A University of Queensland researcher has found that personal coaching for managers of organisations experiencing major change can lessen stress-related work compensation cases and improve the overall effectiveness of the changes.
Psychologist and Graduate School of Management doctoral candidate Alex Taylor studied the effects of organisational change on managers and found those provided with support and with a 'neutral' sounding board came away stronger and better developed.
For her study, Ms Taylor interviewed 33 public service-based managers who had just come through a period of major change within their organisations.
Another 12 managers, also from the public service, were interviewed just before the change took place and then at regular intervals for the following six months.
'Managers are people too. During organisational change their stress levels are very, very high. Yet many managers emerged from change enriched rather than stressed by it, with new skills and as better managers and as much stronger leaders,' Ms Taylor said.
In seeking an explanation, Ms Taylor moved away from the traditional theories. She found the more mathematically-based chaos theory was most applicable, although novel for explaining behaviour.
'The traditional view of change is that it happens within the control of the organisation and any changes outside that control are abnormal and must be ?fixed' as soon as possible,' she said.
'The chaos or complexity theory says life is not like that. Natural life is very changeable and there are dynamics, fluctuations and changes with people living very close to the edge of their tolerance threshold most of the time, but believing that this is normal.
'However any unexpected event can trigger a personal crisis which can lead two ways - either to the opportunity for personal development or to severe stress and anxiety.'
Ms Taylor said her study found that certain clusters of behaviours and personal characteristics allowed some managers to experience significant personal development during organisation change.
All 45 managers in the study were faced with complex changes, including enormous conflict of emotions and high levels of work overload, and were dealing with it effectively on a daily basis, she said.
Only seven managers did not experience a crisis point. The study revealed that this was due to their having a particular set of characteristics which allowed them to detach themselves emotionally from their work environment.
Another 14 worked through the crisis and came away feeling and acting differently and in a more positive manner, believing that they had developed new skills. Through learning more about themselves they felt sure the same events would not trigger a crisis again.
'Eighteen of the 45 were quite personally damaged by the experience, and although technically they might not be stressed, they had lost quite an enormous amount of joy out of their working life,' Ms Taylor said.
Ms Taylor said she was particularly interested in one group of six managers who had started on the high-stress path, but who, during the course of the interviews, began to question their own behaviours and values.
This allowed them to alter their way of acting and thinking and become better managers as well as less personally hurt by the changes around them.
Ms Taylor concluded those managers needed and used the neutrality of her interviews to reflect on what was happening around them and on their own role in these events.
Through her study Ms Taylor is now consulting with major organisations to put together change management strategies that emphasise supportive coaching for line managers to develop those techniques and characteristics that lead to personal development rather than personal stress.
'Coaching with a neutral person in a supportive environment helps managers develop skills and confidence and this is important because change is a very risky and uncertain process for most people,' she said.
'Some of the crises were incredibly severe but most of the managers came through it and came through it stronger. And I believe, with the right support, they can all come through it with less personal cost and as better leaders of others.'
For more information contact Alex Taylor (telephone 07 3279 5845).
