You are the new Human Resource manager at Lands Corporation. You have just completed examining a great deal of company data

You are the new Human Resource manager at Lands Corporation. You have just completed examining a great deal of company data. Turnover is much higher in Lands Corporation than at its competitors or the industry average. The data that you analyzed includes a series of transcripts of exit interviews conducted over the past eight months.  Repeatedly you note that past employees describe being “burned out” and then leaving the firm. What are some areas you can examine to develop organizational approaches to address and manage stress?

There are obviously a host of approaches you can take to help employees handle stress in Lands Corporation. One starting point might be to look at the jobs past “burned out” employees were performing. Are the jobs clearly defined? If the employee does not always know what he is supposed to be doing, he is more likely to feel stressed.

A second step is to examine those same job descriptions for the amount of autonomy given to each employee. Stress results when employees feel a lack of control.

Is the work environment fair, or is your work environment toxic? If the company

does not value its employees and continually creates unfair scenarios for its

employees, stress will result.

Can you find any jobs for which employees are able to telecommute? Working from home at your own pace obviously reduces stress.

Though universities were the first organizations to widely use employee sabbaticals, more and more companies have taken to using these programs to reduce stress and rejuvenate employees.

Employee assistance programs are not just for those experiencing problems with drugs and alcohol but for those experiencing stress that negatively impacts our lives.

Once you have analyzed Lands Corporation for these issues, you can begin to create action plans to address the burnout issue and ultimately the turnover.

159. Your roommate has major stress issues every finals week. She becomes so upset about her exams and papers that she is almost impossible to live with. You do not want to see her go through these problems this finals week, so you have decided to discuss with her various approaches she can adopt that may help calm her during this time. What are some suggestions you could offer her?

You have just read Jack Groppel’s work on Corporate Athletes. You suggest she concentrate on her mind and body throughout finals week as well as the weeks leading up to her exams. Let her know that lower stress levels tend to result when an individual is concerned about good nutrition, focused training and being positive in his or her actions.

Help her find an activity in which she can immerse herself. Absorption in an activity makes the individual feel in control, plus makes her more alert and strong. Greasy foods make you tired. So, watch the fast foods that students are prone to eating during finals week (and other times).

Talk to her about exercising.  Physical activity enhances mental concentration so even a walk would reduce her stress.

Encourage her to sleep. You can’t learn a semester’s worth of material in one night, so absolutely do not pull an all-nighter. But even more important, don’t work until the wee hours of the night either. Get rest, and lots of it.

Rely on her social network. Obviously she has you for support, but let her know that there are others who share her concerns. Use those others for support.

Encourage her to practice some time management according to the following guidelines: Write down what she needs to do. Encourage her to cross off those items she has completed. Have her understand what activities eat up her time. Does she sit down to read emails and notice it is an hour later before she finishes? If so, then set up a specific time during the day when she does nothing but read and respond to emails. But, only complete what she can in a time frame that is established. For example, set aside 20 minutes and only 20 minutes for those emails. When the time expires, she should go on to something else.

These steps should help her have a calmer finals week this time around.