ANNEXURE – A (COVER PAGE)

Institute of Business Management and Research

Code: 2911

Project Title : Quality of Life and Work Life

Prepared By : Mrugesh Joshi

Anuj Sharma

A project report submitted in partial fulfillment of the

requirement for the degree of Master of Business
Administration of Sikkim Manipal University, India.

Sikkim Manipal University f Health, Medical and Technological

Science
Distance Education Wing,
Syndicate House,
Manipal – 576 104
 ANNEXURE B (STUDENT DECLARATION)

We here by declare that the project report “Quality of

Life and Work Life” entitled submitted in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Business
Administration to Sikkim-Manipal University, India, are our
original work and not submitted for the award of any other
degree, diploma, fellowship, or any other similar title or prizes.

Name Registration No.

Anuj Sharma 510827956
Mrugesh Joshi 510827953

Date: 10th December 2009

Place: IBMR, Ahmedabad.

 ANNEXURE – C (EXAMINER’S CERTIFICATE)

The Project Report prepared by Mr. Mrugesh Joshi and

Mr. Anuj Sharma on “Quality of Life and Work Life” is
approved and is acceptable in quality and form.

Internal Examiner External Examiner

Name: Name:

Qualification: Qualification:

Designation: Designation:
ANNUXERE – D
(UNIVERSITY STUDY CENTRE CERTIFICATE)

This is to certify that the Project Report entitled “Quality

of Life and Work Life” submitted in partial fulfillment of the
requirement for the degree if Master of Business
Administration of Sikkim Manipal University of Health,
Medical and Technological Sceince.

Mr. Mrugesh Joshi and Mr. Anuj Sharma has worked

under my supervision and that no part of this report has been
submitted for the award of any other degree, diplomo,
fellowship or other similar titles or prizes for Sikkim Manipal
University.

Name Registration No.

Anuj Sharma 510827956

Mrugesh Joshi 510827953

Certified:
Prof. (Dr.) Jayshreeben Thakore
BA (Hons.), MSW, L.B. & Ph.D.
Associate Director (Placement)
IBMR, Ahmedabad
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Before beginning with the documentation, we would

like to heartily express our gratitude to lots of people
because of whose support we could accomplish our project
successfully.

Our obligations remain to all those people and friends

who have directly or indirectly helped us in successful
completion of our project. No amount of words written here
will suffice for our gratitude towards all of them.

Last but not least; we thank to our parents for giving

us continuous guidance, support and motivation for the
growth in professional approach.
 Contents (Index)
Sr.
Contents Page No.
No.
1 Objective of Study 1

2 Quality of Life 2

2.1 Hierarchy of Needs 4

2.2 Extrinsic Hygiene Factor 10

3 Quality of Work Life 14

3.1 Attitude 15

3.2 Environment 24

3.3 Opportunities 27

3.4 Nature of Job 28

3.5 Cultural Diversity 41

3.6 Stress Level 44

3.7 Challenges 51

3.8 Growth and Development 52

3.9 Risk Involved and Reward 61

4 Conclusion 62
Objective of Study
In modern organizational environment employees’ stress
is a significant factor and Quality of Work Life is the most
important factor determining the quantum or absence of work
stress. As can be seen from the succeeding pages in this
project work many factors can be included in the list of
determinants of quality of work.

The main objective of this study is to discuss in detail

the major factors influencing quality of work life in an
organization. The reader, after going through this work may
become more familiar with those factors and, if he is a
manager, may be in position to put into the practice many
aspects of the determinants discussed in the work.

Also an important objective for me as a student is to

enrich myself by studying the related materials. I am satisfied
that this objective has already been accomplished.

1
Quality of Life
The concept of Quality of Life has become an important
topic both in the health field and social welfare. Enhancing the
QOL is more and more considered to be an objective in
treatment and prevention of illness together with the provision
of psychosocial support. For the last few years Quality of Life
has been a major issue of debate, and in recent years the
concept of Quality of Life or living “a good life” has been the
subject of a number of philosophical and psychological studies
It is becoming increasingly apparent that illness is closely
related to the individual perception of a good life, and
therefore the exploration of indicators related to QOL appears
to be of broad importance for the prevention and treatment of
diseases.

Identifying, which factors constitute a good life may

reveal an understanding about what areas in life should be
encouraged, in order to enhance the global QOL. We include
three major lines of indicators: indicators of the present life,
indicators of the personal history, and indicators from the
beginning of life, including a series of social and biological
factors. Our belied was that a part of the variation of QOL in
the adult population could be explained by biological and
social heritage, another part could be explained by life event –
happy and unhappy – and a third part could be explained by
the conscious choices in life, recently, here and now.

2
 THE QUALITY OF LIFE

The individual can best be compared to a green apple

with red patched with a hidden nucleus. When this picture is
combined with the picture of humanity as an onion with a
number of layers between the surface and the nucleus, the
taxonomy underlying the Quality of Life analysis is achieved.
Between life’s surface and its inexpressible depth lies well-
being, satisfaction, harmony and meaning and deep concord.

3
Hierarchy of Needs
Abraham Maslow developed a theory of personality that
has influenced a number of different fields, including
education. This wide influence is due in part to the high level
of practicality of Maslow's theory. This theory accurately
describes many realities of personal experiences. Many people
find they can understand what Maslow says. They can
recognize some features of their experience or behavior which
is true and identifiable but which they have never put into
words.
Maslow is a humanistic psychologist. Humanists do not
believe that human beings are pushed and pulled by
mechanical forces, either of stimuli and reinforcements
(behaviorism) or of unconscious instinctual impulses
(psychoanalysis). Humanists focus upon potentials. They
believe that humans strive for an upper level of capabilities.
Humans seek the frontiers of creativity, the highest reaches of
consciousness and wisdom. This has been labeled "fully
functioning person", "healthy personality", or as Maslow calls
this level, "self-actualizing person."

Maslow has set up a hierarchic theory of needs. All of his

basic needs are instinctoid, equivalent of instincts in animals.
Humans start with a very weak disposition that is then
fashioned fully as the person grows. If the environment is
right, people will grow straight and beautiful, actualizing the
potentials they have inherited. If the environment is not "right"

4
(and mostly it is not) they will not grow tall and straight and
beautiful.

Maslow has set up a hierarchy of five levels of basic

needs. Beyond these needs, higher levels of needs exist. These
include needs for understanding, esthetic appreciation and
purely spiritual needs. In the levels of the five basic needs, the
person does not feel the second need until the demands of the
first have been satisfied, nor the third until the second has
been satisfied, and so on. Maslow's basic needs are as follows:

5
Physiological Needs
These are biological needs. They consist of needs
for oxygen, food, water, and a relatively constant body
temperature. They are the strongest needs because if a
person were deprived of all needs, the physiological ones
would come first in the person's search for satisfaction.

Safety Needs
When all physiological needs are satisfied and are
no longer controlling thoughts and behaviors, the needs
for security can become active. Adults have little
awareness of their security needs except in times of
emergency or periods of disorganization in the social
structure (such as widespread rioting). Children often
display the signs of insecurity and the need to be safe.

Needs of Love, Affection and Belongingness

When the needs for safety and for physiological
well-being are satisfied, the next class of needs for love,
affection and belongingness can emerge. Maslow states
that people seek to overcome feelings of loneliness and
alienation. This involves both giving and receiving love,
affection and the sense of belonging.

Needs for Esteem

When the first three classes of needs are satisfied,
the needs for esteem can become dominant. These
involve needs for both self-esteem and for the esteem a

6
 person gets from others. Humans have a need for a
stable, firmly based, high level of self-respect, and
respect from others. When these needs are satisfied, the
person feels self-confident and valuable as a person in
the world. When these needs are frustrated, the person
feels inferior, weak, helpless and worthless.

Needs for Self-Actualization

When all of the foregoing needs are satisfied, then
and only then are the needs for self-actualization
activated. Maslow describes self-actualization as a
person's need to be and do that which the person was
"born to do." "A musician must make music, an artist
must paint, and a poet must write." These needs make
themselves felt in signs of restlessness. The person feels
on edge, tense, lacking something, in short, restless. If a
person is hungry, unsafe, not loved or accepted, or
lacking self-esteem, it is very easy to know what the
person is restless about. It is not always clear what a
person wants when there is a need for self-actualization.

The hierarchic theory is often represented as a pyramid,

with the larger, lower levels representing the lower needs, and
the upper point representing the need for self-actualization.
Maslow believes that the only reason that people would not
move well in direction of self-actualization is because of
hindrances placed in their way by society. He states that
education is one of these hindrances. He recommends ways

7
education can switch from its usual person-stunting tactics to
person-growing approaches. Maslow states that educators
should respond to the potential an individual has for growing
into a self-actualizing person of his/her own kind.

Suggestions:

Ž We should teach people to be authentic, to be aware of their

inner selves and to hear their inner-feeling voices.

Ž We should teach people to transcend their cultural

conditioning and become world citizens.

Ž We should help people discover their vocation in life, their

calling, fate or destiny. This is especially focused on finding
the right career and the right mate.

Ž We should teach people that life is precious, that there is joy

to be experienced in life, and if people are open to seeing
the good and joyous in all kinds of situations, it makes life
worth living.

Ž We must accept the person as he or she is and help the

person learn their inner nature. From real knowledge of
aptitudes and limitations we can know what to build upon,
what potentials are really there.

Ž We must see that the person's basic needs are satisfied.

This includes safety, belongingness, and esteem needs.

Ž We should refresher consciousness, teaching the person to

appreciate beauty and the other good things in nature and
in living.

8
Ž We should teach people that controls are good, and
complete abandon is bad. It takes control to improve the
quality of life in all areas.

Ž We should teach people to transcend the trifling problems

and grapple with the serious problems in life. These include
the problems of injustice, of pain, suffering, and death.

Ž We must teach people to be good choosers. They must be

given practice in making good choices.

9
Extrinsic Hygiene Factor

Frederick Herzberg interviewed 203 American

accountants & engineers, chosen because of their professions
growing importance in the business world. The subjects were
asked to relate times when they felt exceptionally good or bad
about their present job or any previous job, and to provide
reasons, and a description of the sequence of events giving
rise to that positive or negative feeling.

The research showed that responses tended to be

consistent, revealing two different sets of factors affecting
motivation at work. One set of factors if absent or weak
caused dissatisfaction. These related to the job environment /
the context in which the job was performed and thus extrinsic
to the job itself, e.g. the quality of supervision, or level of pay.
Herzberg labeled these as the Hygiene or Maintenance
Factors. The second set of factors if present lead to feelings of
satisfaction. These relate to the job itself, for example its
complexity, or importance, which Herzberg named the
Motivators or Growth Factors.

10
 Herzberg argues that both factors are equally important,
but that good hygiene will only lead to average performance,
preventing dissatisfaction, but not, by itself, creating a positive
attitude or motivation to work. To motivate the employee
management must enrich the content of the actual work they
ask them to do. For example, building into tasks set a greater
level of responsibility, and the opportunity to learn new skills.
In advocating making work more interesting, and improving
the quality of the work experience for the individual, Herzberg
coined the phrase 'Quality of Working Life'.

11
The table below lists the common hygiene factors and
motivators identified within organizations.

Herzberg's Two-factor Theory

Hygiene Factors Motivators

Salary,
Nature of Work,
Job Security,
Sense of Achievement,
Working Conditions,
Recognition,
Level and Quality of
Responsibility,
Supervision,
Personal Growth and
Company Policy and
Advancement
Administration,

Interpersonal Relations

Herzberg and Money

It is often wrongly assumed that Herzberg did not value

money, in the sense that he did not consider it a motivator.
This is misleading, as Herzberg argues that the absence of
good hygiene factors including money, will lead to
dissatisfaction and thus potentially block any attempt to
motivate the worker. Herzberg prefers us to think of money as
a force which will move an individual to perform a task, but

12
not generate any internal desire to do the task well. In fact to
get an individual to perform the task again, he argues, we will
need to offer more money.

Although the original studies have been repeated with

different types of workers, and results have proved consistent
with the original research, Herzberg's theory has been
criticised. Critics point out that a single factor may be a
satisfier for one person, but cause job dissatisfaction for
another. For example increased responsibility may be
welcomed by some, whilst dreaded by others. Whatever the
criticisms, Herzberg has drawn our attention to the
importance of job design in order to bring about job
enrichment, emphasised in the phrase 'Quality of Life'.

13
Quality of Work Life
Work is an integral part of out everyday life, as it is our
livelihood or career or business. On an average we spend
around ten to twelve hours daily in the work place, that is one
third of our entire life; it does influence the overall quality of
our life. It should yield job satisfaction, give peace of mind, a
fulfillment of having done a task, ass it is expected, without
any flow and having spent the time fruitfully, constructively
and purposefully. Even if it is a small step towards our lifetime
goal, at the end of the day it gives satisfaction and eagerness
to look forward to the next day.

The factors that influence and decide the Quality of work

life are:

9 Attitude

9 Environment

9 Opportunities

9 Nature of Job

9 Cultural Diversity

9 Stress Level

9 Challenges

9 Growth and Development

9 Risk Involved and Reward

14
Attitude

An optimistic attitude will enable you to take risks,

innovate, communicate, have confidence and create a better
workplace. This means you are more productive and achieve
more. Where negativity exists in a workplace, people are quick
to blame each other and feel a sense of injustice. With a
negative attitude, you are less likely to be accountable and
reliable.
You carry your attitude around with you, like a pair of
glasses that tints your perception of the world. The great
philosophers sometimes talk about how there is no such thing
as truth, because we all have a slightly different perception of
it, so how can there be an unbiased reality?

In its extreme, there is no world at all, just our

interpretation of it. Think of Descartes’ famous quote: “I think,
therefore I am.”

How does this relate to attitudes? Well, the fact is that

your view of the world is limited by your perception of it. Your
experiences, education and personality shape your attitude to
everything around you.

So, depending on how you perceive the world, you will

interpret and react differently to situations than someone who
has a different view. Your tinted glasses (your attitude) will
affect how you think, how you behave and even how you feel.

15
 The person who is entrusted with a particular job needs
to have sufficient knowledge, skill and expertise, enough
experience, enthusiasm, energy level, willingness to learn new
things, dynamism, sense of belongingness in the organization,
involvement in the job, inter personnel relations, adaptability
to changes in the situation, openness for innovative ideas,
competitiveness, zeal, ability to work under pressure,
leadership qualities and team-spirit.

Positive attitudes lead to:

Resilience – Bouncing back from adversities is quicker
and easier if you view failure as a learning experience and look
for new approaches, rather than blaming yourself or others
and thinking that the task is too hard or the world is unfair.

Optimism
Success, longevity and happiness are all by-products of
optimism. With an optimistic attitude, you will see yourself as
being able to influence the world and will carry a flame of hope
that enables you to take risks and accept failure.

16
Confidence
Confidence stems from optimism. If you are confident,
you believe in your own abilities and think you have the ability
to impact your environment. Your confidence remains steady
during setbacks, because you see them merely as challenges,
and are ready to take new risks.

Creativity
Positive attitudes are at the heart of innovation, because
it takes a risk to try something different. Without confidence
and hope, you would not attempt a new idea.

Conflict resolution
If you pause and think, you can probably think of dozens
of examples of where differing attitudes have caused problems
or conflict in your personal and professional relationships.
Conflict arises because we expect everyone to have the same
attitude as ourselves. But, with a positive attitude you can
build your empathy and can more readily see how other
people think and feel.

Emotional intelligence
Once you have the attitude, you will find your emotional
intelligence moving into overdrive. This will enable you to
better manage and express your emotions and understand
others.

17
Achievement drives
The attitude of achievement, i.e. the will to get results,
enables you to set challenging goals, takes calculated risks
and learns how to improve performance.

Motivation
Surveys show that most people’s motivation in their job
comes from stimulation and challenge – the chance to learn.
Bringing an optimistic attitude to the workplace will create a
culture of innovation. The creativity and stimulation of ideas
will keep you and your workforce motivated and keen to learn.

Focus
If you are focused, you are committed to tasks, take
responsibility for them and are able to align your goals with
the company’s goals.

Attitudes can be changed

We develop our attitudes and over time we form habits,
of which we usually have little awareness. Not all our habits
are helpful and some can be destructive or goal defeating. But,
since our attitudes are learned, they can be unlearned.
Many negative attitudes stem from ignorance. This
means you can often change your attitude with the right
knowledge.
For example, if your colleague is short-tempered with
you, you might have a negative attitude towards her (you will
feel angry, you will think she is moody, and your behaviour

18
towards her will reflect this – you might be unpleasant back to
her or avoid contact with her altogether). But if you were to
learn that she had just been diagnosed with cancer, your
attitude might alter somewhat. Your attitude could be positive
(you will feel compassion and your behaviour will be kind and
understanding).

Changing an attitude starts with self-awareness and

usually includes changing a belief. Over the course of our lives
we develop many beliefs that are bias and cause us to look at
the world in a particular way. It is not surprising that the way
we think effects our behaviour. But, research has also found
that behaviour can affect attitudes just as much.

Therefore, a change in behaviour can change an attitude.

Applied to the workplace, this means if you can get employees
to behave a certain way (for example, by calling clients to
make sure their deliveries have arrived), their attitude will
change towards that issue (they will believe following up with
the customer is important).

There are two ways that your attitude can change:

Education
Learning helps develop your attitude. For example, after
learning about emotional intelligence in one of our workshops,
participants reported an average of 55 percent improvement in
their ability to deal with negative emotions.

19
It is easier to have the ‘right attitude’ if you have the right
knowledge.

Experiences
Experiences shape our attitudes. You can provide
employees with the opportunity to think differently. For
example, employees may have poor relationships until they
are given an opportunity to bond together through team
building exercises.

We use theoretical and experiential learning as the basis

for our training. By combining scientific research and self-
analysis with activities and case studies, we are able to offer
the best opportunities for people to develop proactive
attitudes.
Developing Attitudes

Workshops, feedback and coaching will benefit your

attitude. Training programs can improve leadership, sales,
handling change, project management, team building,
communication and customer service.

Resilient attitudes – the power of optimistic thinking

Resilience is like a rubber band that when stretched
bounces back to its original shape. If you are resilient, you
handle problems better – while others are frozen by stress, you
are able to take control. You are proactive and future focused,
because negativity doesn’t overwhelm you.

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 Building a resilient attitude means becoming more
optimistic.

Pessimism is running amok

Yet, pessimism prevails. Anxiety and depression have

taken a grip on the world. Depression is predicted to become
the second biggest killer – after heart disease – by 2020.
Pessimism in the workplace is rife.

Job satisfaction is low – in a 2003 survey by the job

agency Seek, 49 per cent of respondents said they were
unhappy or very unhappy with their job. And when asked if
there was anything they hated about their job, six out of ten
people said “the quality of management”.

Low job satisfaction and disdain for the boss causes a

negative workplace culture. But not only is coming to work a
drain, the business is suffering serious economic loss.

Research from the U.S. shows that depression causes

more absenteeism than almost any other physical disorder,
and costs U.S. employers over US$51 billion per year in
absenteeism and lost productivity.

Pessimists are in a constant state of helplessness. They

tend to think of themselves as victims, unable to control the
situations around them. They blame themselves for problems.
They see negative events as permanent and insoluble.

Don’t worry, be happy!

21
 But it’s in the optimistic moments that brilliance shines
through. Optimists don’t internalise negative events, but they
often take credit for positive ones. They are confident and live
with hope – so they are more ready to take risks and cope with
failure.

Optimists see themselves as being able to influence their

environment. So, they are resilient – able to accept change. In
fact, they are often pioneers of change. Creativity and
innovation stem from optimism.

The ‘can do’ attitude that comes from optimism is often

self-fulfilling. Very little progress would be made if everyone
sat around fuelled by negative thoughts, like “I’m hopeless” or
“I will never be able to do this”.

As Thomas Edison said: “I have not failed. I’ve just found

10,000 ways that don’t work.” It’s that attitude that led him to
patent over 1,000 inventions, including the light bulb, the
phonograph and the "kinetoscope", a small box for viewing
moving films.

Building a positive workplace culture

Your attitude is influenced by the workplace itself, and
this usually comes down to its leadership.

There are many ways to build a productive culture at

work. We can help you do this by looking at your current
situation and finding ways to improve the workplace culture

22
by changing people’s attitudes to their job, their environment,
each other and themselves.

Firstly, you need to identify any deficiencies that are

causing negative attitudes. These could include issues like
favouritism, lack of recognition or different sets of standards
for different employees.

Managers who get the best from their teams inspire a

positive workplace culture. Some of the positive influences
include:

9 Fair and equal treatment of all employees

9 Achievements recognised and rewarded
9 Open management style
9 Regular feedback
9 Open and honest communication
9 Clear goals set out
9 Regular training
9 Equal opportunities for all employees
Creating a supportive workplace culture is the first step
to creating pro-active attitudes. To develop your employees’
attitudes further, you will need to provide them with the
opportunity to assess their feelings, beliefs and behaviours.

You can encourage attitude change by using some of the

tools on this site. Remember though, you cannot change other
people’s attitudes; they need to change their own. But, you
can provide an environment and the resources to encourage
self-awareness and effective behaviours.

23
Environment:

The job may involve dealing with customers who have

varied tolerance level, preferences, behavioral pattern, level of
understanding; or it may involve working with dangerous
machines like drilling pipes, cranes, lathe machines, welding
and soldering machines, or even with animals where
maximum safety precautions have to be observed which needs
lot of concentration, alertness, presence of mind, quick with
involuntary actions, synchronization of eyes, hands and body,
sometimes high level of patience, tactfulness, empathy and
compassion and control over emotions.
It is not about managing retention. It is about managing
people. If an organization manages people well, employee
retention will take care of itself. Organizations should focus on
managing the work environment to make better use of the
available human assets.

People want to work for an organization which provides

™ Appreciation for the work done

™ Ample opportunities to grow

™ A friendly and cooperative environment

A feeling that the organization is second home to the employee

Organization environment includes

• Culture

• Values

24
 • Company reputation

• Quality of people in the organization

• Employee development and career growth

• Risk taking

• Leading technologies

• Trust

Types of environment the employee needs in an organization

Learning environment

It includes continuous learning and improvement of the

individual, certifications and provision for higher studies, etc.

Support environment

Organization can provide support in the form of work-life

balance. Work life balance includes:

o Flexible hours
o Telecommuting

o Dependent care

o Alternate work schedules

o Vacations

o Wellness

25
Work environment

It includes efficient managers, supportive co-workers,

challenging work, involvement in decision-making, clarity of
work and responsibilities, and recognition.

Lack or absence of such environment pushes employees

to look for new opportunities. The environment should be
such that the employee feels connected to the organization in
every respect.

26
Opportunities

Some jobs offer opportunities for

learning, research, discovery, self-
development, of skills, room for
innovation, public recognition,
exploration, celebrity-status and loads
and loads of fame. Others are
monotonous, repetitive, dull,
routine, no room for improvement
and in every sense boring. Naturally
the former ones are interesting and
very much rewarding also.

27
Nature of Job
For example, a driller in the oil drilling unit, a diver, a
fire-fighter, traffic policeman, train engine driver, construction
laborers, welder, miner, lathe mechanic have to do dangerous
jobs and have to be more alert in order to avoid any loss of
limb, or loss of life which is irreparable; whereas a pilot,
doctor, judge, journalist have to be more prudent and tactful
in handling the situation; a CEO, a professor, a teacher have
more responsibility and accountability but safe working
environment; a cashier or a security guard cannot afford to be
careless in his job as it involves loss of money, property and
wealth; a politician or a public figure cannot afford to be
careless, for his reputation and goodwill is at stake. Some jobs
need soft skills, leadership qualities, intelligence, decision
making abilities, abilities to train and extract work from
others; other jobs need forethought, vision and yet other jobs
need motor skills, perfection and extreme carefulness.

In today's world, the structure, content, and process of

work have changed. Work is now:

• more cognitively complex

• more team-based and collaborative

• more dependent on social skills

• more dependent on technological competence

• more time pressured

• more mobile and less dependent on geography.

28
 In today's world, you will also be working for an
organization that is likely to be very different due to
competitive pressures and technological breakthroughs.
Organizations today are:

• leaner and more agile

• more focused on identifying value from the customer

perspective

• more tuned to dynamic competitive requirements and

strategy

• less hierarchical in structure and decision authority

• less likely to provide lifelong careers and job security

• continually reorganizing to maintain or gain competitive

advantage.

This Resource Page explores the changing nature of

organizations and work, the drivers behind the changes, and
the consequences for workers and the workplace.

A. The Key Drivers for Changing Nature of Work

Although many factors ultimately contribute to the

changing patterns of work, organizational theorists point to
two key drivers:

• Increasing pressures on organizations to be more

competitive, agile, and customer focused—to be a "lean
enterprise."

• Communication and information technology

breakthroughs, especially mobile technologies and the

29
 Internet that enable work to be separated from time and
space.

Changes in Organizational Focus: What does it Mean to

be Lean?
The Lean Enterprise model was introduced to the world
by Toyota in the 1970s. Since then, it has fueled changes in
organizations across the globe, particularly—but not
exclusively—in manufacturing and product development.

The key principles of Lean Enterprise (or "lean thinking",

as it is sometimes called) are:

• Define value from the customer's perspective.

• Identify internal activities and processes that add value

for the customer and identify linkages between them (the
"value chain").

• Eliminate non-value added activities (or "waste") across

the organization.

• Reduce waste and inefficiencies in support (e.g.,

overhead) functions.

The lean enterprise principles enabled many

organizations to respond more rapidly to the marketplace by
reducing cycle time, developing mass customization processes,
and supporting continual change and innovation.

30
 Creating the Lean Machine: Changes in Organizational
Structure and Relationships
Adopting lean principles and lean thinking has led to
numerous changes in organizational structure to improve the
efficiency of internal processes, with a goal of eliminating
waste and defining customer value.

These changes have been supported and enabled by

transformations in information and communications
technology, especially the Internet and mobile computing and
communication devices.

Key organizational changes include:

• Reduced hierarchical structure—Hierarchies are

cumbersome and cannot respond quickly to changing
market demands, such as pressures for reduced cycle
time and continuous innovation. Hierarchies are being
replaced by cross unit organizational groupings with
fewer layers and more decentralized decision making.

• Blurred boundaries—As organizations become more

laterally structured, boundaries begin to breakdown as
different parts of the organization need to work more
effectively together. Boundaries between departments as
well as between job categories (manager, professional,
technical) become looser and there is a greater need for
task and knowledge sharing.

• Teams as basic building blocks—The move toward a

team-based organizational structure results from

31
 pressures to make rapid decisions, to reduce
inefficiencies, and to continually improve work
processes.

• New management perspective—Workers are no longer

managed to comply with rules and orders, but rather to
be committed to organizational goals and mission. The
blurring of boundaries also affects organizational roles.
As employees gain more decision authority and latitude,
managers become more social supporters and coaches
rather than commanders.

• Continuous change—Organizations are expected to

continue the cycles of reflection and reorganization.
However, changes may be both large and small and are
likely to be interspersed with periods of stability. Kling
and Zmuidzinas identify three types of change—
"metamorphosis" (far reaching, fundamental change),
"migration" (shifts toward a new form), and "elaboration"
(changes that enhance some aspect of work).

B. How Work is Changing for Individuals and Groups

Over the past two decades, a new pattern of work is

emerging as the knowledge economy realizes the full potential
of both new technologies and new organizational models. The
changes fall into the following domains:

• Cognitive competence

• Social and interactive competence

32
 • The new "psychological contract" between employees and
employers

• Changes in process and place

Although these domains are discussed separately, they

overlap. We briefly discuss the overlaps, where they exist, and
point to the benefits and concerns the new work patterns
present for workers and managers.

Cognitive Competence
Cognitive workers are expected to be more functionally
and cognitively fluid and able to work across many kinds of
tasks and situations. The broader span of work, brought
about by changes in organizational structure, also creates new
demands, including:

• Increased complexity of work—Workers need to know

more, not only to do their jobs and tasks, but also to
work effectively with others on teams. Many knowledge-
based tasks require sound analytical and judgment skills
to carry out work that is more novel, extemporaneous,
and context based, with few rules and structured ways of
working. Although demand for high cognitive skills are
especially prominent in professional, technical, and
managerial jobs, even administrative tasks require more
independent decision making and operational decision
making.

• Continuous competency development—Not only do

workers need to keep their technology skills up to date,

33
 they need to be continuous learners in their knowledge
fields and to also be more conversant with business
strategy. Time to read and attend training classes is no
longer a perquisite of only a few, it is essential for all
workers.

• Different ways of thinking—Rosabeth Kantor argues that

cross-functional and cross boundary teams require
"kaleidoscope thinking," the ability to see alternative
angles and perspectives and to create new patterns of
thinking that propel innovation. Workers also need to be
able to synthesize disparate ideas in order to make the
cognitive leaps that underlie innovation.

Cognitive Overload: The Cost of Complexity

Vastly increased access to information has made work
both easier and more difficult. The ease comes from ability to
rapidly locate and download information from diverse web
sites. The difficulty comes with the need to consume and make
sense of new information in a timely fashion. Information
overload, coupled with time pressures and increased work
complexity, lead to what psychologists call "cognitive overload
syndrome (COS)." Symptoms of COS include stress, inability
to concentrate, multitasking, task switching, and a tendency
to focus on what is easy to do quickly rather than what is
important.

Social and Interactive Competence

In a 2001 report on the changing nature of work, the
National Research Council called attention to the importance

34
of relational and interactive aspects of work. As collaboration
and collective activity become more prevalent, workers need
well-developed social skills—what the report calls "emotional
labor."

Good social skills are necessary for:

• Team work and collaboration—Conflict resolution and

negotiation skills are essential to collaborative work.
Conflicts often occur about group goals, work methods,
assignments, workloads, and recognition. Team
members with good conflict and negotiation skills are
better equipped to deal openly with problems, to listen
and understand different perspectives, and to resolve
issues in mutually beneficial ways.

• Relationship development and networking—Sharing

important information, fulfilling promises, willingness to
be influenced, and listening are building blocks of
reciprocity and the development of trust. When workers
trust one another, they are more committed to attaining
mutual goals, more likely to help one another through
difficulties, and more willing to share and develop new
ideas.

• Learning and growth—Many organizations strive to be

learning centers—to create conditions in which
employees learn not only through formal training but
through relationships with coworkers. Learning
relationships build on joint problem solving, insight
sharing, learning from mistakes, and working closely

35
 together to aid transmission of tacit knowledge. Learning
also develops from mentoring relationships between
newcomers and those with experience and organizational
know-how.

The Costs of Collaborative Environments

In a collaborative work setting, the fate of individuals is
inextricably bound to collective success. Dependence on
others for one's own success is often uncomfortable. As Susan
Mohrman and Susan Cohen write in a chapter from The
Changing Nature of Work:

"We have been socialized to value individual

responsibility and individual achievement, and feel
discomfort with the thought of relying on others."

Comments about the fear of not having individual efforts

recognized are common in the literature on team work.

Collaboration and relationship development also take

time and effort. Understanding coworkers' perspectives and
"thought worlds" requires time spent listening, integrating,
and synthesizing. For those workers recognized as both
knowledgeable and approachable, the demands of interaction
may be especially high.

C. The New Psychological Contract

As work changes, so does the nature of the relationships

between employees and employers. In the new work context,
the informal, "psychological contract" between workers and

36
employers—what each expects of the other—focuses on
competency development, continuous training, and work/life
balance. In contrast, the old psychological contract was all
about job security and steady advancement within the firm. As
already discussed, few workers expect, or desire, lifelong
employment in a single firm.

As job security declines, many management scientists see

clouds on the horizon, including:

• Corporate indifference—Shoshana Zuboff and James

Maxmin, in The Support Economy, describe a new
individualism among U.S. workers. These new
individuals are invested in "psychological self
determination." They desire participation, expression,
identity, and quality of life—all values which are
espoused by organizations, but largely ignored in
practice as organizations continue to focus on reducing
fixed labor costs.

• Reduced loyalty and commitment—With little expectation

for advancement, workers feel less committed to
organizational goals and more committed to their own
learning and development. The knowledge and
technological skills that employees bring with them to
the workplace are transportable and are not lost when a
new job is taken.

• Increased time burdens—Years of downsizing and

outsourcing have produced what Lesie Perlow calls a
"time famine"—the feeling of having too much to do and

37
 too little time to do it. In order to keep up with
workloads, many workers are spending longer hours at
work, according to reports by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics and the Center for Workforce Development.

• Flexible work arrangements do not keep up with

employee preferences—The Work Trends 2000 report
found that 74% of workers were not allowed flexible
hours and work arrangements (such as telecommuting).
Those with flex hours have limited freedom regarding
when and where to work. The vast majority of workers
have to commit to a specific day to work at home or a
specific day to take off if they work four10-hour days.

D. The Changing Workplace

The changing workplace is driven by the organizational

issues described above and enabled by technologies that
support mobility and easy access to information. These
pressures and opportunities, however, have not resulted in a
specific new workplace model. Many models and ideas exist
concurrently, with designs depending upon the organization,
its work practices, culture, and customers. Table 1 highlights
key drivers, solutions, and potential issues raised by the
solution.

38
Table 1. Drivers, Solutions, and Issues for the Changing
Workplace
Workplace and technology
Drivers Issues and concerns
solutions
Increased use
• More meeting space • Increased noise
of teams and
cross unit • Greater variety of meeting • Increased distractions and
work; more spaces (open & enclosed, large interruptions
pressure for & small)
communication • Potential for "over
and information • Smaller individual communicating"
flow workspaces
• Cultural barriers to
• More open individual behavioral change
workspaces
• Individuals working longer
• Unassigned workspaces hours to compensate for
lack of time to do individual
• Greater interior visibility to
tasks
support awareness
• Expectations that workers
• Mobile supports (phones, laptops,
are always available
PDAs, wireless)
• Personal video, instant
messaging, desktop team
software
• More use of project rooms
• Displayed information and work
progress
• Small rooms for individual
focus
• Lockers for personal belongings

Greater use of
• Increased use of video • Expansion of the workday to
dispersed work
conferencing, computer-based accommodate geographically
groups—often
team tools dispersed team meetings
global
• More reliance on conference • Loss of opportunity to
calls develop trust through face to
face interaction
• Greater need for mobile
technological supports for • More difficulty managing
meeting rooms and coordinating
• Use of facilities beyond normal • Very high dependence on
working hours technological reliability

Continual
• Flexible infrastructure to support • Acoustical problems with
reorganization
rapid reconfiguration loss of good enclosure
and
restructuring • Mobile furnishings • Potential for reduced
ergonomic effectiveness

39
Reduced
• Shared or unassigned • Increased distractions and
costs/more
workspaces interruptions
efficient space
use • Centralized filing system • Increased noise
• Reduced workstation size and • May meet with employee
increased overall densities resistance
• Greater overall spatial variety to • More difficult for paper
enable different kinds of work intensive work
to be accommodated at same
time

Improved
• More equitable access to daylight, • Resistance from those who
quality of work
views, and other amenities support hierarchical space
life and
allocation
attraction of • More equitable spatial
new workers allocation and workspace
features
• Amenities for stress reduction
and quiet relaxation

40
Cultural Diversity
Employees in almost any organization are divided into
subgroups of various kinds. Formation of groups is
determined by two broad sets of conditions. First, job-related
differences and similarities, such as type of work, rank in the
organization, and physical proximity to one another,
sometimes cause people to align themselves into groups.
However, a second set of non-job-related conditions arise
primarily fro an individual’s personal background; these
conditions are highly important for legal, moral and economic
reasons. In particular, the U.S. workforce has rapidly become
much more diverse, with females, African Americans,
Hispanics and Asian
immigrants bringing their
talents to employers in
record numbers. This
cultural diversity or rich
variety of differences
among people at work
raises the issue of fair
treatment for worker who
are not in position of
authority.

Equal Employment Opportunity Laws

An early attempt to deal with cultural diversity at work
and fair treatment for employees was through federal and
state legislation. It requires employers, labour unions and

41
employment agencies to treat all people equally, without
regard to race, colour, religion, national origin, gender, sexual
preference or age in all phases of employment.

Equal Employment Opportunity laws prohibit

discrimination on factors other than job performance. In
response, many organizations voluntarily developed
affirmative-action plans, in which they adopted
nondiscrimination policies, reviewed their personnel practices,
and monitored their progress. Affirmative-action programs,
designed to expand the opportunities for qualified people, have
three major goals.
™ To provide redress fir past discriminations.
™ To correct current discrimination.
™ To pursue greater diversity as a value objective.

If Equal Employment
Opportunity were completely
successful, it would produce lost
of greater benefits. Although
considerable progress has been
made, it has often been show,
and problems still remain while a
societal debate over the merits of
affirmative action has raged. Problems may persist because of
a key difference in this context between discrimination and
prejudice. Discrimination is generally exhibited as an action,
whereas prejudice is an attitude. Either may exist without the

42
other. The law focuses on an employer’s actions, not feelings.
If actions lead to what is legally determined to be
discriminatory results, such actions are unlawful regardless of
the employer’s alleged good intentions.

43
Stress Level

All these above mentioned factors are inter-related and

inter-dependant. Stress level need not be directly proportional
to the compensation. Stress is of different types - mental
stress/physical stress and psychological or emotional stress. A
Managing Director of a company will have mental stress, a
laborer will have physical stress, a psychiatrist will have
emotional stress. Mental stress and Emotional stress cause
more damage than physical stress.

Pressure and stress

There is
sometimes confusion
between the terms
pressure and stress. It
is healthy and
essential that people
experience challenges
within their lives that
cause levels of
pressure and, up to a
certain point, an increase in pressure can improve
performance and the quality of life, . However, if pressure
becomes excessive, it loses its beneficial effect and becomes
harmful and destructive to health.8

Stress is the reaction that people have to excessive

pressure or other types of demand placed on them. It arises

44
when they worry that they cannot cope9. The pressures of
working life can lead to stress if they are excessive or long-
term. Examples of long-term or chronic stress are the fear,
frustration and anger that may be produced by an unhappy
relationship with one's boss or with a difficult customer, and
the unhappiness of an unsuitable job. .

Dealing with stress at work

There are four main approaches that organizations can
adopt to address stress at work. These can be used together
as a single initiative or may be adopted individually in a more
step-by-step well-being program.

Policy, procedures and systems audit - requires the

organization to undertake an audit of its policies, procedures
and systems to ensure that it provides a working environment
that protects the well-being of the workforce and is able to
identify troubled employees and provide them with an
appropriate level of support.

Problem centered approach - provides a problem solving model

for dealing with stress and other psycho-social issues. It takes
issues and problems that arise within the workplace and
identifies why they have occurred and then finds ways to solve
them. The identification process may involve undertaking a
risk assessment, examining sickness absence levels, employee
feedback, claims for compensation and performance deficits.

Well-being approach - takes the view that the aim is to

maximize employee well-being. Although it uses similar tools

45
to those used by the problem centered approach it is much
more proactive in identifying ways to create a healthy
workforce.

Employee centered approach - works at the individual level of

the employee. Individuals are provided with education and
support in order to help them deal with the problems they face
in the workplace. The employee centered approach focuses on
employee counseling and stress management training.

Measures to reduce workplace stress

• Undertaking a stress audit using the Occupational

Stress Indicator and subsequently directing resources to
reduce or eliminate the sources of stress.
• Agenda items should include terms and conditions of
employment, physical and psychological working
conditions, work content, communication systems and
working relationships.
• The development of a supportive work ethos to
encourage staff to discuss and seek support when
experiencing stress.

When sources of stress cannot be eliminated other

interventions may be considered, such as:

• stress management and relaxation techniques training

• promoting of healthy behaviour and exercise
• personal counseling schemes.

46
Should an organization have a stress policy?

While many organizations have developed stress policies,

others have found that a well-being policy is much more
effective in recognizing the need to maximize the well-being of
their employees rather than merely reduce their level of stress.
This approach is in line with that taken by the World Health
Organization (1990). Whether organizations choose a 'well-
being' or 'stress' policy the elements that should be contained
in the policy are very similar.

The policy should:

• begin with a clear statement which shows that the

organization is committed to developing a working
environment that promotes the health and well-being of
the organization and its employees
• be supported by senior management
• be kept under constant review, together with other
company policies, procedures and initiatives to ensure
that they maximize employee well-being
• provide for identification of and a regular review of the
key well-being indicators
• ensure the provision of effective advice, support,
counseling and training to enhance employee well-being
• incorporate the process for evaluating the effectiveness of
all well-being initiatives. .

47
Stress and the employee
Excessive pressure and problems can occur in an
employee's personal life as well as at work. If an employee is
facing a relationship breakdown, financial problems,
difficulties with neighbors or bereavement, it is possible that
these problems may affect the employee's ability to work
effectively. Employees do not have to describe the nature of
their personal problems to their manager or HR. However, if
personal problems begin to affect performance at work then
this will need to be raised and discussed with the employee.
The objective of the meeting would be to identify the help that
the manager or HR can give to the employee to return to
effective working.

Signs of stress
The first signs that indicate employees may be suffering
from excessive pressure or stress are changes in behaviour or
appearance. A guide on the kinds of changes that may occur
is given below.

48
Work performance
• declining/inconsistent
performance
• uncharacteristic errors
• loss of control over work
• loss of
motivation/commitment
• indecision
• lapses in memory
• increased time at work
• lack of holiday
planning/usage
Withdrawal
• arriving late to work
• leaving early
• extended lunches
• absenteeism
• resigned attitude
• reduced social contact
• elusiness/evasiveness
49
Regression
• crying
• arguments
• undue sensitivity
• irritability/moodiness
• over-reaction to problems
• personality clashes
• sulking
• immature behaviour
Aggressive behaviour
• malicious gossip
• criticism of others
• vandalism
• shouting
• bullying or harassment
• poor emplyee relations
• temper outbursts
Other behaviours
• out of character
behaviour
• difficulty in relaxing
• increased consumption
of alcohol
• increased smoking
• lack of interest in
appearance/hygiene
• accidents at home or
work
• reckless driving
• unnecessary risk taking
50
Physical signs
• nervous stumbling
speech
• sweating
• tiredness/lethargy
• upset
stomach/flatulence
• tension headaches
• hand tremor
• rapid weight gain or loss
• constantly feeling cold
Challenges

The job should offer some challenges at least to make it

interesting; That enables an employee to upgrade his
knowledge and skill and capabilities; whereas the monotony of
the job makes a person dull, non-enthusiastic, dissatisfied,
frustrating, complacent, initiative - less and uninteresting.
Challenge is the fire that keeps the innovation and thrill alive.
A well-accomplished challenging job yields greater satisfaction
than a monetary perk; it boosts the self-confidence also.

51
Growth and Development

The way people treat each other in companies and other

organizations is affected by the common vision that employees
share. One of the deepest desires underlying shared vision is
the desire to be connected, to a larger purpose and to one
another.
– Peter Senge, 1990

The Psychologically Healthy Workplace

Most of us go through our lives using no more than a
fraction of the potential within us. (Gardner, 1990) The way a
company conducts its business and treats its employees can
either reinforce this lost potential or nurture the untapped
capabilities that every person possesses. It is a well-known
fact within American corporations that employees are more
likely to perform effectively when they experience mutual trust
and loyalty from their colleagues, are involved in decisions
about their work, and believe the company cares about their

52
development as individuals. It is easier to acknowledge this
fact, however, than it is to create and maintain a corporate
culture that embodies the principles of trust and shared
decision-making.

The issue of developing employees’ potential is further

complicated by the team-based environment in which many
companies operate – how can companies promote individual
excellence while, at the same time, encouraging a collaborative
approach to solving problems and producing innovative,
coordinated action? Even those companies that rely on
individual achievement inevitably find themselves operating in
a team environment, at times. It is important for companies to
provide opportunities for individual professional development
as well as to offer training in the development of collaborative
skills and practices. Before companies can increase team
cooperation, individual employees need the kind of training
experiences that foster honest, thoughtful communication
among employees and the opportunity to receive constructive
feedback. A psychologically healthy workplace values the
importance of team-building and leadership development for
all of its employees. Organizations that create a climate of
trust and mutual respect develop healthy practices and rituals
that all employees can learn, participate in, and support.

Ultimately, healthy organizations reflect the example of

their leadership. In such an organization, management checks
in with employees regularly to get feedback on what's working

53
and not working. These organizations build in time for
professional development. Leadership skills are taught and
nurtured across the company, so that employees can learn
and practice new skills and have the time to plan, implement
and assess progress. In a healthy work environment,
employees have a common vision about what's possible, and
they feel empowered to make that vision a reality. A sense of
commitment and passion is shared among employees. People
are willing to risk thinking creatively; share their ideas openly;
and deal with conflict in a timely and thoughtful fashion.

Working in a Pressure Zone

A company's long-term success lies in building a strong
foundation of healthy relationships among employees. The
basic communication skills implicit in building these
relationships can be named and taught, and teaching them to
employees as part of their professional development plan
establishes a company-wide shared language and set of
assumptions. Three critical skills that can help employees
work in increasingly diverse and demanding work
environments are: Active Listening, Negotiation, and Straight
Talk. At the Princeton Center, we have developed a simulation
game called "The Pressure Zone" that teaches employees how
to use these three skills in commonplace work situations, thus
helping them maneuver through potentially conflict-ridden
scenarios with care. Each of these skills is defined below in
the context of three sample situations that players of “The

54
Pressure Zone” must successfully address in order to progress
along the game board.

Situation #1: A colleague confides in you that he didn't get the

raise he was expecting and he's very upset.

Active Listening Standards: Paraphrase what you're hearing

and reflect back to him what you think he must be feeling.
Avoid giving advice or making a judgment about his situation.

Situation #2: A colleague has asked for your help on a project

but you are feeling overwhelmed with an assignment that is
already overdue.

Negotiation Standards: Clarify what your colleague wants and

offer an alternative for not helping him at this time. Create a
"win-win" situation by reaching an agreement that meets both
of your needs.

Situation #3: An employee who is under your supervision has

been coming to work late, and you are concerned about his
recent lack of motivation in meeting deadlines.

Straight Talk Standards: Share with this person what you

appreciate or value about this work as well as what is getting
in the way of a successful working relationship. Make sure he
can "play back" to you what you've said to avoid any
miscommunication.

55
In each of these simulated experiences, employees practice
new ways of communicating with each other and, in the
process, they establish a healthier work environment that
promotes mutual respect and trust.

Creating a Climate for Positive Change

Once employees have the tools for improving their
communication with one another, companies can then direct
their attention to a model of shared leadership, or an
environment in which skilled and motivated individuals are
empowered to provide feedback and take action to further the
vision of the company. The Princeton Center can help to build
the leadership capacity of organizations to establish such a
model. It involves three essential steps or stages:
(1) conducting Focus Groups that reach all employees in a
company; (2) running Town Meetings that include large group
gatherings and small group reflection; and (3) creating Action
Teams that implement needed internal changes that have
been identified during this three-step process.

The support and participation of upper management in

every level of this process is critical. Company executives must
be willing to move to a shared-leadership model that involves
all employees in developing and enacting a common vision.
Executives must be comfortable receiving constructive
feedback from employees about what's working and not
working within the company. And, finally, those that run the

156
company must commit the time required for teams of
employees to work on improving the company's internal
communications. In our experience, what seems initially to be
time away from daily work is in fact an investment in the
development of a positive, forward-looking organizational
energy that yields long-term productivity. Creating a climate
for positive change within a company begins with courageous
and committed executives who are open, flexible and
responsive – who are themselves willing to take a risk.

Conducting Focus Groups

A Focus Group is a small discussion forum intended to
expedite the exchange of ideas in an honest, safe and
constructive way within a company or organization. (Powell
and Attias, 2000) Focus group teams are diverse and
thoughtfully put together. Employees with different roles from
all divisions within a company are selected to become co-
facilitators of Focus Groups. Each two-person team runs a
forum for 10-12 other employees. The co-facilitators have two
roles. First, their role is to engage group members in
thoughtful discussion and guide them to reflect, share and
gain new understanding about company goals and future
needs. Second, their role is to accurately document the ideas
and suggestions of focus group members by recording
verbatim comments and highlighting key themes. Focus
Group facilitators are trained by Princeton Center staff to
carry out these two roles confidently and competently. Focus
Group questions examine issues that affect the culture and

57
climate of the organization, such as current vision; level of
trust within the company; clarity regarding employee roles and
responsibilities; employee morale and commitment to
company goals; degree of confidence in the organization’s
leadership; and employee empowerment and willingness to
take risks.
Running Town Meetings After all data from Focus Group
meetings has been collected, analyzed and prioritized, the
results are communicated at a large group gathering of all
employees—sometimes referred to as a Town Meeting. Town
Meetings are vital public gatherings that embody and
showcase not only a company’s commitment to
communication, but also its willingness to act on its
employees’ needs and concerns. Upper level management
conducts this meeting and plays back to employees the central
themes that came out of the Focus Group meetings and the
specific suggestions made to improve the internal workings of
the company (note that this approach demonstrates Active
Listening). A list of short- and long-term improvements is
presented with a timetable for action.

Immediately following the presentation, employees are

given the opportunity to reflect together on what they’ve
heard, and provide feedback to upper management. They
return to their small group forums, which are led by the same
two facilitators who ran their Focus Group. Sufficient time is
provided for these groups to respond to the presentation –
specifically, what members heard that most excited them and

58
what is still missing from the plan of action that must be
addressed to improve communication, company morale, best
work practices, etc. Each team reports back to the large
group, and agreements are made about next steps.

Creating Action Teams

Action Teams represent the next phase of committing to
a shared leadership model that views its employees as a rich
intellectual and strategic resource. Teams that embody the
diversity of interests and talents within the organization are
formed to research or carry out the mutually agreed-upon
plans of top executives and company employees. It is
recommended that each team is co-led by trained employee-
facilitators who have knowledge about group dynamics and
skill in how to conduct meetings and encourage the active
participation of all members. This process of sharing
leadership across all facets of the company will raise employee
morale and increase personal commitment to the company's
vision and goals. If the company's vision is unclear or is
creating conflict, then one of the Action Teams may want to
take employees through a visioning exercise that helps build a
common understanding of what the company's primary
mission is and where it's going in the future. Another Action
Team may want to tackle ways to introduce new rituals or
company practices that help to build an esprit de corps among
employees. Action Team tasks may be short- or long-term, but
the team's specific objectives always derive from Focus Group
data and Town Meeting agreements. Action Teams periodically

59
report their progress at follow-up Town Meetings to insure
accountability and encourage ongoing input from employees
not directly involved on the teams.

60
Risk Involved and Reward

Generally reward or
compensation is directly proportional
to the quantum of work, man-hours,
nature and extent of responsibility,
accountability, delegated powers,
authority of position in the
organizational chart, risk involved,
level of expected commitment,
deadlines and targets, industry,
country, demand and supply of skilled

manpower and even political stability and economic policies of

a nation. Although risk is involved in every job its nature and
degree varies in them; All said and done, reward is a key
criteria to lure a prospective worker to accept the offer.

61
Conclusion

The Quality of Life is closely connected to health. Where

health is very difficult to change, there are a number of factors
related to Quality of Life that actually seems changeable.
Some of these factors can be changed by the person, like
attitudes and general philosophy of life, the liking of others,
the inner state of harmony and balance created from
integrating one personal past and learning from everything
that has happened in life, including the emotionally negative
events. A very interesting finding from our study was that the
yearly income, social group, educational level, and other
objective factors showed only a very limited association with
Quality of Life and health. This is interesting as most people in
our time strive for material wealth and social status, which in
fact does not give a better Quality of Life and Health. Many
people blame their past for their poor Quality of Life, but our
findings did not support this idea.
A happy and healthy employee will give better turnover,
make good decisions and positively contribute to the
organizational goal as well as the society. An assured good
quality of work life will not only attract young and new talent
but also retain the existing experienced talent.

62