Recession-hit techies turn to counsellors

Call it what you like — slowdown, downturn, meltdown, recession but today just about everyone is trying their best to hold on to their jobs. The resultant pressure has escalated stress levels to alarming numbers. HR people are turning to stress management workshops to keep their employees healthy and stable.

Says Rajendar S, a BPO employee, “Our normal target is a minimum of 3 million sale targets. Sometime ago, our team succeeded in making sales of 7 million. However, in the wake of recession it plummeted to 1.5 million, which is a matter of concern to our company.”

Many job consultants are organising special stress management workshops in the city. Says S Ashraf, director-training of Life Academy, which is conducting a workshop titled, ‘Perform under the Storm’, “Due to the current financial situation, there is a great demand for de-stressing workshops to help people cope. Some techniques like neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) are beneficial to people. Apart from professionals from the IT sector, we also have businessmen and self-employed people who are undergoing a crisis on the work front.”

Canon Joseph, business development officer with Win or Win consultancy echoes a similar statement. He says, “There is an increased need for such workshops. We have job counsellors and psychologists who train HR professionals, trainers, team leaders and head of departments on issues like self management, interpersonal management, change management and team management, so that they can in turn train their workforce.”

So what are the factors, which lead to high-stress levels? Answers R Manoj, psychologist with Dream H foundation, “Most people are hassled with erratic work timings i.e. prolonged periods of inactivity coupled with periods of hectic activity. The drastic slashing of perks is upsetting to most people. Since they are used to a lavish lifestyle, trimming the budget is stressful.”

He adds, “Of course, the deadliest of them all is the ongoing lay-offs, which creates panic and feelings of intense insecurity. Today’s workforce operates from a feeling of fear, distrust and gloom and in turn, the performance level goes on a downslide. It is a vicious circle.” Vandana S, head – psychological counsellor of Win or Win consultancy says a number of employees come to them for discussing various issues from professional to personal. “We have demonstrative sessions and therapies on relaxing and meditation which are very useful.”

Many HR managers double up as friends and guides during this phase. Says Ritika Chawla, an HR manager of a KPO, “We organise workshops to keep our employees motivated. Also we assure them of our continued assistance so that they don’t feel isolated in these difficult times.”

Some companies have introduced fun activities to de-stress. Says Srinivas Rao, CFO and Chief of Shared services for Perot Systems. “We have a special employee engagement team which helps people deal with insecurity, peer pressure and work performance related issues.  We also have a fun club with outdoor and indoor games that helps us de-stress and also foster team spirit.”

Courtesy: deccan