Stress Management Competencies

Roadshow
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Alan Bradshaw
Partner, Work-Life Solutions
www.the-stress-site.net
alan@work-life-solutions.co.uk
About Alan Bradshaw
Involved in stress management field since 1996
Founded first UK-wide stress consultancy 1998
First management training with a stress risk
management, accounted for 80 90% of business
Trained/managed many of UKs top consultants
Helped organizations develop stress policies and
implement HSE Management Standards
Became a director of QoWL in 2007
Now Partner in Work-Life Solutions
Main aim is to promote evidence-based stress
management in UK and Europe
Whats it all about, Alan?
Well, its about....

STRESS ....and...

MANAGEMENT ....and of course...

COMPETENCIES!
What were covering today...
Some essential background and context
Links with HSE Management Standards
Stress Management Competencies Research
A look at the Framework and BEHAVIOURS
Applications, tools and interventions
Case Study Video: Northumbria NHS
Next steps if you want to use this approach
Questions
A quick look back...
Statutory legal aspects : Health & Safety Law and
Regulations
Common Law Stress Cases
HSE Management Standards (2oo4)
A framework, standards, tools and a process to follow to
manage stress risks
The problem is that the Management Standards
approach hasnt been as effective as hoped for...
Limitations of Management Standards?
Seen as the province of Health & Safety
Implementation largely down to HR and managers
Ignored by senior/operational Managers not our
problem
Seen as bureaucratic and time consuming
Survey fatigue (and fears about the results!)
Not day-to-day people management
Led to Stress Management Competencies research....
1. Interviews with nearly 400
managers and employees + Rigorous
workshops with HR/OH/H&S
Produced framework with 19 research
behavioural themes
process
2. Questionnaire survey with over
800 managers and employees +
further workshops
Refined framework to 4 broad
themes, with 12 sub-themes

3. Testing whether we can help managers use

and develop the behaviours identified
We can help managers change behaviour
A closer look at manager behaviour
Brief Critical Incident Exercise:
Reflect on a stressful situation where your managers
behaviour:
Made the situation better (prevented or reduced stress), or;
Worse (caused more stress, created new stress)

Discuss this with the person sitting next to you

What manager behaviours made it better or worse?

Will the research findings agree with you? Lets see

Management competencies (skills/behaviours) for
preventing and reducing stress
Competency
Respectful and responsible:
Managing emotions and
having integrity
Managing and communicating
existing and future work
Managing the individual within
the team
Reasoning/Managing difficult
situations
Sub-Competency
Integrity
Managing emotions
Considerate approach
Proactive work management
Problem solving
Participative/empowering
Personally accessible
Sociable
Empathetic engagement
Managing conflict
Use of organisational resources
Taking responsibility for resolving
issues
Managing with Respect
Managing with Respect is about managing emotions,
having integrity and taking responsibility.

Specific behaviours:
1. Integrity this is about being a good role model, treating team
members with respect and being honest; not saying one thing and
doing something different
2. Managing emotions this is about staying calm in a crisis and
being consistent, and not passing stress on to your team
3. Considerate approach this is about showing respect and
consideration for others, providing positive rather than negative
feedback and not making unrealistic deadlines
Managing Workload
Managing Workload is about managing and
communicating existing and future work.

Specific behaviours:
1. Proactive work management this is about managing workloads
proactively; communicating objectives effectively, prioritizing,
planning and reviewing work so that stress is prevented
2. Problem solving this is being decisive and about how you deal
with and follow-up on work problems that do occur.
3. Participative/empowering this is about how you involve people,
consult them and delegate work; the extent to which you enable
control, empower your team and encourage participation
Managing Indviduals
Managing Individuals is about the way you manage and
relate to individuals within the team.

Specific behaviours:
1. Personally accessible this is about being accessible and
providing opportunities for face-to-face communication, for
example speaking personally rather than using email
2. Sociable this is about being friendly, sociable and willing to have
a laugh at work
3. Empathetic engagement this is about being a good listener,
taking an interest in others and understanding their motivations
Managing Relationships
Managing Relationships is about reasoning and
managing difficult situations at work, including conflict.

Specific behaviours:
1. Managing conflict this is about intervening early and acting as a
mediator; also being objective and dealing with issues head on
rather than merely acting to keep the peace
2. Use of organisational resources getting advice and support from
others when needed to resolve relationship issues and conflicts
3. Taking responsibility for resolving issues following up,
supporting employees and making it clear you are taking
responsibility for resolving issues
So, we know now what the stress
management behaviours are...
But how are we going to change manager behaviour?

Exercise: Reflecting on your own experience, whats

likely to lead to you actually changing your behaviour?
(you can consider any behaviour such as weight loss,
giving up smoking, fitness/exercise)

Discuss with a partner what factors are most likely to

help you make real and lasting changes?
Behaviour change theories
Theories and models of behaviour change:
Stage Theories e.g. Prochaska and DiClemente (1986)
Precontemplation, Contemplation, Preparation, Action,
Maintenance
Social Cognitive Theories e.g. Bandura (1986)
Importance of role models and self-efficacy
Theory of Reasoned Action / Planned Behaviour
Importance of behavioural intentions, attitudes, beliefs
and subjective norms; later revised to take account of
importance of perceived behavioural control
Behaviour change: what helps?
A manager displaying positive behaviours ROLE MODEL
A Positive Organizational Culture - CULTURE
Feedback on your behaviour FEEDBACK, AWARENESS
A desire to change DESIRE, INTENTION, MOTIVATION
A feeling that you can change and have the skills to change
CONTROL, TRAINING/COACHING, SELF EFFICACY
Moral support when you need it ENCOURAGEMENT,
PRAISE, SOCIAL SUPPORT
Practical help when you need it RESOURCES
Ongoing help and support FOLLOW-UP,
REINFORCEMENT
Changing manager behaviour:
Research (phase 3) intervention
3mths later

Upward Interactive Follow-up

feedback workshop upward
feedback
Intervention and tools
Most effective process is: Assessment + Upward
feedback + workshop (+ follow-up)
Assessment uses SMCIT If 360, can include manager,
direct reports, peers, own manager
Feedback is one-to-one using 360 report (may require
training/coach to deliver)
Interactive Workshop (Preventing Stress: Promoting
Positive Manager Behaviour)
Explores importance; raises awareness; equips with tools;
enables discussion of issues, development planning; mutual
support
 Additional applications?

Stress / well-being policies

As a guide to specific development interventions e.g.
conflict management training
Integrate into manager induction programmes
Framework and tools for management coaching
Implementing Stress Management
Competencies at Northumbria
Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Whats next...
Extensive follow-up information by email
Research, info booklets, audio/video, web-links, 360 etc

If YOU want to deliver the intervention (either in-house or

as a consultant/practitioner)...
Preventing Stress: Promoting Positive Manager Behaviour
train-the-trainer courses 29th and 30th November in NW
(separate courses) facilitated by Emma Donaldson-Feilder
Enables delivery of workshop intervention in-house
Access to all training materials

Upward feedback / 360 training and coaching available

Whats next...
If you want to implement this approach, but DONT
want to deliver it, Work-Life Solutions can organise /
provide:
In-house training for your managers
A commercial 360 service (managed service, automated
report generation)
One-to-one 360 feedback (on-site or remotely)
Coaching
 Any questions about the research,
framework, tools, intervention case
study, training or anything related to
the stress management competencies?
Some final comments
Stress Management Competencies are the skills
and behaviours line managers need to prevent and
reduce stress at work
A framework, tools and interventions are available
to anyone wishing to use this powerful approach
Training is being provided for interested
organisations, consultants and practitioners
We will follow-up with resources, links and train-
the-trainer information
Thanks for listening!
Please leave evaluation slips on your seats
Well be in touch very soon with links and
resources, and information about the train-the-
trainer events on November 29th and 30th
Alan Bradshaw
Partner, Work-Life Solutions
alan@work-life-solutions.co.uk
www.the-stress-site.net