di di es es f or or y ea ea rs rs t he he y d id id n’ n’ t f ee ee l competent enough to pursue them. The sudden exposure from the supervisor’s to the executive’s job too promoted a lot of stress and perhaps feelings of personal inadequacy. They felt they they couldn’ couldn’tt relate relate themse themselve lves s much much to their their organi organisati sational onal role and hence the stress of self-role distance. This
c on on d i ti ti o n
r e q u i re re s
i m m e d i at at e
i n t er er a ct ct i o n
b ot ot h
on
individual’s as well as the organization’s part. Some functional s tr tr a te te g ie ie s
of
e f fe fe ct ct iv iv e ly ly
t ac ac k kll in in g
t hi hi s
w ou ou ld ld
i nv nv ol ol ve ve
r o le le
integration, role clarification, role development/enrichment and role linkages and role transition. transition. Besides, role negotiation, negotiation, role
75
linkages, role making role slimmering and resource generation would also help.
Relationship between role stress and the level of responsibility responsibili ty of the executive Here,
the
sample
was
di vi ded
on
the
basis
of
level
of
responsibility (E1 to E4 working level executives vs. E5 to E7 group heads). When the medians of the 2 were compared it was found that for IRD, the median obtained for executives at levels E5 – E7 and E1 – E4 was the same, i.e. 5. The median value suggested by the norms is also 5. So, we can say that the IRD the 2 level groups experience the same median value stress which also coincides with that experienced by the population on which which no norm rms s were were se set. t. For For RS, RS, exec execut utive ives s at leve levels ls (E1-E (E1-E4) 4) experienced experienced stress at a higher median level (5) as compared compared to that by (E5-E7), whose median are 4(But the difference wasn’t f ou ou nd nd
to
be
s ta ta ti ti st st i ca ca ll ll y
s ig ig ni ni fi fi ca ca nt nt ) .
Th e
m ed ed ia ia n
v a lu lu e
suggested suggested by the norms is also 5. (t-value (t-value (ANOVA (ANOVA VALUE VALUE = ?) for REC, REC, again again exec execut utiv ives es at leve levels ls E1-E4 E1-E4 obtain obtained ed a highe higherr value of stress stress
i.e., i.e., 4 (which coincides coincides with with the median median value
suggested by the norms) than that obtained by those in level (E5
–
E7
i . e,
3
(But
the
di fferenc e
is
not
found
to
be
statistically significant so we can say that the 2 groups do not differ significantly on the given experienced due to REC. For RE, the 2 level groups obtained the same median value (9) which also coincides with the median value suggested by the norms. For RO, the median value of stress obtained for levels E5-E7 coincides with the median value suggested by the norms which is lower than that experienced by executives at levels (E1-E4) (4.5). For RI, executives at levels (E5-E7) experience s tr tr e es s s a t a m ed ed ia ia n v a lu lu e o f 5 , w hi hi ch ch i s l ev ev el el s t ha ha n t h a att , 76
experienced by executives at levels E1-E4, i.e, 8 and also lower t ha ha n t he he n or or ms ms ( 6) 6) . T hi hi s c an an b e e xp xp la la in in ed ed i n t er er ms ms o f t he he organis organisatio ational nal structu structure, re, where where the higher higher levels levels has greater greater connect connectivit ivity y as compare compared d to those those at lower lower levels levels who work work relatively in isolation. For PI, the median value for executives at levels E5-E7 (3) is much lower than those at levels (E1-E4). The median value by norms is 4. For SRD, again the median value for executives at levels (E5E7) (4) is much lower than that for levels E1-E7 (7) the median value by norms is 5. For RA, again the stress at higher levels is much lower (median - 2) as compared to that for E1-E4 (median 5) the m edian value by norms is 3. For RIA, the median value for levels E5-E7 is 4.5 which is lower than that for E1-E4 (6) for norms (5).
77
CHAPTER-8 RECOMMENDATIONS ORGANISATIONAL APPROACHES TO STRESS MANAGEMENT The
management
of
s tress
is
an
important
thing
for
organ or ganis isat ation ions. s. If an or orga ganis nisat ation ion can redu reduce ce the the effec effects ts of s tr tr es es s, s,
t ur ur no no ve ve r
w il il l
g o d ow ow n, n,
a bs bs en en te te ei ei sm sm
w il il l
d ec ec re re as as e, e,
perf perform orman ance ce will will go up, up, and and co cost sts s will will co come me down down.. Thus Thus it should make efforts to manage stress and to help individuals cope more effectively. effectively. A mo mo ng ng s t
th e
t en en
d im im en en si si on on s
of
R o le le
S tr tr e ss ss ,
t he he
h ig ig he he st st
percentage was that of Role Erosion. This can be reduced to a great great exte extent nt by Job Job - Enrichment . E nr nr ic ic hi hi ng ng j ob ob s e it it he he r b y i mp mp ro ro vi vi ng ng
j ob ob
c on on te te n ts ts
f ac ac to to rs rs
( su su c ch h
as
re es s p on on s sii bi bi li li ty ty,
recogni recognition tion and opport opportunit unities ies for achieve achievemen ment, t, advance advancemen mentt and growth) or by improving core job characteristics (such as skill skill vari variet ety y, f ee ee db db ac ac k) k)
task task iden identit tity y,
m ay ay
m ea ea ni ni ng ng fu fu ln ln es es s, s,
task task signi signifi fican cance ce auto autono nomy my and and
l ea ea d t o m ot ot iv iv at at io io na na l r es es po po ns ns ib ib il il it it y
a nd nd
s ta ta te te s o r k no no wl wl ed ed ge ge
e xp xp er er ie ie nc nc ed ed of
r es es ul ul ts ts .
Presumably Presumably,, these enriched tasks will eliminate eliminate the stressors found in more routine, structured jobs. Howe Ho weve verr, no nott all all peop people le respo respond nd favo favora rably bly to enric enriche hed d job job designs and therefore, at least with some people some of the t im im e, e, t he he e nr nr ic ic he he d j ob ob m ay ay a ct ct ua ua ll ll y l ea ea d t o i nc nc re re as as ed ed j ob ob stress. For example, an individual with low growth needs, low s el el ff- ef ef fi fi ca ca cy cy,
l ac ac k o f h ar ar di di ne ne ss ss
78
a nd nd /o /o r f ea ea r o f f ai ai lu lu re re
m ay ay
experience increased stress in an enriched job. There is nothing so frustrating as being placed in a job that you can’t handle a nd nd
do
n ot ot
h av av e
t he he
p o te te n ti ti al al
to
p er er fo fo rm rm
w el el l. l.
O v er er a ll ll ,
however, careful managing of task design may be an effective way to manage such stress. O th th e err
d i me me ns ns io io ns ns
of
R o le le
S tr tr e es ss
w er er e
a ls ls o
f ou ou nd nd
in
th e
exec execut utiv ives es at reco recogni gniza zable ble leve levels. ls. Foll Follow owing ing shou should ld be the the effor efforts ts made made by the the mana manage geme ment nt in or orde derr to minim minimize ize the the negative effects of stress: Effect Eff ectiv ive e
•
r ed ed uc uc e
perfo pe rform rman ance ce
r ol ol e c on on fl fl ic ic t. t.
appr ap prais aisal al
and an d
W he he n r ew ew ar ar ds ds
a re re
rewar re ward d c le le ar ar ly ly
syste sy stems ms r el el at at ed ed
to
performance, the person knows what he or she is accountable f or or
and
w he he r e
he
or
s he he
s ta ta n d s .
W h en en
a
good
c o a c h i ng ng
relationship between a superior and a subordinate exists along with the perfor performan mance ce appraisa appraisall system, system, the person person may feel feel that he or she has more control over the work environment. He o r s he he m ay ay a ls ls o s en en se se s om om e s oc oc ia ia l s up up po po rt rt f or or t he he t as as k o f getting the job done well. Increasing Increas ing particip participation ation in deci decisio sion n makin making g will will give give the the
•
person a greater sense of control over the work environment, a factor associated with less negative reactions to stress. There is
a
s tr tr o n g
r e l a ti ti on on s hi hi p
b e t w e en en
p ar ar t i ci ci p a ti ti on on
and
j ob ob
satisfaction, and role conflict, which suggests that participation would be a very effective way to deal with stress. Increasing particip participati ation on require requires s decentr decentraliz alizatio ation n of decisio decision n making making to more people and delegation of responsibility to those who are already accountable for work performance. Increasing Increas ing
•
communication commun ication
w it it h
e m pl pl oy oy ee ee s
is
t he he
m os os t
obvio obvious us way way to reduc reduce e unce uncert rtain ainty ty.. It may may also also have have dire direct ct
79
effects on role conflict conflict if increased communication communication clarifies line of resp respon onsib sibili ility ty and and autho authori rity ty.. Each Each job job shou should ld have have clear clear expectations and the necessary information and support so that t he he
j ob ob ho ho l de de r
is
n ot ot
l ef ef t
w it it h
c on on fl fl ic ic ti ti ng ng
d em em an an d s
or
an
ambiguous understanding of what he or she is to do. Stress management programs give employees employees assistance assistance in
•
c op ing
wi th
s tress .
Th es e
i nc lud e
c ouns el in g
and
psychot psychother herapy apy.. A counse counselor lor and/or and/or therap therapist ist should should be made made available to employees when they experience job stress. They determine the sources of stress, help modify the outlook, and develop alternative ways to cope. Relaxation techniques such as biofeedback or meditation help to elimi eliminat nate e the the imme immedi diat ate e stre stressf ssful ul situ situat ation ion or manage manage a prolonged stressful si tuation more effectively. Regular seminars and lectures also help the employees better under understa stand nd
stre stress, ss, its its
rami ramific ficat atio ions ns,,
and and
possi possible ble ways ways
to
reduce its effects. T he he s ug ug ge ge st st io io ns ns g iv iv en en a bo bo ve ve a re re f or or wa wa rd rd ed ed i n l ig ig ht ht o f t he he responses responses received received from the executives. executives. The questionnaire questionnaire had the open-e open-ende nded d questio question, n, which which asked asked for how to ov overco ercome me stress. stress. Fifty Fifty one percent percent of the executive executives s left left the questio question n unanswered which illustrates either of the following: a)They were least interested in the study. b)The b)They y are are rese reserv rve e towa toward rds s thei theirr right rights s and and do no nott deman demand d willfully due to hesitation. c )T )T he he y
ha ad d
t he he
n ot ot io io n t ha ha t t he he ir ir
su ug g ge ge s ti ti on on s w il il l n ot ot
accounted for and there was no use of writing them down.
80
be
The rest of the forty nine percent of the executives responded to
t hi hi s
q ue ue s ti ti on on
w it it h
g re re at at
e n tth h us us ia ia sm sm
a nd nd
i nt nt er er e es st
a nd nd
expected expected that they would see the outcome of their suggestions suggestions in the years to come. Apart from the specific categories given above, some responses received are: •
System of promotion and remuneration are outdated – should be overhauled.
•
Job rotation should be effectively impl emented to enhance knowledge in all spheres.
•
Categorization of jobs based on urgency and importance.
•
Healthy and transparent environment.
•
Enhance means of social interaction like picnic, parties, etc.
•
Hobbies, sports activities after office hours by providing membership in nearby premises.
•
Trust between the employees for execution of the role. The
peer must be supportive and encouraging enough to appreciate good work. A pat from boss boosts an employee’s employee’s morale more than anything else. The The sugg sugges estio tions ns given given above above,, if imple impleme mente nted, d, will will help help the the executives to cope with stress effectively as they have offered the same. The organisation should try to im plement them.
INDIVIDUAL APPROACHES TO MANAGING STRESS Stress is a powerful force, which can either do a lot of good or cause extensive harm. It is like a flowing river. When you tame
81
it by putting up bunds and dams, you are able to di rect the water to the places where you need it. But when the river is untamed, it can cause havoc. So it i s with stress. Unless we make commitments commitments to our own wellness and thereby take take person personal al respon responsibi sibilit lity y for our stress stress problem problems, s, little little is accom acc ompli plishe shed. d. Taking aking resp respon onsib sibili ility ty for for yo you u - for for yo your ur own own health and well being - is one of the most important keys to successful stress management and life-style change. If you do not take responsibility for yourself, who will?
LIFESTYLES AND STRESS In our society it is easier to slip into a vicious-circle vicious-circle kind of life style. First we rush to embrace material goods, conveniences, and “the good life”, thereby reducing our abilities to cope with stress. Second, we reward competition competition and achievement achievement above most other human endeavors and design our lives around left brain (rational, linear thought) concepts, thereby increasing the a mo mo un un t o f s tr tr es es s i n o ur ur d ai ai ly ly l iv iv es es . T he he re re a re re t re re me me nd nd ou ou s pressures on all of us to follow both these paths and to ignore our physical, mental, and spiritual wellness. If anything goes wrong with one of these aspects of our lives, our expectation is that one or another of the high-technology healing professions can probably fix it. A lt lt h o u gh gh
it
a ch ch ie ie ve ve me me nt nt
is
d i f fi fi c ul ul t
b as as es es
of
to
o ur ur
c h a ng ng e l if if e
th e
s ty ty le le s, s,
m a t e r i al al is is ti ti c
o th th er er
c on on di di ti ti on on s
a nd nd or
situat situatio ions ns exist exist that that we proba probabl bly y ca cann nnot ot chan change ge at all: all: ou ourr personalities and certain other idiosyncratic characteristics, the relatio relationshi nships ps we share share with our enviro environme nments, nts, and the basic basic nature of both our work and the organisation in which we work.
82
We ea each ch inher inherit it stre strengt ngths hs and and weak weakne nesse sses s or deve develo lop p them them through personal habits or accidents. Further, our orientations p re re di di sp sp os os e u s t o c er er ta ta in in t yp yp es es o f s tr tr es es s; s; f or or e xa xa mp mp le le , a n i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l w ho ho n ee ee ds ds c lo lo se se d ir ir ec ec ti ti on on i n h is is w or or k m ay ay f in in d himself experiencing stress from an ambiguous job role. Our o ri ri en en ta ta ti ti on on s a ls ls o i nf nf lu lu en en ce ce t he he w ay ay s i n w hi hi ch ch w e m ig ig ht ht b e affecte affected d by stress stress;; for exampl example, e, compet competiti itive, ve, deadlin deadlinee- and achie achieve veme ment nt-or -orie iente nted d peop people le are more more likel likely y to have have hear heartt attacks. I f w e a re re a wa wa re re o f o ur ur p er er so so na na li li ty ty i di di os os yn yn cr cr a si si es es , w e c an an choose to avoid extremely stressful situations. We must also recognize the fact that the organisation in which we work can either heighten or reduce stress levels. Factors such as the number of deadlines, the manner of facing crises, or the frequency and nature of client demands all need to be considered considered with regard to their role in increasing increasing or decreasing decreasing stress. In addition, people working in an environment lacking in social support probably will have more health and emotional problems than people working in more supportive settings will. Although we cannot change many of these situational factors, we need to develop develop an understanding understanding of how they affect stress levels in order to promote effective stress management. It is possible to diagnose a few sources of stress that can be removed or avoided. However, most are present everyday or come along as unavoidable surprises. Thus, it is imperative that w e l ea ea rn rn t o m an an ag ag e s tr tr es es s b y e ns ns ur ur in in g t ha ha t o ur ur p hy hy si si ca ca l, l, psychological and spiritual states are able to cope. In summary, we need to accomplish the following:
83
•
Avoid whatever stressors we can;
•
Manage and buffer ourselves against unavoidable stressors;
•
Devise ways of making our organisation better places in which to work.
MANAGING STRESS B ot ot h
l on on gg- te te rm rm
( pr p r ev ev en en ti ti ve ve )
a nd nd
i mm mm ed ed ia ia te te
( re re sp sp on on si si ve ve )
stress-management techniques are needed to protect us from the effects of stress. The stress management plans should suit our own unique situations and preferences. The
s ho ho r t - te te rm rm
or
i m me me d i at at e
r es es p o n se se s
are
e x tr tr e m e l y
important to effective stress management. Specific, immediate responses that work are unique for each of us. Most of these responses fall into following categories: •
Creatively avoiding or withdrawing from the situation;
•
Confronting the situation in an assertive man ner;
•
Exercising influence over others;
•
Establishing ways to give and receive help.
It is a good idea to assess abi lities in each of these areas. The long-ter long-term m protect protective ive or preven preventiv tive e techni technique ques s for stress stress management are described below:
(a) (a ) Se Self lf-M -Man anag agem emen ent: t: S el el ff- ma ma na na ge ge me me nt nt
a ct ct iv iv it it ie ie s
c an an
be
a do do pt pt ed ed
to
e ff ff ec ec ti ti ve ve ly ly
manage our experience of stress. These are described below:
84
Enhancing self-awareness:
We
•
all
need
to
work
continu continually ally on enhanci enhancing ng our self-aw self-aware arenes ness. s. With With increa increased sed knowledge of our idiosyncrasies, preferences and needs, we can actively choose to avoid stressful situations. On the job, we can r ec ec ei ei ve ve
h e l p fu fu l
f e e d b ac ac k
from
such
s ou ou r c es es
as
trusted
colleag colleagues ues and perfor performanc mance e reviews. reviews. Away Away from from work, work, selfselfawa ren ess
can
be
devel oped
by
r ead ing,
eng ag ing
in
introspe introspectio ction, n, reques requestin ting g feedbac feedback k from from family family and friend friends, s, taking
p syc hologica l
p ar ar ti ti ci ci pa pa ti ti ng ng
in
a
tes ts,
v a rrii et et y
of
und erg oi ng g ro ro up up
t h e r a p y,
a c ti ti vi vi ti ti es es .
We
a ll ll
and a re re
surrounded with sources of information that can enhance our self-awareness if we make use of them.
Maintaining proper nutrition:
•
Mos t
of
us
are
insufficiently aware of the principles of good nutrition and fail to eat three meals a day with a balance of vitamins, minerals, proteins and fiber. Instead, we eat on the run; consume foods that that are high in fat fat and and sugar sugar;; drin drink k too too much much alcoh alcohol ol and caffeine; and rely too often on overcooked, heavy, restaurant meals meals.. Good Good nutr nutrit itio ional nal habit habits s are are nece necessa ssary ry for for long long-te -term rm protection against the effects of stress.
Engaging in regular exercise:
•
Mos t
of
our
jobs
require little of the physical exertion our bodies are designed for and indeed require maintaining good health. Therefore, we are risking our health if we do not engage in regular, non-work a ct ct iv iv it it ie ie s
t ha ha t
r eq eq ui ui re re
s us us ta ta in in ed ed
e xe xe rt rt io io n. n.
S uc uc h
a ct ct iv iv it it ie ie s
include running, swimming, vigorous walking, rowing, bicycling, jumping
rope,
and
c ertain
team
sports
th at
are
not
characterized characterized by frequent frequent time-outs time-outs (such as hockey, hockey, soccer, soccer, and rugby). rugby). These These activit activities ies create create an aerobi aerobic c effect, effect, which which impro improve ves s
the the
effic efficie iency ncy of the the
85
card ca rdio io-v -vas ascul cular ar syst system em and
lowers the resting pulse rate. So one should set apart some time for it either in the mornings or evenings.
Learning and practicing relaxation:
•
Although
it
seldom is possible to take a half-hour rest break on the job, s uc h
a
p ra c t i c e
p rob abl y
w oul d
en hanc e
perform anc e
conside considerab rably ly more more than do tradit tradition ional al tea/co tea/coffee ffee breaks. breaks. An easy relaxation technique is as follows: With eyes closed, take ten slow, deep breaths. With each exhalation, count silently: one after the first breath, two after the second breath, and so on. This activity results in a feeling of relaxation, a temporary lowering of high blood pressure, and a sense of readiness to c on on c en en t r a te te
f u l ly ly
on
th e
next
t a s k. k.
Tw e n ty ty
m in in u te te s
of
unint uninter erru rupt pted ed rela relaxat xatio ion n ca can n have have a treme tremendo ndous us impa impact ct on work effective effectiveness ness and can increa increase se the ability ability to withst withstand and stress. Being positive in thinking and in action may make stress more bear bearabl able e and and may may even even lead lead to mast master ery y ov over er what what appe appear ars s unbearable.
(b) Cre Creati ating ng and using using suppo support rt networ networks: ks: Often those of us who work vigorously to advance our careers keep ourselves so busy with our jobs that we have little time or energy to devote to the development of ongoing relationships w it it h o th th er er s e it it he he r o n o r o ff ff t he he j ob ob . A ls l s o, o, f re re qu qu en en tl tl y t he he inher inheren entt natu nature re of the the or organ ganisa isatio tional nal syste systems ms forc forces es us to compete with each other for promotions. We
all
need
s up up po po r t i v e
r e l a ti ti on on s hi hi p s
to
f ee ee l
a
s en en s e
of
belonging, to be challenged, to be respected, and so on. For reasons not yet clearly known, when we lack such relationships relationships
86
for too long, the risk of our developing stress-related physical and psychological conditions increases.
(c) Hel Helpin ping g othe others rs to to mana manage ge str stress ess:: We can help others who are experiencing too much stress on the job. Once we have determined that people are in need of assistance,
we
must
ei th er
us e
our
acquired
stress -
management skills to intervene directly or refer these people to other other so sour urce ces s of help help.. The The supe superi rior ors s shou should ld be part particu icula larly rly sensitive
to
and
willing
to
hel p
with
th e
stres s
their
home
and
subordinate’s experience.
(d) Maintaining
a
ba la la n c e
between
work: A manager manager should have have a balance balanced d persona personalit lity y keepin keeping g both both fronts- home as well as work managed simultaneously, with the priorities they deserve, which would vary for each issue and each
oc cas ion.
Tr o u b l e
in
on e
area
is
not
without
i ts
ramifications in the other. You work for your and your family’s happiness, which in turn makes you work better. Hence their roles are complementary to each other, not competitive. They are at loggerheads only when you neglect one at the cost of the other, which is when your personal and work priorities are in imbalance. A periodic break - a fortnight’s holiday that takes you away from your workplace and the formal home atmosphere has an immense immense thera therapeut peutic ic effect. effect. Not only does it rejuven rejuvenate ate you w it it h a dd dd ed ed z ea ea l w he he n y ou ou r et et ur ur n, n, b ut ut i t a ls ls o g iv iv es es y ou ou a n opportunity to see things in their proper perspective, and to introspect.
87
Thus, stress is an all-pervading and inevitable part of life. A person can lead a healthy, healthy, productive productive and progressive progressive life - by learning to manage and cope with it. It is in the person’s selfinter interes est, t, in ever every y se sens nse, e, to redu reduce ce the the negat negative ive effe effect cts s of stress.
COPING WITH ROLE STRESS - EFFECTIVE COPING STRATEGIES When individuals experience stress, they try to adopt ways of dealing or coping with it, as they cannot remain in a continual state of tension. Effective Effectiv e coping strategies are approac approach h strategi strategies es,, which confront confront the problem of stress as a challenge, challenge, and increase the capability capability of dealing with it. Approach Approach or effective effective strategies strategies of coping include efforts to increase physical and mental readiness to cope (through physical exercises, yoga and meditation, diet manageme management), nt), creati creative ve diversio diversions ns for emotio emotional nal enrichm enrichment ent (music, art, theatre, etc.), strategies of dealing with the basic problems causing stress, and collaborative work to solve such problems. Ineffe Ine ffect ctiv ive e co copi ping ng str strat ateg egies ies ar are e esc escap ape e or av avoi oida danc nce e strategies,, strategies
w hi hi c h
reduce
the
f e e l i ng ng s
of
s tr tr e s s
b y,
for
example, denying the reality of stress, or through the use of alcohol, drugs or other aids to escapism. It is useful for both individuals and organisations to examine t he he s tr tr a te te gy gy t ha ha t t he he y a re re u si si ng ng t o c op op e w it it h s tr tr es es s. s. T he he a bs bs en en ce ce o f a c op op in in g s tr tr a te te gy gy m ay ay l ea ea d t o i ne ne ff ff ec ec ti ti ve ve ne ne ss ss . Coping is also related to the quality and intensity of emotional reactions.
88
Peopl e
can
be
c l a ss ss if if i e d
i n to to
two
t y pe pe s
on
the
b as as i s
of
strategies employed to deal with stress: One category consis ts of persons w ho decide to suffer, suffer, deny the exper experie ience nced d stres stress, s, or put put the the blame blame on so some mebod body y (self (self or others others)) or somethin something. g. These These passive passive or avoida avoidance nce strateg strategies ies a re re
t er er me me d
dysfunctional s t y le le s
of
c o p i ng ng
w it it h
s tr tr e s s
situations. The other category consists of persons who face the realities of stres stress s co cons nscio cious usly ly,, and and take take so some me ac actio tion n to so solve lve proble problems ms either by themselves or with the help of other people. These active approaches are termed functional styles of dealing with stressful situations. C op op in in g s tr tr a te te gi gi es es c an an b e c on on ce ce pt pt ua ua li li ze ze d a s a p ro ro du du ct ct o f a combination of externality, internality and mode of coping. Externality is the feeling that external factors are responsible responsible for role stress, resulting in aggression towards, and blaming of, these these extern external al factor factors. s. It may also indicate indicate the tendency tendency to expect and get a solution for the stress from external sources. Externality may be high or low. Internality is Internality is quite the opposite. The respondent may perceive h im im se se lf lf
as
r es es po po ns ns ib ib le le
f or or
t he he
s tr tr es es s, s,
a nd nd
m ay ay
t he he re re fo fo re re
express express aggress aggression ion or blame blame toward towards s himself himself.. Similarl Similarly y, the respondent may expect a solution for the stress from within. Internality may be high or low. Coping may take the form of avoiding the situation (reactive s tr tr a t eg eg y) y)
or
c o n fr fr o n ti ti ng ng
and
a p pr pr o a c hi hi ng ng
the
p ro ro b l em em
(proactive strategy). This is mode of coping. Avoidance mode is characterized by any one of the following; (a) aggression and blame, (b) helplessness and resignation, (c)
89
m in in im im iz iz in in g
t he he
s ig ig ni ni fi fi ca ca n nc ce
of
t he he
s tr tr e es s sf sf ul ul
s it it ua ua ti ti on on
by
accepting it with resignation, (d) denying the presence of stress or finding an explanation for it. Such behavior helps a person in not doing anything in relation to the stress. Approach mode is characterized by (a) hope that things will improve, (b) effort made by the subject will help to solve the situation, (c) expectations that others will help, or asking for help in relation to stress, and (d) jointly doing something about the problem. The various coping strategies strategies or styles used in role stress have been studied, and the findings show that approach styles have strong relationship with internality, optimism, role efficacy, job satisfaction, and effective role behavior in organisations. Two contr contrasti asting ng approa approache ches s (avoida (avoidance nce or dysfunct dysfunction ional al and a pp pp ro ro ac ac h o r f un un ct ct io io na na l) l)
f or or s om om e r ol ol e s tr tr es es se se s h av av e b ee ee n
discussed below:
•
Self-Role Distance
Many individuals, who find a conflict between their self-concept and the role they occupy in an organisation, may either play that role in a routine way to earn their living. Th ey take no interest in their role, and this is indicative of self-role distance. They have rejected the role. On the other hand, some other individuals may seriously occupy their roles and in due course of time, completely forget their self-concept and play their role effectiv effectively ely,, but reject reject their their self self. Bot Both h these these approac approaches hes are avoidan avoidance ce approach approaches, es, dysfunc dysfunction tional. al. If an individ individual ual rejects rejects t he he r ol ol e, e, h e i s l ik ik el el y t o b e i ne ne ff ff ec ec ti ti ve ve i n t he he o rg rg an an is is at at io io n. n. H o w e v e r,
if
he
r e j ec ec ts ts
th e
s e l f, f,
90
he
is
l ik ik e l y
to
lose
his
effectiveness as an individual and it is likely to be bad for his mental health. An approach or functional strategy of dealing with this stress is to attempt Role Integration Integration.. The individual may analyse the various various aspects of the role which are causing self-role self-role distance and may begin to acquire skills if this may help him to bridge this gap, or carry his own self into the role by defining some aspects of the role according to his own strengths. In other words, an attempt both to grow into the role and make the role to grow grow to use use the the spec special ial ca capa pabil bilit itie ies s of the the perso person n would would re es su ull t
in
r ol ol e
i nt nt eg eg ra ra ti ti on on ,
w he he re re
t he he
i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l
g et et s
th e
satis satisfac factio tion n of oc occup cupyi ying ng a ro role le,, whic which h is near nearer er to his his se self lf-concep concept. t. Such Such integ integra rati tion on is no nott ea easy sy to ac achi hiev eve, e, but but with with systematic effort, it is also not very difficult to attain. •
Role Expectation Conflict
When When the the vari variou ous s expe expecta ctati tion ons s from from the the ro role le on one e oc occu cupie pies s conflict with one another, role stress may develop. One way of dealing with this stress is to eliminate eliminate those expectations expectations from the role, which are likely to conflict with other expectations. This is the process of role shrinkage. Role shrinkage is the act of pruning the role in such a way that some expectations can be given up. Role shrinkage may help to avoid the problem, but it is a dysfunctional approach since the advantage of a larger role is lost. Inste Instead ad of ro role le shri shrinka nkage ge,, if Role Linkages Linkages are established established with other roles, and devising some new ways of achieving the conflicting expectations solves the problem, the individual can experience both the processes of growth as well as satisfaction. •
Role Stagnation
91
It is a common stress in organisations, when individuals get i nt nt o
new
r o l es es
as
a
r e s u lt lt
of
thei r
a d va va n c em em en en t
in
the
organisations, or as a result of taking over more challenging roles. There may be a feeling of apprehension apprehension because the role is new and may require skills, skills, which the role occupant may not have. In such situation, a usual way is to continue to play the previous role about which the individual is sure, and which he has been doing successfully. In many cases this is the tragedy of the organisations that even after advancement people at the top continue to play the role of the lower level managers. This is role fixation, and is an avoidanc e strategy. strategy. As it is necessary for an individual to grow out of his role as a boy boy into into that that of an adole adolesc scen ent, t, and and ou outt of adole adolesce scence nce into into adulthood, similarly, it is important for people to grow out of their old roles into new ones and face up the chall enge. An approach and a more functional way to resolve this conflict is that of Role of Role Transition. Transition . Role transition is the process by which a previou previous s role, role, howsoe howsoever ver succes successful sful and satisfyi satisfying ng it may have been, is given up to take a new and more developed role. role. Vario Va rious us
proces processes, ses,
includi including ng
c la l a ri ri ty ty,
h el el p
t ra ra ns ns it it io io n, n,
r ol ol e
anticip anticipato atory ry
sociali soc ializati zation, on,
role role
s ub ub st st it it ut ut e
g ra ra ti ti fi fi ca ca ti ti on on
a nd nd
tran transit sitio ion n proce procedur dure. e. In or orde derr to make make ro role le tran transit sitio ion n more more effective, it is necessary to have anticipatory socialization, that is preparation of the taking of the new role. This would also includ include e dele delega gatio tion n of respo respons nsib ibili ility ty and and func functi tion ons s to peop people le b el el ow ow o ne ne ’s o wn wn r ol ol e, e, s o t ha ha t t he he p er er so so n c an an b e f re re e t o experiment experiment and he can take help in such experimentation experimentation from others. Such a process of role transition may be very useful.
92
•
Inter-Role Distance
In inter role distance, an individual may experience stress due to conflict between the roles he occupies, and which conflict in expectations. The usual approach to deal with this problem is e it it he he r t o p ar ar ti ti ti ti on on t he he r ol ol es es c le le ar ar ly ly, s o t ha ha t a p er er so so n i s a husband or father when he is at home, and an executive when he is in his office, or there may be role eliminati on that is, accepting one role at the cost of the other role. In such a case, the individual takes recourse to rationalization. For example, an exec execut utiv ive e who neglec neglects ts his family family at ho home me and who who in this this process eliminates the role of father and husband, rationalizes the process by thinking that he makes a unique contribution contribution to the company and therefore, can afford to neglect his family, family, or he earns enough for his family who should pay the p rice of losing him as a husband and as a father. Such rationalization is p ar ar t o f t he he p ro ro ce ce ss ss
r ol ol e e li li mi mi na na ti ti on on . T he he se se a re re a vo vo id id an an ce ce
strategies. A
more
functional
approach
to
the
prob lem
is
Role
Negotiation. Negotiation . The process of role negotiation is the process of establishing mutuality of roles and getting necessary help to play the roles roles more more effect effective ively ly,, and giving help help in turn turn to the other role. For example, an executive who is not able to find time for his family, may sit down and negotiate with his wife a nd nd c hi hi ld ld re re n o n h ow ow b es es t h e c an an s pe pe nd nd t im im e m ea ea ni ni ng ng fu fu ll ll y within the given constraints so that neither of roles had to be sacrificed or eliminated. •
Role Ambiguity
For For role role ambiguit ambiguity y, the usual approa approach ch is to make make the roles c l ear
by
putting
va ri ous
things
93
on
p a p e r.
This
is
role
prescription. The various expectations are defined more clearly. Or, the individual may remove ambiguity by fitting into the role as described in some expectations. This is the process of role taking. Both are avoidance strategies. A n a pp pp ro ro ac ac h s tr tr a te te g y m ay ay
b e t o seek clarification from
v ar ar io io us us s ou ou rc rc es es a nd nd t o d ef ef in in e t he he r ol ol e i n t he he l ig ig ht ht o f s uc uc h clarifications. In contrast with role taking, a more creative is to define the role according to one’s own strength and to take some steps in making the role more challenging. •
Role Overload
To deal with the stress of role overload, that is, a feeling of too many many expe expect ctat atio ions ns from from se seve vera rall so sour urce ces, s, the the ro role le oc occu cupa pant nt usually prepares prepares a list of all functions functions in terms of priorities. priorities. He gives top priority to those functions, functions, which are important. This kind
of
priori ti za ti on
m ay
help
put
things
in
order
of
importance. However, the problem may be that the functions with which a person is less familiar and comfortable may tend to
be
pushed
lowe r
dow n
the
p r i o r i ty ty
l i st st ,
and
m ay ay
be
neglected. Those functions, which a person is able to perform without any effort, get top priority. Those, which are in a lower level of priority, always remain neglected, and in his sense, this approach may be dysfunctional. This is an avoidance strategy. A more functional approach may be to redefine the role and see which aspects of the role may be delegated to other persons who may be helped to develop take on these functions. This may help the other individuals also to grow. This may be called Role Slimming. Slimming . T h e r o le le d o es es n ot ot l os os e i ts ts v it it al al it it y i n t he he p ro ro ce ce ss ss
o f d el el eg eg at at in in g s om om e f un un ct ct io io ns ns ; i n f ac ac t t he he
increases with decrease in obesity. obesity.
94
v it it al al it it y
•
Role Isolation
When there is tension and distance between two roles in an organisation, the usual tendency is for each role occupant to play the role more efficiently, and avoid interactions. The role occupant confines himself to his own role. This may be called role boundness. boundness. He voluntarily voluntarily agrees to be bound by the role. This strategy avoids the possible conflict. There are individual executives executives and managers who are highly efficient in their roles b ut ut
w ho ho
do
l in in ka ka ge ge s
w it it h
w it it h d ra ra w s
in
no t
t ak ak e
o th th er er a
c or or po po ra ra te te
r ol ol es es
k i nd nd
of
a rre e
re es s po po ns ns ib ib il il it it y
v e ry ry
i s o l at at i o n
w ea ea k. k. of
a nd nd
T he he
e f f i c i en en c y. y.
w ho ho se se
i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l He
gets
satisfac satisfaction tion out of playing playing the individu individual al role effect effective ively ly and efficiently, but does not contribute as much as he could have done to the overall responsibility for the organisation. This is likely to be dysfunctional, as it does not help the individual play his role in the larger interest of the organisati on. A
better
method
Negotiation. Negotiation .
and
an
N egoti ating
approach wi th
st ra t e g y
peers,
is
Role
s ub ord ina tes
or
supervisors will help to d eal with the situation more effectively. •
Role Erosion
In
r ol ol e
e ro ro s io io n, n,
f un un c ctt io io ns ns ,
w hi hi ch ch
an
i nd nd iv iv id id ua ua l
he
w ou ou ld ld
f ee ee ls ls
p re re f er er
to
t ha ha t
s om om e
p er er f or or m, m,
i mp mp or or ta ta nt nt a re re
b ei ei ng ng
performed by some other roles. The usual reactions in such a s it i t ua ua ti ti on on i s t o f ig ig ht ht f or or r ig ig ht ht s o f t he he r ol ol e, e, a nd nd t o i ns ns is is t o n clarification of roles. The solution is sought in making structural clarifications. However, this is not likely to be functional and helpful, since the basic conflict is avoided and it continues.
95
An approach strategy may be that of Role Enrichment . Like job enrichment, the concept role enrichment suggests vertical loading of the role. Analyzing the role systematically can do role enrichment, and helping the individuals to see the various s tr tr en en gt gt hs hs i n t he he r ol ol e a nd nd t he he v ar ar io io us us c ha ha ll ll en en ge ge s t he he r ol ol e c on on tta a in in s
b u t w hi hi ch ch
m ig ig ht ht
no t h a av v e b ee ee n
a pp pp ar ar e en n t t o t he he
individual when he performs it. Significant role set members can help make the role more challenging and satisfying to the role occupant. In
s um um ma ma ry ry,
d ir ir e ec c ti ti ng ng
s t re re s s
e ff ff ec ec ti ti ve ve f or or
m an an ag ag em em en en t
p ro ro du du ct ct iv iv e
of
p ur ur po po se se s ,
s tr tr es es s
i nv nv ol ol ve ve s
p re re pa pa ri ri ng ng
r ol ol e
occupants to understand their strengths and usual styles, and e qu qu ip ip t he he m t o d ev ev el el op op a pp pp ro ro ac ac h s tr tr a te te gi gi es es o f c op op in in g w it it h stress.
96
CHAPTER-9 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY C er er ta ta in in
l im im it it at at io io ns ns
do
c re re e ep p
in
a
re es s ea ea rc rc h
s tu tu dy dy
d ue ue
to
constr constrain aints ts of time time,, mone money y and and huma human n effor efforts. ts. The The prese present nt study study is also also no nott free free from from ce cert rtain ain limita limitati tion ons, s, which which were were unavoidable. Some of them are listed below: •
The extent of the study was limited to the corporate centers
situated at NOIDA & BADARPUR. •
Due to the very large size of the population, only a selected
sample of people could be interviewed. •
Due to fast pace in life, sometimes the executives were not
able to do justification to the questionnaire •
P e r s on on a l
b ia ia s e s
m i g ht ht
have
com e
whil e
a ns ns we we r i n g
the
questionnaire. Some executives rank them best in comparison to others. •
Some of the employees did not have time to interact, as they
were busy with their work. •
Few employees of the organisation were reluctant to give the
respo respons nse e as they they eithe eitherr were were no nott inte intere rest sted ed in findin finding g ou outt whether they were under stress or not or were thinking that the information they give might be used against them.
97
Steps taken to reduce these limitations: •
The sample was selected in such a ma nner that all the
departments were covered so as to get a true and complete picture of the organisation. •
The respondents were also assured that the questionnaire is to
be used only for the purpose of the project and in no case be used for any other purpose by any other person. Since I took the questionnaires personally to every person of my sample I could not only get the questionnaire filled up but also
ex tract
the
oth er
inf orm ation
need ed .
A ls o
the
questio questionnai nnaires res were were distribu distributed ted random randomly ly so that that there there does does not exist the element of showing bias towards anybody. anybody.
98
CHAPTER-10 CONCLUSION Ther There e
were were se seve vera rall
inte intere rest sting ing obse observ rvat atio ions ns in
the the
resul results ts
obtained from the survey on Role Stress. 1. Alarmingly Alarmingly high levels of of stress stress at level level E1. E1. 2. Surprisingly Surprisingly low levels of stress stress at level level E5. E5. 3 . S ur ur pr pr is is in in gl gl y R O f or or e xe xe cu cu ti ti on on a t l ev ev el el E 1 – E4 E4 . E sp sp ec ec ia ia ll ll y Level E3 – alarmingly high. 4. Low level levels s of RA & REC at levels levels E5-E7 E5-E7 oppo opposit site e incas incase e of levels E1-E4. 5. Signifi Significant cantly ly higher higher levels levels of PI experien experienced ced by No I would level E1-E4 like to analyze one at a time. (1) The The direc directt exec execut ution ion indu inducti ction on happ happen ens s at leve levell E2A the the executives at level E1 are mostly those who have risen from the supervisory levels over the years. The transition from level S4 (highest supervisory level) to level E1 involves a sudden shift in the expeditions of the people around where suddenly they are expected to be more accountable and efficient. (2) Low levels of stress at level E5 : Reasons could be : (i)
low workload
(ii)
E1-E4
working
l evel
exec utives
–
E3
overburdene overburdened. d. Therefore, Therefore, on reaching reaching E5
&
E4
hi ghl y
tend to to relax. relax.
Promotion at level E4 is crucial because it’s a transition from the working l evel towards the group head category. category. (iii) (iii)
Large Large numbe numbers rs in E5 level level which which cause causes s diluti dilution on of work work where there were earlier few (2) executives now there are s e v e ra l
(20)
execu ti ves
99
ta ki ng
care
of
th e
same
responsibilitie responsibilities s which were were shared by few few (2).
Therefore, Therefore,
workload workload and therefore therefore stress in general general is low except for Role erosion which is experienced to a near median level because of the creation of these new roles and redefini tion o f t he he o ld ld o ne ne s . T he he s e e xe xe cu cu ttii ve ve s m ay ay f ee ee l t ha ha t t he he functions they would like to perform are being done by some other roles.
There are several implications of this finding: (1)These low levels of stress may be affecting the productivity of the execut executive ives s at this this level level advers adversely ely which which implicat implicates es t ha ha t t he he y m ig ig ht ht r eq eq ui ui re re a n o pt pt im im um um l ev ev el el o f s tr tr es es s f or or performing most effectively. effectively. This could be perhaps done in either of these ways; ( i) i)
C lu lu b E 5 w i th th ( E1 E1 -E -E 4) 4) c at at eg eg or or ie ie s , i .e . e ., ., t he he w or or k in in g l ev eve l executives where they would have more workload
( ii ii )
C lu lu b ( E5 E 5 / L R) R ) w i th t h t h e g ro ro up up h e ad ad s c at a t eg eg or or ie ie s, s, i . e. e., E 6 level
w he he r e
a g a in in
they
w ou ou l d
have
s e v e ra l
a d d ed ed
responsibilities which would again take care of their stress levels. ( ii ii i) i)
E nr nr ic ic h t he he j ob ob s a t l ev ev el el E 5 w hi hi ch ch a dd dd ed ed r es es po po ns ns ib ib il il it it ie ie s and higher workloads.
T hi hi s c on on di di ti ti on on a ls ls o h as as a v er er y p os os it it iv iv e i mp mp li li ca ca ti ti on on f or or t he he manage manageme ment nt where where they they ca can n utili utilize ze the the time time with with leve levell E5 executives for training for higher levels. Since a large number o f t he he m w ou ou ld ld b e r ea ea ch ch in in g h ig ig he he r l ev ev el el s a nd nd h ea ea di di ng ng t he he c om om pa pa ny ny
ev e en n tu tu al al ly ly.
T h er er e fo fo re re ,
t he he ir ir
s pa pa re re
t i me me
c an an
be
effectiv effectively ely utilize utilized d for impart imparting ing them them trainin training g skills, skills, values, values, etc. to ensure a healthy and a competent as well as a valueladder organizational culture in times to come. 100
(2)High levels of RO for the working level executives, especially level E3 which is alarmingly high. The probable reasons for t hi hi s i s t ha ha t l ev ev el el s E 11- E 4 a re re a ct ct ua ua ll ll y t he he w or or ki ki ng ng l ev ev el el executives who mostly do all the ground work. In fact here it is of extreme interest to note the decision of executives at various levels, instead of the expected paranoid structure, t he he s tr tr u ct ct ur ur e i s m or or e l i ke ke a r oc oc k et et , i .e .e ., a b ul ul k o f t he he execu executi tive ves s are at leve levels ls E5 – E6. E6. This This co coul uld d perh perhaps aps be attributed attributed to the fact that E1 recruitment recruitment process started in 1977.
Over
the
period
of
13-14
years ,
m ost
of
the
executions executions who joined during the earlier years (77-80) over the due course (of timely timely promot promotion ions) s) have have reache reached d level level E5-E6. W he he re re as as t ho ho se se a t l ev ev el el s E 11- E4 E4 a re re c hi hi ef ef ly ly t ho ho se se w ho ho h av av e g ra ra du du a all ly ly
r i se se n
f ro ro m
su up p er er v is is or or y
l ev ev el el s
o v er er
t he he
y ea ea rs rs .
(therefore since the past 10 years or so, the corporate centre has inducted very few freshers). Resultantly, these few E1-E4 are catering to the work of the huge numbers of E5-E6. (Infact there is a popular joke at CC, that when 2 executives at levels E1-E4 meet, they ask each other “How many bosses are you taking case of ?) becaus e of which they are grossly overworked. (3) Low levels of RA & REC at levels E5 –E7 whereas its high for for exec execut utive ives s at leve levels ls E1-E4 E1-E4.. This This was was co cont ntra rary ry to new new hypothesis where I assumed that the higher level executives would have greater RA & REC as compared to executives at levels E1-E4 who have relatively relatively structured roles. There are fewer E1-E4 executives executives taking case of the work assigned by several several bosses. Even amongst themselves, they don’t divide the work in a very organized manner which resultantly leads to
RA
&
REC.
I n ca ca s e o f
PI,
101
e x e c u t i on on
a t level
E 1 - E4 E4
experienced significantly higher stress as compared to those at levels E5-E7. Thee could be several reasons for this: ( i) i)
O ve ve r th th e pa pa st st c ou ou pl pl e of of y ea ea rs rs , tth h er er e ha ha ve ve b ee ee n ve ve ry ry f ew ew direct recruits recruits or ET introduction introduction at CC due to which most o f t he he e xe xe cu cu ti ti ve ve s a t l ev ev el el s E 11- E4 E4 a re re t ho ho se se w ho ho h av av e gradually risen from the supervisory levels over the years. They might experiences this stress because of (I) lack of f or or ma ma l
t ra ra in in in in g
( ed ed uc uc at at io io n
i .e .e .,
q ua ua li li fi fi ca ca ti ti on on
w is is e
)
required for some of the tasks. (ii) (ii)
Most Mo st of them them (due (due to to the the above above sta state ted d reaso reason) n) are are mos mostly tly in the higher age bracket (i.e., above 40 years) and might experience mental facility burnout.
(iii) (iii)
Perha Pe rhaps ps becau because se of high high work work over overload load and pres pressur sure e they they might experience lack of control and hence feel PI.
102
QUESTIONNAIRE 1.
My role tends to interfere interfere with my family life
2.
I am afraid afraid I am not not learning learning enough in my present present role for taking up higher responsibility.
3.
I am not able to satisfy the conflicting conflicting demands of various people above me.
4.
My role has recently recently been been reduced reduced in importa importance. nce.
5.
My workloa workload d is too heavy heavy..
6.
Other role occupants occupants do not give enough attention attention and time to my role.
7.
I do not have adequate adequate knowledge knowledge to handle the responsibilities in my role.
8.
I have to do things, in my role, that are against my better judgement.
9.
I am not clear on the scope and responsibilitie responsibilities s of my role (job).
10.I
do
not
get
th e
in form ation
n eed ed
to
carry
ou t
responsibilities assigned to me. 11.I have various other interests (social, religious, etc) which remai remain n negle neglect cted ed becau because se I do no nott get get time time to atte attend nd to these. 12.I am too preoccupied with my present role responsibility to be able to prepare for taking up higher responsibilities. 13.I am not able to satisfy the conflicting demands of my peers and juniors.
103
14.Many functions that should be a part of my role have been assigned to some other role. 15.The amount of work I have to do interferes interferes with the quality I want to maintain. 16.There is not enough interaction between my role and other roles. 17.I wish I had more skills to handle the responsibilities of my role. 18.I am not able to use my training and exp ertise in my role. 19.I do not know what the peopl e I work with expect of me. 20.I do not get enough resource to be effective in my role. 21.My role does not allow me enough time for my family. 22.I do not have time and opportunities to prepare myself for the future challenges of my role. 23.I am not able to satisfy the demands of clients and others, since these are conflicting with one a nother. nother. 24 4.. I w o ou u ld ld l i ke ke t o t ak ak e o n m o re re r e sp sp on on s sii bi bi li li ty ty t ha ha n I a m handling at present 25.I have been gi ven too much responsibility. 26.I wish there was more consultation between my role and other roles. 27.I have not had the right training for my role. 2 8. 8. Th Th e w or or k I d o i n t he he o rg rg an an is is at at io io n i s n ot ot r el el at at ed ed t o m y interests 29.Several aspects of my role are vague and unclear 30.I do not have enough people to work with m e in my role.
104
31.My 31.My organiz organizatio ational nal respon responsibi sibiliti lities es interfe interfere re with my extra extra organizational roles. 32.There is very little scope for personal g rowth in my role. 33.The 33.The expect expectati ations ons of my senior seniors s conflict conflict with those those of my juniors. 34.I can do much more than what I have been assigned. 35.There is a need to reduce some parts of my role. 36.There 36.There is no evidence of several several roles (including (including mine) being i nv nv ol ol ve ve d
in
j oi oi nt nt
p ro ro bl bl em em
s ol ol vi vi ng ng
or
c ol ol la la bo bo ra ra ti ti on on
f or or
planning action. 37.I wish I had prepar ed myself well for my role. 38.If I had full freedom to define my role, I would be doing some things differently from the way I do th em now. 39.My role has not been defined clearly and in detail. 4 0. 0. I a m r a th th er er w or or ri ri ed ed t ha ha t I l ac ac k t he he n ec ec es es sa sa ry ry f ac ac il il it it ie ie s needed in my role. 41.My family and friends complain that I do not spe nd time with them due to the heavy demands of my w ork role. 42.I feel stagnant in my role. 43.I am bothered with the contradictory expectations different people have from my role. 44.I wish I had been gi ven more challenging tasks to do. 45.I feel overburdened in my role. 46.Even when I take the initiative for discussions or help, there is not much response from the other roles.
105
47.I need more training and preparation to be effective in my work role. 48.I experience a conflict between my values and what I have to do in my role. 49.I am not clear what the p riorities are in my role. 50.I wish I had more financial resources for the work assigned to me.
106
ORS SCALE N am e:
Ro l e :
Organi s ation:
Da te:
Read instructions carefully before responding on this sheet.
People Peo ple have have differe different nt feelin feelings gs about about their their roles. roles. Stateme Statements nts describing some of them are given below. Use the answer sheet to write your responses. Read each statement and indicate, in the the space space agai against nst the the co corr rres espo pond nding ing numbe numberr in the answ answer er sh he ee ett ,
h ow ow
o ft ft en en
yo u
h av av e
th e
f ee ee l in in g
e x pr pr e es s se se d
in
t he he
statement in relation to your role in the organisation. Use the numbers given below to indicate your own f eelings.
If you find that the category to be used in answering does not adequate adequately ly indicate indicate your own feelings, feelings, use the one which which is closest to the way you feel. Do not leave any item unanswered. Answer the items in the order given below:
Wr it it e 0
I f y ou ou ne ne ve ve r o r r a rre e ly ly fe f e e l t hi hi s w ay ay.
Wr it it e 1
I f yo yo u o cc cc as as io io na na ll ll y (a (a f ew ew t im im es es ) fe fe el el t hi hi s wa wa y. y.
Wr it it e 2
I f y ou ou s om om et et i me me s f ee ee l th th is is wa wa y.
Wr i te te 3
I f yo yo u fr fr e q ue ue n tl tl y f e e l th th is is wa wa y
Wr it it e 4
I f y ou ou ve ve ry ry fr f r eq eq ue ue nt nt ly ly or o r al al wa wa ys ys fe fe el el th th is is wa wa y. y.
1
-
11
-
21
-
31
107
-
41
-
…
…
1
2
-
12
-
22
-
32
-
42
-
…
…
2
3
-
13
-
23
-
33
-
43
-
…
…
3
4
-
14
-
24
-
34
-
44
-
…
…
4
5
-
15
-
25
-
35
-
45
-
…
…
5
6
-
16
-
26
-
36
-
46
-
…
…
6
7
-
17
-
27
-
37
-
47
-
…
…
7
8
-
18
-
28
-
38
-
48
-
…
…
8
9
-
19
-
29
-
39
-
49
-
…
…
9
10
-
20
30
-
40
-
50
-
…
…
10
REFERENCES •
Understanding and Managing Stress, John D.
108
Adams. •
Managing Executive Stress – A Systems Approach, James W. Greenwood.
•
Organizational Behaviour, Stephen P. Robbins
•
Human Resource Management, Dr. N. K. Chadha.
•
NTPC Guide book &CD
•
PMI of NTPC
www.vanderbilt.edu/psychology
•
www.psybertron.org
•
www.hreffects.com
•
www.ntpc.com
•
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