by Tom Davenport, Towers Perrin
I recently wrote that company executives’ concern for employee well-being is a key driver of employee engagement. Recently, a relevant headline caught my eye: “Having a Bad Boss is Bad for the Heart.” So, I thought, all those people who complain that their boss’s style is killing them just might be right.
A growing stack of studies, mainly in Europe, shows that the work environment created by first-line supervisors and managers can drive up employee blood pressure and, in turn, increase the risk of heart disease. In a British study published in 2005, for example, the researchers discovered that men who described their supervisors as fair and just had a 30 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease than those who said they were treated unfairly at work.
On the job, three factors strongly affect heart-taxing stress:
- Job demand – Long hours, frustrating tasks and unpleasant customers, for example
- Job resources – Support from teammates, problem-solving assistance from a supervisor and recognition for success, for instance
- Individual disposition – Tendency to be proactive (inclined to draw on job resources) or passive (less likely to take advantage of available support).
An observant, empathetic manager can help an individual balance job demands and resources. The payoff is worth it for both employee and organization – in reduced stress, improved cardiovascular health and lower health care costs.
-Tom
2 Comments
Does this somehow of contradict what your 2007 report said about the line manager not being the key determinant in terms of engagement?
If we assume, for a moment, that a well-engaged employee is less likely to suffer stress – then your report tells us that the line manager relationship isn’t the be-all and end-all, despite what we often like to think.
Line managers play an important but often indirect role in engaging employees. As our 2007 global workforce study indicated, organizational elements like leadership and learning and development programs have a direct effect on employee engagement. Job-level elements like autonomy to decide how work will be done and involvement in key decisions also drive engagement, and these are delivered by the local manager. In other words, even when managers don’t have a direct effect, they have a strong indirect, catalytic effect on engagement.
Engagement alone is not enough to guarantee employee well-being. Highly engaged employees sometimes feel great stress from tough deadlines, unreasonable customers and scarce resources to do their jobs. Managers who provide workplace support and resources can help engaged employees handle the unhealthy stress that comes from frustration and respond to the healthy stress associated with interesting, challenging work.
- Tom Davenport