Introduction
Employee welfare is one of the critical determinants of organizational performance. Increased global competition has made organizations to apply more innovative mechanisms for employee engagement. Workers also strive to balance their personal lives and demands (Bailyn 2006, p. 21). Evidently, flexibility is required for employees to be able to attain the balance between their work and private life. Notably, greater flexibility in the organization of work processes is important.
This is because it helps the employees to achieve the critical balance. This essay focuses on the significance of work and private life both to the organization and to employees. Apart from this, it examines issues of organizational behavior, stress and the general welfare of workers. The paper utilizes various motivation theories to cover these topics in a comprehensive manner.
Why Work and Private Life Is Important To Organizational Behavior
The concept of work and private life has gained much importance. An employee requires adequate balance of these two aspects. This balance ensures effective performance and accomplishment of the collective organizational goals. Apparently, this concept remains crucial to all the stakeholders involved in management processes.
Stress is one of the major detrimental impacts that originate from lack of balance between work and private life (Griffin & Moorehead 2012, p. 15). Most studies have indicated that workers develop stress and depression due to unfavourable employment conditions. Stress has become a great public health challenge. It has the capacity to destroy other social and family relationships outside the work environment.
According to psychologists, stress is marked as a highly contagious mental condition. Employees require a high level of motivation within their workplaces. Therefore, innovation emerges as one of the tools that might be applied to achieve the balance between employees’ work and private lives.
The rate of employee performance depends on many factors. For instance, their training is likely to influence the level of output that an organization expects (Kaiser & Ringlstetter 2011, p. 34). It is imperative that organizations must learn to fit employees into roles that are commensurate with their training. Actions that augment the existing knowledge such as apprenticeship and sustained process of capacity building are also vital.
When an organization recognizes and addresses these concerns, both parties are more likely to benefit. The system minimizes and alleviates stress that might affect the performance, relationships and personal lives of the employees. This helps to improve the quality of life of persons around the worker. These might include their close family members, relatives, friends and fellow workmates.
In essence, a proper balance of work and private life is attainable. Several factors must be considered while motivating the workers. For example, all systems of motivation should comply with the organization’s policies. The vision and mission statements of the organization must also be considered during such initiatives.
It is necessary to examine the various behaviours that employees might develop after getting motivation services. These characters form the basic tenets for organizational behavior and culture (NäSwall, Hellgren & Sverke 2008, p. 27). Perhaps, this explains the significance of work and private life in organizational behavior. An effective management of an organization requires that there is a steady balance between work and private life.
This condition is universally applicable to all employees. Indicatively, this is irrespective of the cadre. Even the managers and top executive directors have the same needs just as the implementing team. Motivation has been indicated to play a significant role in the alleviation stress from all employees. Stress is a major determinant of organizational behavior.
People cannot work under stressful and depressive conditions. Conflicts and disagreements in organizations usually arise due to accumulated stress and depression amongst employees.
The principle of scientific management provides a vivid explanation on the importance of motivation. Ideally, payment is one of the mechanisms through which an organization might motivate its workers. This involves the provision of attractive monetary inducements. However, care should be taken and monitoring of performance must be prioritized.
This is because most people do not like working (Mooney 2004, p. 22). Division of labour is a principle that helps to enhance the balance of work and private life. Through this system, work is categorized in units and assigned to all workers. The delegation of these duties follows certain laid down criterion. The kind of training, personal interests and specialization include some of the criterion applied in allocation of these duties.
Division of labour enables employees to perform the tasks that they are best acquainted with. Apart from this, they can apply their innovative skills to assist the organization to improve on service provision. This concept reduces instances of stress and depression to minimal level. Other human resources and occupational safety practices such as ergonomics help to minimize stress and employee suffering (Bailyn 2006, p. 41).
The delegation of work to particular persons helps to limit confusion of roles. Confusion of roles has been noted to cause chaos and conflicts within organizations. These might also have mental implications leading to stress and psychological torture. Constant capacity building initiatives and systems orientation are appropriate for all employees. The human resources department is charged with the responsibility to monitor the social wellbeing of all employees.
Psychological assessments should be performed periodically. The aim is to make sure that all workers are in their right state of mind. Observably, failure to conduct these procedures might lead to compromised systems and development of deviant organizational behavior.
Periodic trainings and refresher courses are appropriate for all employees (Knights & Willmott 2007, p. 58). The human resources department identifies the workers who should attend these courses within the organization. Motivational speaking and encouragement should be integrated within the various training programs.
These might also be accompanied by counselling or psychosocial support therapy and sessions. The concept of group therapy has recently emerged as the best approach for engaging workers. It also helps the management to identify key welfare issues that affect their workers. These processes might be conducted by an external motivational speaker or professional counsellor hired by the organization. The significance of this process is obvious.
Generally, these initiatives make the workers more comfortable with themselves and their external environment. As a result, stress and depression is alleviated from the workers. Ultimately, the organization is set to gain from the innovative, motivated and focused employee.
Most organizations always aim to acquire maximum gains and exploit the full potential of their workers (Aamodt & Aamodt 2010, p. 83). This is only achievable if the worker has a balanced work and private life. It is not necessary for organizations to gain at the expense of its workers.
Such conditions have led to massive rebellion and employee insurgence within some of the word’s renowned corporations. The management must be ready to control its work processes. This is part of employee wellbeing and commitment to excellence. The process also manages stress and depression likely to arise from job activities. Long working durations without breaks and overtime pays cause stressful work conditions.
Organizational policies should clearly outline its level of commitment to ensuring the welfare of its workers. This must be articulated and practiced in a satisfactory and faithful way by all relevant departments and officers. Increased level of stress might lead to the interference with crucial work process and employee relationships (Griffin & Moorehead 2012, p. 35).
Moreover, anxiety and fear have led to the development of depression amongst employees. This is because systems are designed in such a way that they deprive the workers of their personal and basic rights or entitlements. There are specific job conditions that will influence the organizational behavior in a positive manner.
According to various theoretical models, the social needs of employees form a vital component of successful performance and personal wellbeing. The Mayo’s theoretical model advances this concept in a transformative and practical approach.
The model is very distinct for this case because it helps to eradicate stressful working conditions or environments. All employees, including the managers, executive directors, supervisors and ground workers must be linked (Kaiser & Ringlstetter 2011, p. 64). This linkage becomes possible and productive through positive and healthy relationships.
Principally, the theory emphasizes on the need for constructive relationships and associations within all work environments. The employees have a personal role to enhance the formation and sustainability of this positive linkage. For instance, they must adopt and practice effective and transformative interpersonal skills amongst themselves. These skills help in the identification and consequent support of compromised workers who might be undergoing stress or depression.
Teamwork and group activities are important supporting instruments in the process of achieving collective goals. They enhance positive integration and socialization amongst workers. These help to strengthen links and relationships that might be necessary for support systems. In order to avert the consequences of stress and depression, organizations must set up various psychosocial support units (NäSwall, Hellgren & Sverke 2008, p. 57).
Engagement of professional counsellors and psychiatrists may help to strengthen the existing support systems and networks within the human resources department. It is significant to have proper communication and feedback processes or channels within the entire organization. Without communication, there is bound to be great misunderstanding. This is might be realized within the different departments and even amongst the workers.
All procedures and process outlines must be well documented and served to every relevant person in the organization. This helps to maintain the organizational processes within a standard operating guideline. The fundamental principle behind work and private life is the satisfaction of one’s psychological demands (Mooney 2004, p. 71).
Categorically, it is the mandate of an organization’s management to ensure that all employees attain psychological satisfaction. This is recommended at any given point and stage. A critical examination of the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs indicate the basic or fundamental demands that every man must attain.
These are very applicable in the case of employee emotional and mental satisfaction. It is upon the organization to ensure all employees meet some of these basic needs. They must also assist their workers to attain certain degree of satisfaction and comfort. Analytically, this involves practicing the concept of stewardship (Knights & Willmott 2007, p. 98).
Lack of proper satisfaction may cause serious and negative consequences. Some of these include the emergence of stress and lack of motivation of the workers. Organizations also become redundant with limited progress towards their basic goals and vision. Presently, organizations have devised strategic approaches of dealing with these challenges.
Provision of crucial incentives is one of the common ways through which organizations have supported their workers to meet their needs. A lot of precaution should be taken when organizations resort to offering these incentives. This is majorly due to the notable differences in ranks and roles within of different workers within the organization (Aamodt & Aamodt 2010, p. 103).
Nonetheless, actions related to performance appraisal and employee reimbursement are crucial and must be handled with a lot of sensitivity. It is observable that an integrated management program is necessary for enhancing employee performance. Maximum output is only attainable when there is an operational system balance between work and private life.
Conclusion
Organizations must undertake strategic measures to remain competitive. The increasing rate of technological applications and globalization has revolutionized the human resource market. This trend is observable from a global perspective. Employee welfare is increasingly becoming the core factor in determining the level of performance of different organizations.
To enhance this performance, several important factors must be taken into consideration. Some of these include the aspects of work and private life. Generally, there must be a balance between these two concepts. It is important to indicate that employees must strive to minimize stress and depression.
List of References
Aamodt, G & Aamodt, G 2010, Industrial/organizational psychology: an applied approach, Wadsworth, Belmont, CA.
Bailyn, L 2006, Breaking the mold: redesigning work for productive and satisfying lives, ILR Press, Ithaca, N.Y.
Griffin, W & Moorehead, G 2012, Organizational behavior: managing people and organizations, South-Western/Cengage Learning, Mason, OH.
Kaiser, S & Ringlstetter, J 2011, Strategic management of professional service firms theory and practice, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, Heidelberg.
Knights, D & Willmott, H 2007, Introducing organizational behaviour and management, Thomson Learning, London.
Mooney, G 2004, Work: personal lives and social policy, Policy Press in association with the Open University, Bristol.
NäSwall, K, Hellgren, J & Sverke, M 2008, The individual in the changing working life, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.