A top HR consultant and neuroscience specialist talks about stress level in employees and ways to address it
“Human Resource Departments need to design policies that cater to the interests of the employees,” said Rahila Narejo, Lead Consultant and CEO of Narejo HR – one of the top human resource consultancy firms operating out of Karachi. “Line Managers should be trained in implementing the policies for the benefit of the employees.”
According to a research study by the American Institute of Stress (AIS), 80 per cent of employees working in the corporate sector feel stress at their workplaces. A lot of this pressure comes from inadequate facilitation by the line managers they report to.
Narejo believes that the successful designing and implementation of HR policies that that counter such problems can only be achieved if there is enough awareness in the corporate sector regarding the issue.
Another study which was carried out by Forbes Magazine in 2012 says that out of a sample of 1,000 workers, 65 per cent of employees prefer a better boss over a raise.
These studies and many others are evidence of stress faced by individuals at their offices. The lack of awareness in the corporate sector, especially at the management and executive level, further exacerbates the severity of the issue.
Most importantly, studies have proven that stress decreases the productivity of a worker. Employees who are stressed out have lower engagement and higher absenteeism levels. According to the Global Benefits Attitudes Survey, over half of the 22,347 workers who were claiming high levels of stress reported disengagement. By contrast, only one in ten employees who claimed low stress levels said they were disengaged or uninterested in their work.
Narejo says one of the major causes behind the escalation of stress-related issues at workplaces is the lack of awareness among officials and personnel in the corporate sector. Employees are overworked and executives are unable to cater to the psychological needs of the employees. Whether it is the stress generated by workload or the feeling of un-productivity, execs at higher levels have the responsibility of keeping their employees satisfied.
Magazines like the quarterly publication by Narejo HR, titled, “HR Toolkit”, which cover topics related to talent acquisition, recruitment and employee contentment at work – provide immense aid in battling this issue by educating both the workforce and the recruiters.
“It became a very popular publication. Long after we stopped publishing it, companies and officials kept asking us for copies,” said Narejo.
The magazine served its purpose for five years before the management stopped publishing it in 2007.
Narejo says in the last few years, some multinational companies and other large local giants like Pepsico, Coca-Cola, Unilever, Nestle, National Foods, Engro foods etc. have taken lead in understanding the importance of the mental serenity of their employees.
Professional human resource consultancy firms, such as that of Narejo, are now being hired to oversee the trainee programmes and employee assessment needs of companies.
However, employees working at smaller companies do not enjoy this advantage. Besides lack of awareness, non-availability of specialised services is a major hurdle even if executives want to create initiatives for their employees’ welfare.
Narejo says the human resource departments, especially those of small-scale companies, consider as their only responsibilities the hiring of employees and calculating their salaries at the end of the month.
“Employees need more than that. They need specialists who can help soothe their mental and emotional discord through neuroscience and psychology,” Narejo said.
Currently, only three high-end consultancy firms – Narejo HR, Grant Thornton LLP and Price Water House Coopers – are offering specialized HR solutions. For a sector this huge, three firms are surely not enough. Additionally, companies with lower budgets cannot afford the facilities provided by the top-shelf HR firms as their rates can be comparable with the international market.
Another pivotal reason behind the dejection and stress faced by the employees is the lack of career counseling during their schooling years. People tend to opt for specific careers that they deem safe as, according to common belief, these careers guarantee job acquisition. This results in a feeling of malaise and downheartedness at work. Also, some educational degrees that were considered of paramount value before are not considered very useful now which increases the stress-level of the holders of such degrees.
“Degrees like BBA and MBA are dying down,” said Narejo. She added that generic degrees are of no value these days. “There’s a natural flux in the job market which has increased the demand of specialisation. Only acquiring a degree is not enough. One needs to re-educate oneself and cultivate additional skills to get jobs and raises in this market full of competition.”
Each year more than 50,000 graduates enter the job market. Companies have open vacancies for months which thousands of degree holders are unable to fill as they do not meet the necessary requirements. The feeling of not being good enough to get the desired job increases abnormal behavior like mood swings and self-pity among employees.
The common belief that reputable companies hire from specific institutes is also increasing stress in both the job holders and job seekers.
“There’s a false notion that multinational companies like Unilever hire graduates from specific universities only,” said Narejo. “Anyone can apply for the position. However, students from some top-tier universities are usually more competent and get the job.”
Bilal Saeed, a graduate of IBA and Channel Manager for International Modern Trades at Unilever explains this further by telling the tale of his own hiring procedure. He said 7,000 candidates applied for the Management Trainee Programme throughout Pakistan and tests were taken irrespective of schools. The applications were screened stepwise – test, screening interview, assessments and interview with the CEO – and 12 candidates were selected.
“You must understand that the HR personnel (at least at Unilever) are good at what they do. More or less, 80 per cent of the time, they know that graduates from a top-tier school will be a better-suited candidates than students from a second-or third-tier school but, of course, there are exceptions,” Saeed said.
However, Maha Khalid, Career Advising Head at Career Counseling Portal Pakistan doesn’t think companies are looking for ‘exceptions’.
“Multinational companies like Unilever, Nestle, P&G and Coca Cola do hire specifically from certain universities, namely IBA and LUMS graduates for Unilever, LUMS graduates for Nestle, IBA and LUMS graduates for P&G and international universities’ graduates for Coca Cola (Export Corporation which deals with branding, not bottling).”
Neuroscience specialist Narejo says another way managers can help employees with possible stress is to make the most out of the abilities of their sub-ordinates which can only be done if they keep the employees happy.
“We buy a food processor with several functions but only end up using the juicer or the blender as we’re unable to understand the utility of the other sections. Similarly, if we understand the needs of an employee, he or she can prove to be very productive in more ways than one.”
Narejo says it is the need of the hour to understand the importance of neuroscience and assessment training for both the mental peace of the employees and improved functioning of the organisation.
