Managers are increasingly working at the limit of their capabilities. This is the conclusion of a study that has now been presented by the "Corporate Health Management" working group at the Centre for Lifelong Learning (C3L).
In co-operation with the Führungsakademie Hannover, the scientists have investigated the handling of stress, exhaustion and (over)strain in small and medium-sized companies in the region. The results are based on a qualitative survey of middle managers.
It is to be expected that the demands on managers that cause stress will increase rather than decrease in the future. Dr Johann Bölts, who co-authored the study with Dr Uwe Kröcher, explains that dealing adequately with stress will become a key issue for operational competitiveness in order to maintain motivation and the ability to work in the long term.
In order to achieve their company's goals, they barely recognise or deliberately ignore individual and company stress limits. All too often, managers try to cope with the increasing stress with seemingly tried and tested routines. In most cases, work is extended in terms of time, more or less according to the motto "as before, only more". Extending work activities in terms of time and space into private life inevitably leads to poorer regeneration, emphasises Bölts.
The key to sustainably maintaining personal and operational performance - according to the study - lies in specific regeneration skills that ensure active management of stress and exhaustion. In contrast to large companies, which have sufficient internal resources, small and medium-sized companies in particular need external support in developing regeneration skills. For this reason, the scientists in the "Occupational Health Management" working group have developed special training concepts that interested companies and organisations can use.
The study "On the relationship between stress and regeneration in middle management in SMEs" and information on training concepts can be viewed on the Internet.