Introduction
A reorganization can have a significant impact on a company. The team you may have worked with for years, the established structures, and perhaps even the security of someone’s job can suddenly become uncertain. As a leader, you face the great challenge of guiding your team through these changes while ensuring that stress levels don’t escalate, maintaining performance, a positive work environment, and overall well-being. But how do you do this effectively? How can you ensure that your people feel safe, even in times of uncertainty? And how can you maintain your own balance in a situation that can also be challenging for you as a leader?
The risk of stress during reorganizations
Stress is almost inevitable during a reorganization. It often involves not only practical changes but also the uncertainty that comes with it. Team members may feel anxious about their position, frustrated or powerless, or mourn the loss of their familiar work environment. For many, this means a loss of control and security, which significantly increases stress sensitivity. The extent to which a reorganization triggers emotions and stress in employees is highly individual, depending on past experiences and personal perceptions of risk.
In such a situation, it is crucial as a leader to handle these emotions consciously. It’s important to monitor the balance and ensure that stress does not reach a level that becomes harmful to your team.
Green vs. Red Stress Zone: understanding Stress and Recovery
To better understand stress, it helps to look at the concept of the ‘green’ and ‘red’ stress zones. In daily life, we use stress or exertion to manage the challenges life brings. We alternate these moments of stress with relaxation periods during which our bodies recover.
When stress and recovery are balanced, we are in the green zone. In the green zone, we experience healthy stress that keeps us motivated and alert without harming our well-being. This is the kind of stress that activates us to do our best and reach our goals. But when pressure becomes too high or lasts too long without time or space for recovery, we enter the red stress zone. This is the zone where stress can become harmful. The body remains in survival mode, which can lead to chronic complaints like fatigue, anxiety, or even burnout.
During a reorganization, it can be difficult for people to switch back to the green zone due to the overwhelming uncertainty and pressure. When the balance between stress and recovery is disrupted, the effects of stress only intensify. Extra attention to recovery is therefore crucial, and as a leader, you can support this by creating an environment that offers space for processing and emotional outlets.
The importance of a safe environment
In times of change, people need a safe place to express and process their emotions. During a reorganization, many employees go through a process often underestimated but comparable to a grieving process (see image). Losing the familiar work environment, colleagues, or even job security can lead to initial denial, followed by feelings of anger, sadness, or even mild depression, and ultimately acceptance.
As a leader, you can support this process by creating a safe environment where team members feel heard and understood. This means providing sufficient information, allowing space for emotions like sadness, frustration, and anger without judgment, and offering guidance and direction depending on the phase your employees are in.
By fostering a culture of openness and trust, you help people move through the process (more quickly). Make sure there are moments for people to talk about their emotions, but also allow space for everyone to take a break together from work. This reduces tension and strengthens team bonds.
How to guide your team through this process
A reorganization requires an environment in which team members can navigate through the acceptance process, with a range of emotions involved. This requires patience and compassion. There will be team members who remain stuck in denial or anger. Others will reach acceptance more quickly and want to refocus. As a leader, you can support this process by recognizing your team’s emotions and providing space for them. Let team members know it’s okay to feel sad or frustrated. Make yourself available for conversations and encourage them to share their feelings without necessarily needing to “solve” anything.
Stay in the Green Zone yourself
As a leader, it’s not only important to keep your team in the green zone but also to stay in that zone yourself. Leading your team through such an intense period requires a great deal of energy and empathy. When you experience too much stress yourself and end up in the red zone, you effectively switch to survival mode. This may mean working even harder, becoming irritable more quickly, feeling less empathetic, or having less time to listen carefully to people. However, during this phase, your team members need your empathy and support the most.
So, take good care of yourself and make time for relaxation and recovery. And if you feel you need it: ask for help and support. This is not selfishness; it’s a necessary foundation to continue functioning effectively as a leader. When you’re in the green zone, you can communicate more effectively, think more clearly, and be emotionally available for your team.
Be an emotionally stable leader
During a reorganization, it can sometimes be difficult for a leader to remain emotionally stable. You may not agree with certain decisions, or you may also feel the uncertainty and frustration of the changes. Yet it is crucial to avoid “crying with the wolves.” It’s essential to maintain a stable and positive attitude so that your team can rely on you as a constant factor. You don’t always have to fully agree with every decision, but try to communicate those decisions constructively and empathetically to your team. This helps prevent feelings of division and fosters a healthy, positive atmosphere.
Also, ensure you have someone with whom you can share your own emotions and doubts. This could be a mentor, coach, or confidant. It’s important to have a safe space where you can speak honestly about your own feelings, so you don’t unintentionally project your uncertainties onto your team.
Practical tips for leaders to reduce team stress during a reorganization
Communicate Openly and Transparently: Ensure your team knows what to expect, even if there are uncertainties. Regular updates on the reorganization’s progress provide people with a sense of direction.
Listen Actively: Be open to the concerns and emotions of your team. Let them feel that their feelings matter, even if you don’t have answers to everything.
Encourage Recovery Time: Schedule moments for the team to take a break, such as a shared lunch or a short walk. This promotes recovery and relaxation.
Offer Individual Support: Not everyone experiences stress in the same way. Keep an open line with your team members and provide personal support where needed.
Take Care of Yourself: Don’t forget to monitor your own stress level. A healthy and emotionally stable leader can support the team more effectively.
Conclusion
A reorganization is an intensive period when emotions often run high. As a leader, you play a vital role in guiding your team through this time. By creating a safe environment, communicating openly, and maintaining your own balance, you can keep stress levels within your team low and ensure that your people have the space to move (more quickly) through their own process.
You don’t have to do this alone—I can support you!
I offer various products and services to help you and your team navigate this challenging period in a healthy way, ensuring that excessive stress doesn’t put well-being or performance under pressure. From workshops till physiological stress-measurements and individual stress-coaching trajectories.
Contact me for more information: Tessavannes@kpnmail.nl or +31 6-220 44 738.
Together, let’s build a healthy, resilient work culture!
Comments