organizational behaviour assignment march 2005

7/28/2019 Organizational Behaviour Assignment March 2005

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Table of Contents

Page No.

Unit 1: INTRODUCTION 2

Unit 2: THE ORGANIZATION 2

1.1 Introduction 2

1.2 Choice of Organization 2

Unit 3: SELF-DEVELOPMENT 4

3.1 Introduction 4

3.2 Definition of Stress 4

Figure 1 - Effects of stress on bodily functions 5

3.3 Causes of Stress 6

3.4 Discussion of the causes of stress in the organization 7

3.5 Techniques of stress management (Coping Strategies) 16

3.6 Discussion of the coping strategies: 18

3.7 Stress Builders and Stress Busters 21

3.8 Laughter as a stress buster 21

Unit 3: CONCLUSION 23

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Unit 1: Introduction

An examination on the courses of stress in an organisation of my choice had been

done and the results of the interview and evaluation will be discussed in further details

in the later part of my assignment. Analysis and techniques which has been employed by the managers and staffs to deal with stress in the work place also will be discussed.

Unit 2: The Organization

1.1 Introduction

Organization structure is created by management to establish relationships

between individuals and groups, to provide order and systems and to direct theefforts of the organization into goal-seeking activities. It is through the formal

structure that people carry out their organizational activities, styles of

leadership and system of managing the impact of organization structure on the

behavior of people within the organization.

Definition:

A group of people working together in a structured way for a common

purpose, or a structure through which individuals cooperate systematically to

conduct business.

1.2 Choice of Organization:

Company Name: Leo Burnett Advertising Sdn Bhd

Type of Business: Advertising Agency

Location: Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia

Size: 7,000 people from 95 offices in 83 countries worldwide

Leo Burnett Worldwide:

An icon agency building icon brands, Leo Burnett Worldwide is a Top Ten

global agency network. There are 95 offices in 83 countries, which are united

behind one vision – we create ideas that inspire enduring belief .

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Whether in Kuala Lumpur, Bogota or Prague, you will find Leo's values

driving the way we work; above all, pursuing excellence across everything we

do. This passion has helped to become one of the top five most creative global

networks for four years running. In 2003, more Leo Burnett offices (27)

contributed to this honor than any other network in the world.

Even more important, the relentless pursuit of excellence has helped building

clients' businesses. Over the years Leo have helped create some of the world's

most valuable brands like McDonald's, Disney, Kellogg's and Nintendo.

In 2002, Leo Burnett became part of the Publicis Groupe, the fourth largest

communications company in the world. With access to more resources anddeeper capabilities than ever before, Leo is poised to help clients succeed

across every aspect of brand building.

Burnett is a fascinating blend of sharp, dynamic, witty, restless, and strong-

willed people, working to change the way people perceive and interact with

brands. As a member of this creatively charged atmosphere, your opportunity

for growth is endless.

Departments include:

• Creative

• Marketing

• Finance

• Corporate Affairs

• Human Resources

• Legal

• Office Administration

• General Administrative Support

• Broadcast Production

• Print Services

• Research Services

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Unit 3: Self-Development

3.1 Introduction

Stress Management encompasses techniques intended to equip a person with

effective coping mechanisms for dealing with psychological stress. It also

comprises a wide collection of physical and psychological symptoms that

result from difficulties experienced while trying to adapt to a new

environment.

Stress has positive and negative features, it provides the adrenalin necessary to

sustain intense effort and to handle several problems at the same time, and it

also has the effect of draining the individual’s physical and emotional

resources.

3.2 Definition of Stress: Stress management defines stress precisely as a person's

physiological response to an external stimulus that triggers the "fight-or-

flight" reaction. The word stress derives from the Latin word ‘stringere’

meaning to ‘draw tight’ and was used during the seventeenth century to

describe hardships or affliction. It is also defined by the Oxford Dictionary as

“a state of affair involving demand on physical or mental energy”. A condition

or circumstance that can disturb the normal physiological and psychological

functioning of an individual. In medical parlance 'stress' is defined as a

perturbation of the body's homeostasis. This demand on mind-body occurs

when it tries to cope with incessant changes in life. A 'stress' condition seems

'relative' in nature. Extreme stress conditions, psychologists say, are

detrimental to human health but in moderation stress is normal and, in many

cases, proves useful. Stress, nonetheless, is synonymous with negative

conditions.

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Figure 1: Effects of stress on bodily functions.

Normal

(relaxed)Under pressure Acute pressure

Chronic

pressure.

(stress)

Brain. blood supply

normal blood supply up

Thinks more

clearly

Headaches or

migraines,

tremors and

nervous tics.

Mood. Happy seriousIncreased

concentration

Anxiety, loss of

sense of humour.

Saliva Normal Reduced. Reduced.Dry mouth, lump

in throat.

Muscles.Blood supply

normal blood supply up

improved

performance

Muscular tension

and pain.

Heart.

Normal rate

and blood

pressure.

Increased rate

and blood

pressure.

Improved

performance

Hypertension

and chest pains.

Lungs. Normal

respiration

Increased

respiration rate.

Improved

performance

Coughs and

asthma.

Stomach.

Normal blood

supply and

acid secretion.

Reduced blood

supply and

increased acid

secretion.

Reduced blood

supply reduces

digestion.

Ulcers due to

heartburn and

indigestion.

Bowels. Normal blood

supply and

bowel activity.

Reduced blood

supply and

increased bowel

Reduced blood

supply reduces

digestion.

Abdominal pain

and diarrhoea.

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activity.

Bladder. Normal.Frequent

urination

Frequent

urination due to

increased nervous

stimulation.

Frequent

urination,

prostatic

symptoms.

Sexual

organs.

(Male)

Normal.

(Female)

Normal

periods etc.

(M) Impotence

(decreased blood

supply)

(F) Irregular

periods.

Decreased blood

supply.

(M) Impotence.

(F) Menstrual

disorders.

Skin. Healthy.Decreased blood

supply. Dry skin.

Decreased blood

supply.

Dryness and

rashes.

Biochemistry.

Normal:

Oxygen

consumed,glucose and

fats liberated.

Oxygen

consumption up,

glucose and fats

consumption up.

More energy

immediatelyavailable.

Rapid tiredness.

3.3 Causes of Stress

Stress at work is a relatively new phenomenon of modern lifestyles. The

nature of work has gone through drastic changes over the last century and it is

still changing at whirlwind speed. They have touched almost all professions,starting from an artist to a lecturer, or a Creative Director to a marketing

executive. Change leads to stress, inevitably. Professional stress or job stress

poses a threat to physical health. Work related stress in the life of organized

workers, consequently, affects the health of organizations.

Job stress may be caused by a complex set of reasons. Some of the most

visible causes of workplace stress lie partly within the individual’s personality,

but mostly within the environment where a person exists. There are also many

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things that can trigger the stress reaction, including fear, responsibility, threat,

uncertainty, illness, as well as significant changes in one's life such as the

death of a loved one.

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3.4 Discussion of the causes of stress in the organization:

Task Ambiguity

Role Confusion

Lack of Promotion Prospects

Job Security

Work Overload

Lack of Communication

Bad Personal Relationships

Conflict Over Management and Leadership Styles

Clients’ Unreasonable Expectation

Unsupportive and Unhelpful Colleagues

Subordinates with Poor Attitudes and Sub Par Performance

I. Task Ambiguity

Task = A piece of work to be done, especially one done regularly, unwillingly

or with difficulty

Ambiguity = Doubtfulness or uncertainty as regards interpretation

Ambiguity over which tasks to handle and which tasks should take

priority during the working day.

In Leo Burnett Advertising, I can say that most employees have uncertainties

and doubts about work and tasks, for example, the designers in the company,

they are not sure about the original concept or idea of the design which theclients want as the designers were not in the meetings with the clients, there

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will be misinterpretation between the Art Director and the designers, and also

confusion on the distribution of tasks as there are often too many jobs at hand.

There are also many deadlines to meet, but when there are too many jobs to

handle, the subordinates are overloaded with work and are sometimes lost in a

sense that they do not know which job should take priority during the working

day. Some cases are almost inevitable.

II. Role Confusion

Role = The position or purpose that someone or something has in a situation,

organization, society or relationship

Confusion = When people do not understand what is happening, what they

should do or who someone or something is

Confusion over individual roles in management hierarchies.

In Leo Burnett Advertising, there are too many levels of hierarchy, too many

levels of positions and status, and quite a number of departments. This leads to

a tendency of having confusions over group, team or individual roles in the

company. As the company is large in size, with many departments, it is prone

to have confusion among the staffs. Role confusion may occur in the same

department or from one with another and it often result in having

redundancies. The staffs in the same department, for example in the Creative

Department, there is the Creative Director, followed by the Art Directors,

Copywriters, Visualizers, Illustrators, and finally the Desktop Publishers.

There are about six positions altogether, and at least a total of ten people

working together in this department with one objective, that is to create the

desired artwork for the clients and fulfill the requirements of the clients. Client

satisfaction is top priority, so everyone here will work on making the best

designs with the best concepts possible. The task of the Creative Director is to

evaluate on the concepts and idea from the department, so the main job is

handle by the Creative Director, but the idea generation is produced from

brainstorming among the group members, which includes the Art Directors.

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So in this case when the best idea is produced and approved, the Art Directors

will start work as soon as possible, role confusion that often occurs here is that

the Art Directors are working on the same projects, followed by the other

staffs that will also work on the same designs. On the other hand, role

confusion that occurs from one department to another involves the Finance

Department and the Marketing Department. Both departments will consider

about pricing at the same time. The Marketing Department will base on the

pricing strategy to price the company products for maximum sales; on the

other hand, the Finance Department will also price the company products but

based on the company’s budget. Often similar cases will also happen in other

departments.

III. Lack of Promotion Prospects

Promotion = When someone is raised to a higher or more important position

or rank

Prospects = The possibility of being successful, especially at work

Frustration and feeling that promotion opportunities have been

unfairly blocked.

Occurs especially in the Creative Department . There are thousands of students

graduate as designers every year, but sad to say there are not many

Advertising Agencies in Malaysia to absorb them. So there will be many

designers who are unemployed or working in other fields. As for those who

work in Leo Burnett, out of 10 Designers, 7 will quit their job due to pressure

and stress or competition, out of the 3 who remain, 2 will eventually take the

place of the Art Directors, and only 1 will be able to take the position of the

Creative Director. There is very high competition among all co-workers in all

departments. As for the Creative department, there are tones of work to be

done everyday, it is usually divided into groups to carry out the tasks. In this

case, group division may cause conflicts and bias, as the Head of the

Department would prefer a certain kind of approach to proposals. Frustrations

arise when Designers like the Desktop Publishers, Illustrators, Visualizers are

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treated unfairly as they always have the heaviest work load whilst the Copy

Writers and Art Directors are very demanding on them. And often the

Designers have less promotion opportunities due to the higher positions are all

occupied and there are only a few posts to fill in. Moreover, room for

improvement is not implemented among the staffs, creativity is stifled as the

Art Directors determine on the designs, art direction and concepts. In other

departments, promotion opportunities are also being unfairly blocked, in the

Marketing Department for example, some Marketing Executives sometimes in

a way “steal” other co-workers’ clients, and The Marketing Manager is always

bias towards women, this also leads to imbalanced promotion opportunities.

IV. Job Insecurity

Job = The regular work which a person does to earn money

Insecurity = (of objects or situations) not safe or not protected

Feelings of personal inadequacy and job insecurity.

Organized workplaces are going through metamorphic changes under intenseeconomic transformations and consequent pressures. Reorganizations,

takeovers, mergers, downsizing and other changes have become major

stressors for employees, as companies try to live up to the competition to

survive. These reformations have put demand on everyone, from a CEO to a

mere executive. Employees are judged based on performance and efficiency,

in a competitive company like Leo Burnett Advertising, competition is very

high as the company only hires good quality staffs for all departments. The

staffs compete with one another very vigorously to maintain their job.

Everyone is striving for excellence and working towards self-improvement to

be able to fit into this company. Employees who are “not so skillful” or “slow

learners” will be left out in this fast growing industry, they often feel that they

are not good enough for the company and are somewhat lack of self-

confidence. Therefore, they lose focus and tend to compromise on their work

performance, which leads to job insecurity, that anytime they may lose their

job for the above reasons.

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V. Work Overload

Work = An activity, such as a job, which a person uses physical or mental

effort or do, usually for money

Overload = Having or supplied with too much of something

Quantitative - Having too much to do.

Qualitative - Finding work too difficult.

Increased workload, extremely long work hours and intense pressure to

perform at peak levels all the time for the same pay, can actually leave an

employee’s physically and emotionally drained. Excessive travel and too

much time away from family also contribute to an employee's stressors. In an

Advertising Agency especially, workload is extremely high, even more in a

big company like Leo Burnett Advertising. Usually work overload occurs

most frequently in the Creative Department, as there are tones of artwork to be

done, and corrections after corrections everyday. The staffs are overloaded

with too much work and sometimes are too difficult for them to handle, too

many deadlines to meet. There is a saying in the business term, clients are so

demanding that they place an order today and expect it to be delivered

yesterday. So the staffs need to stay back late to rush and meet deadlines, and

this causes a poor diet, lack of proper sleep and exercise, inadequate relaxation

and deteriorating interpersonal relationships due to frustrations and

dissatisfaction in work.

VI. Lack of Communication

Lack = The absence of something or when there is not enough of it

Communication = The act of sharing information with others by speaking,

writing, moving your body or using other signals

Lack of communication with superiors and colleagues.

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Subordinates only receive orders from the management. Communication is

very limited because the company is run as a Bureaucratic Organization.

Upward communication is stifled, subordinates only interacts with their co-

workers. Individual opinions are not encouraged to be expressed to the

management. For example, the marketing executives only approach the leads

or prospects which the management planned before hand. They have no

opportunity to negotiate or discuss their job responsibilities with the

management. Staffs in one department are separated from other departments,

they have no opportunity to interact with people working in other departments,

they may not even know if their neighbors or relatives are working in the same

company as they do. Lack of communication often leads to misinterpretations

and misunderstandings in the organization.

VII. Bad Personal Relationships

Personal = Relating or belonging to a single or particular person rather than to

a group or an organization

Relationship = The way in which two or more people feel and behave

towards each other

Bad personal relationships with fellow employees, customers,

suppliers etc…

Sometimes employees don’t treat the company as their own, they don’t care if

the company is doing well or not, and never thought what can they do to

benefit the company. With this kind of attitude in work, they tend to care less

about the welfare of the company, the surroundings, the management and their

colleagues, they don’t seem to bother to build good relationships with the

stockholders and stakeholders of the company. In this case, the cause of

having bad personal relationships with fellow employees, customers and

suppliers is usually the fault of individuals who are impolite or having attitude

problem, difficult to relate with, bad temper and so on. They also don’t have

the sense of ownership to the company. These people won’t stay long in the

organization, they are prone to leave the company

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VIII. Conflict over Management and Leadership Styles

Conflict = an active disagreement between people with opposing opinions or

principles

Management = the group of people responsible for controlling and organizing

a company

Leadership = the person or people in charge of an organization

Bosses with difficult personalities or management styles.

In Leo Burnett Kuala Lumpur, the agency is mainly run by a Chinese

management, and there is the Chinese Culture where “Chinaman” first existed.

A “Chinaman” has a particular thinking pattern and belief system. This often

leads to disagreement between the management and the staffs, as Malaysia is a

cultural country which consists of Malays, the Chinese and Indians as the

major races. Because people come from different backgrounds and embrace

different kind of lifestyles, cultures and beliefs, often there are conflicts

among the people. A segment of the employees are not happy with thecompany’s policy, especially the Malays, because the management requires

full force on working days, which is Monday to Friday, the Malays have their

prayers on Fridays, but the management refuses to release them by cutting

their pay if they do not work during the required hours. Sometimes the boss of

the company tends to be bias towards the females, they have special privileges

which the men do not get. Also when The Authoritarian or Autocratic style is

exercised in the leadership, the leaders use Legitimate Power to exert its

authority towards the staffs, it creates conflicts among the organization. So

mainly it is the differences among different cultures, lifestyles and behavior

that created dissatisfaction and conflicts over the management and leadership

styles.

IX. Clients’ unreasonable expectations

Unreasonable = not fair or acceptable

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Expectations = when you expect something to happen

Demanding clients with unrealistic expectations.

Unrealistic expectations, especially in the time of corporate reorganizations,

which, sometimes, puts unhealthy and unreasonable pressures on the

employee, can be a tremendous source of stress and suffering. As mentioned

in point V. Work Overload, some clients are just unreasonable, maybe due to

their lack of efficiency that causes them to put pressure on the suppliers. They

always expect things to be done yesterday, and we all know that it is

impossible to accomplish that. But there are always clients who are very

demanding in a sense where they want everything to be perfect and on time.

They never consider the inevitable, like say there is a break down in the

production department, the goods cannot be delivered on time, they will put

extra pressure and make sure the suppliers work overtime, and by hook or by

crook have to deliver the goods on the agreed time, no grace is given. The

causes may also be, if the client is a middleman to another client, the other

client will pressure the client for immediate reply, so the pressure is passed on

to the supplier which is the Ad Agency.

X. Unsupportive and unhelpful colleagues

Unsupportive = Not giving help and encouragement

Unhelpful = Not wanting to help someone, in a way that seems unfriendly

Colleagues and subordinates issues.

This situation happens in every organization. As we know, where there is

people, there is problem. “Staffs in an organization” does not mean “members

in a family”, even in a family there are conflicts and quarrels among the

family members. Staffs in the organization come from all walks of life,

embracing each individual’s attitude towards work and lifestyle. Because of

this, there are frictions among the employees, people think and treat matters

differently, so the cause of not being helpful and supportive may involve

15



individual’s personalities as some are helpful by nature, some are not, or due

to lack of closeness among co-workers.

XI. Subordinates with poor attitude and sub-par performance

Attitude = A feeling or opinion about something or someone, or a way of

behaving that is caused by this

Sub-par = Not measuring up to traditional standards of performance, value, or

production

Subordinates with poor attitude or performance.

As mentioned in point XIII, due to many reasons stated in point XIII, it is very

difficult to change a person’s attitude, let alone a group of people in the

organization. Attitudes are formed internally and are also influenced by the

external environment. Some of the subordinates in the company have a

negative feeling about the management or their superiors, they tend to think

that they are working for the boss’ profit, they never see that the company is

actually providing a job opportunity for them to earn a living and to expresstheir skills and talents. So they will slack off when boss is not around, because

they always feel that it is not fair to them that the company is earning so much

and paying them so little. Instead of improving themselves through work

experience, grabbing hold of every responsibility in the company and excel,

they only see the faults in others, feeling that they should not work so hard,

after all it is not their business. Subordinates who have late night activities,

drink and smoke a lot, they often feel tired or have difficulties getting up in the

morning, this also leads to performance drop in work. Employees going

through personal or family problems tend to carry their worries and anxieties

to the workplace. When one is in a depressed mood, his unfocused attention or

lack of motivation affects his ability to carry out job responsibilities. All of the

statements above occurred in Leo Burnett in the early stage of reorganization.

XII. Job Stress and Women

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In addition to all the factors above, women suffer from mental and physical

harassment at workplaces all over the world, apart from the common job

stress. Sexual harassment in workplace has been a major source of worry for

women, since long. Women may suffer from tremendous stress such as 'hostile

work environment harassment', which is defined in legal terms as 'offensive or

intimidating behavior in the workplace'. This can consist of unwelcome verbal

or physical conduct. These can be a constant source of tension for women in

job sectors. Also, subtle discriminations at workplaces, family pressure and

societal demands add to these stress factors.

3.5 Techniques of stress management (Coping Strategies) include:

• Self-understanding (e.g. self-identification as a Type A or as a Type B

personality)

• Self-management (e.g. becoming better-organized)

• Conflict resolution

• Positive attitude

• Self-talk

•

Autogenic training• Breathing

• Meditation

• Exercise

• Diet

• Rest

Some techniques of time management may help a person to control stress. For

example:

• Becoming more organized and reducing the generation of clutter

• Setting priorities can help reduce anxiety

• Using a "to do" list of tasks that a person needs to complete can give a

person a sense of control and accomplishment

Effective stress management involves learning to set limits and to say "No" to

some demands that others make.

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Because change is constant in life, stress is an integral part of it. Since we

don't want to perish under it, we have to adhere to the bottom line for survival

—adapt.

Following are some of the long-term tips to survive stress:

• Even if we feel secured in a habituated life, the truth remains that changing

with the times makes one's position more secure. In today's business climate,

you must continually be prepared for changes to avoid stress and survive in

the competitive world.

• Find and protect whatever time you get to refresh, re-energize and re-

motivate yourself. Spend quality time with your family. This can be an

excellent source of emotional and moral support.

• Avoid giving in to alcohol, smoking and other substance abuses while under

constant stress.

• Develop positive attitudes towards stressful situations in life. Give up

negative mental traits such as fear, anger and revengeful attitudes, which

actually germinate stress. Try to revert to holistic relaxation and personal

growth techniques such as meditation, breathing and exercises, to remodel

your lifestyles.

• In case of chronic stress consult a health professional.

• Reduce workplace stress by celebrating yours or your colleagues'

accomplishments.

• Adapting to demands of stress also means changing your personality.

Improve your line of communication, efficiency and learn from other's

experiences.

• Don't be complacent. Be prepared for any change physically, emotionally

and financially.

But, when you are under stress at work, some simple practices can help:

18



• Sit straight and comfortably on your seat, and try breathing exercises. It will

relax your nerves and muscles.

• Relax and count backwards (20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15….)

3.6 Discussion of the coping strategies:

Delegation of work

Set limits on work load

Physical Exercises

Talking over things

Relaxation

Job rotation

I. Delegation of work

Delegation = To give a particular job, duty, right, etc. to someone else so that

they do it for you

Work = An activity, such as a job, which a person uses physical or mental

effort or do, usually for money

Delegate part of the person’s workload to the subordinates.

Managers delegate responsibilities to the subordinates by assigning them

authority and responsibility to carry out specific activities and giving them the

power to make decisions on their behalf. Managers in Leo Burnett have made

delegation of work effective by giving clarification on the assignment,

specification on subordinate’s range of discretion and allowing subordinates to

participate. In this case, the managers’ workload is reduced, new opportunities

are open to them, and they can have more time and room getting involved in

new things to improve themselves. But ultimate responsibilities are not being

delegated.

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II. Set limits on workload

Limits = The maximum amount, number or level of something that is either

possible or allowed

Workload = The amount of work to be done, especially by a particular person

or machine in a period of time

Refuse to undertake additional duties beyond the maximum

Setting limits can help to relief stress and also improve on work performance.

Subordinates can choose not to become involved in certain stressful activities.

For example in Leo Burnett, the subordinates have decided not to overtire

themselves with unhealthy activities such as attending late night parties and

drinking until the wee hours. Also they are given the choice whether to receive

a new project or not, this will allow them space especially when they already

have other responsibilities on hand, and this also helps them perform with

ultimate results.

III. Physical exercises

Physical = Involving the body

Exercise = Physical activity that you do to make your body strong and healthy

Physical Exercise such as swimming, jogging, dancing, aerobics

In Leo Burnett, the department managers form a sports club, all members can

organize, suggest and plan activities like going for an outing together, having

games or sports competition among departments. Some departments actually

have morning exercise before they start work, to refresh themselves and to

prepare for work. This will also reduce the stress they carry and build close

relationship among the staffs.

IV. Talking things over

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Talking things over = To discuss something with someone, often to find out

their opinion or to get advice before making a decision

Talking openly about frustration and problems with close friends

Talking things over can help cooling a person down, it opens to a discussion

on what the problem is, how it started and how to solve it. There are many

ways to release stress, but the staffs in Leo Burnett found a better way of

releasing theirs frustrations, they confide in their close friends or family

members, they talk openly, discuss and find out the cause of the problems and

think of ways to solve the problems. In addition, this helps them build a closer

relationship with their family and friends as they learned to understand one

another better.

V. Relaxation

Relaxation = Refreshment of body or mind; recreation

Listening to music, developing creative activities and hobbies.

Concentrate on pleasant thoughts and memories.

In Leo Burnett, before work starts, during the breaks, and before dismissing,

there will be soothing music played in the background to help managers and

staffs relax and refresh their mind, especially in the Creative Department, the

staffs have to crack their heads for ideas, and the Directors too have to

brainstorm a lot throughout the whole day, thinking on what’s best for their

proposals. Employees are encouraged to think positively, on every manager

and staffs’ desk, there will be a phrase or a quotation to motivate and to inspire

them.

VI. Job rotation

Job = A particular piece of work

Rotation = Changing from one person or thing to another in a regular order

21



Where an individual is moved through a schedule of assignments

designed to give him or her a breadth of exposure to the entire

operation

Job rotation helps reduce stress in a way that the staffs do not have to repeat

their routines everyday. This works best in the Production Department, the

staffs get to know the whole process of the work flow. Leo Burnett’s

production department, which is the in-house Publishing Department,

implements job rotation to familiarize the staffs with the entire process of

publication, from step one to the final step of completing a print. This helps

the staff to be refreshed every now and then, keeping them out of the routine

process and boredom.

3.7 Stress Builders and Stress Busters

Here are some examples of stress builders versus stress busters:

Stress Builder: "I'll never get this project in on time."

Stress Buster: "If I stay focused and take it one step at a time, I'll

make steady progress."

Stress Builder: "My supervisor didn't say good morning. He's

probably displeased with my work, and I'll get a bad evaluation."

Stress Buster: "I'm jumping to conclusions. My supervisor may have

been in a bad mood. So far all my evaluations have been positive, so

unless I get some negative feedback, I'll assume my supervisor is

pleased with my work."

Stress Builder: "I can't get my mistake on page 53 out of my mind.

The paper is ruined. I have disappointed everyone."

Stress Buster: "No one is perfect. I did my best. I'm overreacting to

one mistake when the overall report is fine."

3.8 Laughter as a stress buster

What Laughter Can Do Against Stress And Its Effects:

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Laughter lowers blood pressure and reduces hypertension.

It provides good cardiac conditioning especially for those who are unable

to perform physical exercise.

Reduces stress hormones (studies shows, laughter induces reduction of at

least four of neuroendocrine hormones—epinephrine, cortisol, dopac, and

growth hormone, associated with stress response).

Laughter cleanses the lungs and body tissues of accumulated stale air as it

empties more air than it takes in. It is beneficial for patients suffering from

emphysema and other respiratory ailments.

It increases muscle flexion, relaxation and fluent blood circulation in body.

Boosts immune function by raising levels of infection-fighting T-cells,

disease-fighting proteins called Gamma-interferon and disease-destroying

antibodies called B-cells.

Laughter triggers the release of endorphins—body's natural painkillers.

Produces a general sense of well-being.

In conclusion on the benefits and reasons of stress buster, I would suggest that

stress buster would be added and implemented in all Leo Burnett’s

employees’ work life. The ability to handle difficult challenges in the

workplace among the employees will improve and the benefits will transfer

over into other areas of their life as well.

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Unit 4: Conclusion

It is said that life acts and you react. Our attitude is our reaction to what life hands out

to us. A significant amount of stress symptoms can be avoided or aroused by the waywe relate to stressors. Stress is created by what we think rather than by what has

actually happened. For instance, handling adopted children, adolescents, academic

failures, retirements, tax audits or sudden loss of money needs a relaxed attitude,

focused will and preparedness to face the quirks of life positively. Otherwise one

tends to feel stressed and reacts in anger and frustration. With a better control of

attention one can feel that the world is a more congenial place to live in.

Again, in case of a marital conflict, instead of adopting an accusing and frustrating

attitude such as "You made my life hell" or "You are not meeting my emotional

needs," the American clinical psychotherapist Willard F. Harley suggests that

accepting—" Yes, we have a problem", helps clear the clouds. Failure in adopting a

realistic attitude to events creates symptoms of depression and aggravates stress

situations.

Attitude: The longer you live, the more you realize the impact of attitude on life.

Attitude is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than

education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what

other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or

skill. It will make or break a company, a church, or a home. The remarkable thing is

that we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day.

We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain

way. we cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is to play on the one

string we have, and that is our attitude. Life is 10% of what happens to you and 90%

how you react to it. We are in charge of our attitudes.

-- Charles Swindoll --

A right attitude can make a resilient person out of us in the face of stressful

situations.

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Reference

A Melhuish, Executive Health, London Business books. 1978

Management by Kathryn. M Batrol & David C. Martin

Management and Organisational Behaviour by Laurie J. Mullin (Pitman Publishing)

Internet:

http://stressrelease.com/strss bus.html

http://cms.psychologytoday.com /articles/pto-20030425-000001. html

http://www.lifepositive.com/st ress.html

http://www.workstress.net/bobb y/causes.htm

http://cms.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-20030425-000001.html

http://www.lifepositive.com/stress.html

http://www.workstress.net/bobby/causes.htm

http://cms.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-20030425-000001.html

http://www.lifepositive.com/stress.html

http://www.workstress.net/bobby/causes.htm

organizational behaviour assignment march 2005

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