Stress

Stress Stress My Experience of Workplace Change In my second job, I worked with a company that provided consultancy services to firms in the oil industry. Consequently, the workplace setting was highly dynamic, demanding, and competitive because excellent results were often required at short notices and most tasks carried huge risks in terms of financial and reputational implications. Due to growing revenues, new opportunities, and an expansionist agenda, the company decided to execute a series of acquisitions that were aimed at increasing its market share and giving it more international visibility.
Owing to the size of the firm, there were numerous entities involved in the acquisitions. The board ruled that the human resource and technical departments would be restructured to accommodate new employees from acquired firms as well as fresh recruits who were required to support expansion. Some employees were laid off on the basis of qualifications and suitability to the new agenda, and the board was also recomposed to accommodate high-ranking members of acquired organizations. During this period, a majority of employees were faced with uncertainty regarding the security of their jobs and constantly sought reassurances from their supervisors.
Having realized that a new organizational blueprint required new approaches, the board adopted various leadership strategies to support the change. First, all employees were given prompt notifications of impending changes and advised on how to conduct themselves in the face of restructuring. Through managers, the board ensured that all employees understood the implications of the new changes. In addition, a transformational leadership style was used to manage staff by keeping them motivated in spite of feelings of job insecurity. The changes took almost a year to implement, mainly because the acquisitions were numerous and also involved complex regulatory and commercial factors.
The positive results of this change were greater market share for the company, more international recognition, an increase in shareholder value, an expanded human resource and technical capacity, and greater access to financing. The negative results were negative connotations created by the laying off of workers, increased bureaucratic challenges inspired by a bigger organizational profile, and more regulatory challenges and scrutiny necessitated by the numerous acquisitions carried out within a short period.
My Mistakes and Recommendations
Trying to act like a Victim
Having found it difficult to adapt to new workplace dynamics and faced with the uncertainty of the changes taking place, I started behaving in a way that attracted pity from my colleagues and supervisor. They were not pleased because they faced the same challenges and did not seek sympathy from anyone. In this case, I should have accepted the changes and remained committed to my duties while waiting for any crucial developments to occur (Dievernich, Gong, & Tokarski, 2014)
Refusing to Change
Rather than adapt, I refused to embrace the changes. I should have accepted the fact that organizations must change and demonstrated – to my colleagues and seniors – that I was ready to deliver regardless of prevailing conditions (Hayes, 2014).
Picking the wrong Battles
This was mainly borne out of frustration and fear of change. Instead of maintaining focus and rationality in my work, I regularly lashed out at my colleagues whenever I felt aggrieved by anything. The recommended strategy is to remain calm, composed and focused, especially by maintaining a normal demeanor (Hartel & Fujimoto, 2014).
References
Dievernich, F., Gong, J., & Tokarski, K. (Eds.). (2014). Change management and the human factor: Advances, challenges and contradictions in organizational development. New York: Springer.
Hartel, C., & Fujimoto, Y. (2014). Human resource management (2nd ed.). Frenchs Forest, N. S. W.: Pearson Australia.
Hayes, J. (2014). The theory and practice of change management (3rd ed.). Basingstoke [England: Palgrave Macmillan.