CASE STUDY #4

TOO MUCH STRESS IS DAMAGING WORK AT A LARGE ADVERTISING

AGENCY

INTRODUCTION
MAIN REASONS FOR STRESSED AND ACTIONS
Examples we can observe in the case 4:

1. Birgitte

She is stressed because she is suffering interruption during her work also,
she believes that other staff members have more free time than her and
that’s why this is becoming a chaotic situation, she said that the supervisor
favors certain members so she’s feeling this is an unfair treatment for her
and her hard work. I think the solution in the case of birgitte is a better
communication between supervisor and workers so they can express their
feelings and disagreements if I was the supervisor I would pay attention of
all my workers in the same level of relevance, take care about their
teamwork, work space, mental health because if your employee is tired,
working under pressure and without anytime to relax so, this will affect in
their teamwork and ever their tasks at work, sometimes supervisors and
chiefs doesn’t take care enough their employees and this is such a shame
because they build an enterprise and they should be as happy as a client.

2. Juliana and Jolanta

In the case of Juliana and Jolanta, human resources must make use of their
personal and interpersonal problem-solving skills.
Juliana, the art director, expresses a deep dissatisfaction with the deadlines
for the presentation of projects, she believes that the company is competing
for many contracts at the same time which don’t leave her any space to
share with her colleagues and in addition this fact is beginning to affect her
health.
On the other hand, we meet her assistant Jolanta, who is quite annoyed
with Juliana because she feels that Juliana does’t give her the importance
that her position and title deserve, Juliana judges her harshly when she
makes a mistake and never praises her when she does something good.
We can detect that the central problem is the lack of a good working
relationship and communication between the two, since the lack of time for
Juliana could be solved if she would divide her tasks and assign certain
projects to Jolanta, this would also solve Jolanta's problem, since she would
be assigned tasks more in line with the title she received, but none of this
would be possible if they continue to maintain the same intolerant
relationship they have had up to now.
Therefore, as a solution, the ideal would be first to create the necessary
conditions to resolve the conflict, in this case it could be to bring them
 together in a room or some pleasant space with the company of an
intermediary, if possible the psychologist of the company, so that they can
discuss all the problems that their relationship presents, then a search for
possible solutions is carried out, It must be made clear that there are certain
things that they must be willing to give up, in the case of Juliana let her
know that not because she assigns more workload to Jolanta, she will take
away her job in the long run and finally follow up on all possible solutions
that were proposed, this can be carried out through more sections with the
psychologist.

EFECTS AND CONSEQUENCES

 As a manager, you may have, even unwittingly, created disaffection. If this
is the case, you will find that no matter what you do, you’ll never quite hit the
heights of success. The stakes can be high – the impact of satisfied and
dissatisfied employees on the workplace can make or break a business.

 The effects of poor motivation in the workplace are well-attested: higher

employee turnover, lower levels of engagement, poor communication, and
diminished productivity are just a few of the issues that may proliferate and
lead to your workplace become a toxic environment.

 So, how does a manager motivate and encourage staff? What are the dos
and don’ts of managing employees with low morale and avoiding the
potentially devastating negative impact of demotivated team members?
Here are some ideas to consider and suggestions for how to jump-start
demotivated staff and foster positive, productive employees.

RED FLAGS AND TIPS FOR THE HR DEPARTMENT

Poor management style: start by examining yourself

If you’re a manager and you’re having an issue with employee demotivation, you
might want to start by looking at your management style. One of the most
significant causes of demotivation is micromanagement: Being overly zealous
about what each team member is doing and when is a surefire to breed discontent,
as it may be perceived as a lack of trust in other people’s abilities. Remember, your
employees were recruited on the basis of their skills and abilities, so let them get
on with the job and trust them to do it well.
Related to this, it’s important to bear in mind that autonomy is a crucial factor to
produce motivated, engaged employees. If a manager is figuratively breathing
down a team member’s neck all day, every day, it’s obvious that that spirit of
independence isn’t going to happen.
An inconsistent approach
The consistency of your management approach is another powerful factor that can,
if not tended to, be one of the causes of demotivation. If employees feel as if they
are being treated inconsistently – for example, that one person in the team seems
to get preferential treatment, or tasks are unfairly distributed – then motivation will
plummet.
A great manager will have clear, consistent goals, targets, and expectations of their
team. Clearly defined parameters help your employees to understand where they
stand and assure them of how consistent you are.
Ignoring achievements
One thing that can lead to a distinct lack of employee motivation is the absence of
praise, or simple recognition of a job well done. It’s not enough to know that you’ve
done your work well: It’s vital that it’s seen as such by your peers and managers. A
good team leader will instinctively understand when to recognize achievement and
give praise, and importantly, how much. A plain ‘Well done!’ may have a
significantly greater impact on one team member than on another.
Shying away from being a leader – and not being the example
You are (or should be) a manager for a reason – you can lead people. So why is it
that so many managers, well, don’t manage? Some adopt a ‘do as I say, don’t do
as I do’ approach: Others may appear at times to be afraid of their own shadows.
Either direction will have a significant and adverse effect on motivation. If a
manager is essentially just going through the motions and behaving apathetically to
their own role, it’s surely obvious that his or her team will do the same. Instead, you
should lead by example. Don’t shy from difficult tasks. Pull your team together
when you need to tackle a hard job and demonstrate what you can do. Show
persistence and determination to get the work done, and do so with the minimum
of fuss and drama. At the same time, do not shy away from being a leader – make
the important decisions, delegate and apportion work where necessary, encourage
your team to do the very best they can. Most importantly, however, show yourself
to be principled, consistent and fair. Do this, and you’ll find employee morale
rocket.
Communication is not a one-way street
Perhaps one of the greatest of motivating and demotivating factors is how you
communicate with your employees. There really is nothing more damaging to
employee morale than the feeling that they are being kept out of the loop on
important information and decisions. Not only that, the manner in which
communication is delivered is crucial: If it feels that all internal communication is a
top-down process, with little possibility of feedback upwards, then the individual
employee is more likely to feel of little consequence.
Again, a good manager will have an open, transparent method of communicating
with their staff. Sometimes, it will be passing on information and decisions from
above. However, they will realize that communication works both ways, and it’s
never enough to tell someone something: One must also be able to listen, and
listen well. If an employee has an issue they need to raise, of course, they’ll expect
their manager to be able to listen to that and either make a decision or act as an
intermediary and pass on the issue upwards – and then feed back any response in
a timely, consistent manner.

TIPS OR ADVICES
1. Recognize great work
2. 2. Set small, measurable goals
3. 3. Celebrate results
4. Stay positive
5. Take regular breaks
6. See and share the big picture: Completing a task usually provides a small
sense of accomplishment, but knowing how that work helped others is the
real antidote to disengagement.
7. Provide a sense of security
8. Encourage teamwork
9. Offer small, consistent rewards
10. Have fun

In conclusion employee motivation is key to an organisation’s success. It’s the level

of commitment, drive and energy that a company’s workers bring to the role every
day. Without it, companies experience reduced productivity, lower levels of output
and it’s likely that the company will fall short of reaching important goals too.
Showing that you care, listen and act upon the things that really matter to them, will
ultimately maintain motivation.