You just can't get the staff

When we discussed the plight of employees being stressed out by their managers a few months ago, managers immediately got in touch to say their staff were stressing them out.

"What about the stress suffered by managers with entrenched, toxic, passive-aggressive staff? Managing difficult staff is one of the most soul destroying activities. While you are responsible for the outcomes, you can't always get the staff to deliver," says Elizabeth, a banking and finance manager.

She says younger generations have different expectations to senior managers, yet middle managers have to communicate with, and satisfy, both groups.

Another manager confirmed: "Trying to solve people problems can leave you physically and mentally drained, and you're still expected to deliver results upstairs."

Gay Barton, general manager of recruitment firm Drake International, says the most common cause of management stress are staff issues, staff changes, financial deadlines, a decline in business, under-resourcing, and a lack of understanding of other people's roles.

"Managers are expected to support their staff in times of stress as well as managing their own stress. As it is up to the manager to keep the show on the road, [this] can be quite challenging," says Barton.

She says some managers are less inclined to report stress as they fear it will be perceived as a sign of weakness and therefore career limiting.

Elizabeth agrees: "If a manager raises a complaint about stress they risk being 'red-flagged'. The attitude of my former employer would have been 'if you can't take the heat get out of the kitchen' - which I did."

She left her $100,000 a year management position because of stress caused by one staff member who 'fudged' performance and attempted to undermine her position. When she shared her concerns to immediate managers they advised her to ignore the person and "do her best". Meanwhile, Elizabeth's HR managers said their hands were tied because the staff member had not committed a sackable offence.

Following her resignation, Elizabeth says her stress-induced health problems disappeared and she was able to enjoy life and work again in a non-management role.

"But if I could just have said to that person "you're fired" I'd still be working there," she says.

Kevin Gaunt, chief executive of the New Zealand Institute of Management (NZIM) says Elizabeth's story is not uncommon - nor is it the worst he's heard.

"I know of a manager who woke up one morning and found [he] was paralysed and couldn't move [his] legs. [He] had been under extreme stress as a result of work," says Gaunt.

He says managers shouldn't be placed in a position where they have to handle a staff member who has acknowledged and repeated behaviour problems, and organisations don't want these people even if they are top performers because "then they get promoted and you end up with bad behaviour within senior management".

Barton says many middle managers are also in middle life and the challenge of continually finding staff and fulfilling training needs, dealing with miscommunication between senior management levels, and travelling frequently while trying to achieve a work/life balance and caring for children and elderly parents can be formidable.

"Causes of my own personal stress include those times when we have had unexpected staff resignations. It is stressful having to find new people at short notice or pick up where a departing staff member has left off," says Barton.

She says Drake is aware of the need for an environment where managers are free to communicate the reality of their working lives and be up front about stress without fear of negative consequences.

"The implementation of [a values programme] has assisted my stress levels because it helps morale and helps with the overall retention of staff," says Barton.

Gaunt says this is the approach of a wise employer - when stress complaints are ignored or punished and managers are left without a 'safety valve', they will burn out, resign or both.

"The research we do reveals that one of the critical differentiators for management success is people who are not afraid to expose themselves if they are under stress," says Gaunt.

He says management stress is typically caused by circumstances beyond a manager's control and [damaging] stress can occur if a manager loses personal control and their subconscious kicks in and reacts to that loss of control without them knowing it.

He says managers are often 'squeezed' on two sides - upwards from employees who can be demanding and downwards from senior managers who want performance. As a result, managers under pressure can quickly lose track of what's important.

"I spoke recently to a young manager who had high blood pressure. He could recognise he was under stress but he didn't realise how serious the effects were. When I asked him what was really happening and reflected [his answers] back to him he realised that instead of just focusing on the health problem, he had too much work to do and needed to address that first. Once he worked that out, he felt hugely better," says Gaunt.

He says stress is an authentic condition that has mental and physical health consequences if not addressed. If employers are prepared to offer employee assistance programmes (EAP) that include free counselling for managers, says Gaunt, these should be external to the business, confidential and preferably anonymous. The positive effects of having a mentor or attending a stress management course should also not be underestimated.

However, Gaunt says the real key may be modern management skills - instead of initiating performance management processes designed only to identify what is going right or wrong for a manager, there needs to be shift to manager coaching by immediate manager and regular performance sessions and catch ups.

Barton agrees this is critical, as is attention to life outside of work.

"I try to commit to the people and the things that are most important and prioritise daily on that basis," says Barton.


Manage stress

* Speak up - treat stress as you would any other barrier to optimum performance and work with senior managers to resolve the cause

* Discover whether your employer has an employee assistance programme that offers confidentiality or discuss your stress with an external mentor who understands management pressures and can suggest practical advice and action

* Before considering resignation, give your employer a chance to work with you to resolve stress

* If a staff member is the cause of stress, realise that desirable behaviours as well as performance can be included in staff performance reviews and measurement. Clearly communicate any concerns to the staff member concerned

* Consider engaging a management consultant or attending a conference or a management training programme that addresses stress management, presentation and communication skills or confrontation management

* Schedule regular meetings with staff and be capable of monitoring staff stress levels. Be honest about your own limitations and keep your sense of humour

* Don't underestimate the extent to which fitness, social time and healthy eating can help alleviate management stress. If you have a family, make time with them a priority