Organisational interventions in the service sector
Author(s): Carla Dahl-Jørgensen, Per Oystein Saksvik Country: Norway
Is the intervention sector specific?	No
Is the intervention usable with different enterprise sizes?	Yes
Is the intervention equally applicable to both genders?	Yes
Is the intervention based on theory?	Yes
Can the intervention approach be adapted/ tailored?	Yes
Does the intervention promote CSR and how?	Yes, prior to the start of the project, initial meetings were held between top-level management to discuss and outline the aims of the intervention, however, lack of involvement of top management during the implementation of the interventions affected results.
Does the intervention promote social dialogue and how?	Yes, the method utilised to identity the cause of stress, as perceived by the employees, was a three-step strategy culminating in a meeting where employees and their respective supervisors engaged in group discussion or ‘search conferences’. However, there was more scope for dialogue, especially during the design and implementation of the interventions.
Overview (including risk assessment and law – legal requirements etc.): Studies focusing on interactive service work that involves face-to-face interactions between employees and customers/clients have shown that employees tend to show symptoms of job dissatisfaction, stress, and emotional exhaustion because they are expected to display or suppress certain emotions in the performance of their jobs. To meet the health challenges and reduce sickness absenteeism among employees in this sector, two organisational interventions were implemented in two different parts of the service sector: municipal government and the retail sector. The interventions varied slightly in their design applied to the different sections of the sample; most notably in the different steps used in the process leading from the preparation phase to the discussion phase. The overall objective of the intervention was to bring about changes in the factors perceived by employees as causes of stress at work and to bring about organisational changes at the unit level. The method utilised to identity the cause of stress, as perceived by the employees, was a three-step strategy culminating in a meeting where employees and their respective supervisors engaged in group discussion or ‘search conferences’. Additionally, these organisational level interventions were underpinned by three theoretical traditions: (1) a focus on participation, dialogue and workplace democracy; (2) a primary emphasis on job redesign/ environmental causes of illness, rather than behavioural change aimed at the individual or on expressed symptoms of ill-health; and finally (3) using organisational theory as a method of initiate a learning process within the organisation, whereby improvements can be made in the performance of the organisational tasks and the value system of the organisation.
Implementation: Prior to the start of the project, initial meetings were held between top-level management and researchers to discuss and outline the aims of the intervention. Subsequently, a letter was distributed to all participants about the nature and objectives of the project. The researchers visited each unit and informed them about the research project. The decision on whether to implement the project was decided at the administrative level of the organisation. All employees and managers accepted to actively participate in the project, throughout the process. Employees were not consulted in regards to the types or content of the intervention, nor whether the intervention should be implemented. The Municipal Units: The initial phase of the intervention consisted of interviews with employees who had recently or in the past experienced one or more periods of sick leave. With the principle aim being the identification of: the perceived causes of the employees’ absenteeism, and what strategies, measure or precautions were taken at their workplaces on their return. In the second phase of the intervention, an assessment of risk factors and risk persons/groups in the workplace was conducted. The results culminated in the first two phases of the intervention were applied as inputs into the final step in the intervention process; which consisted of a ‘search conference’ (or dialogue). The objective of the search conference was to identify and define the stress and health problems present in the workplace, and generate local solutions to problems associated with workplace. The Retail Units: The initial phase of the intervention began with each employee describing a ‘typical working day’ to the researcher. The aim of this preliminary step was to identify stress-provoking incidents over the past three-week period. During the second phase of the intervention, the researcher analysed the collected information and diagnosed the problem. The identified problems were listed, in no particular order of importance, and distributed among the employees. The employees were then asked to discuss the identified problems in pairs or in groups of three at each work unit, and to prioritise possible solutions to the identified problems. A ranking list of the factors that needed to be reformed or changed was compiled, and this list became the basis of the discussion for the third phase. During third stage, managers and union representatives from each establishment were asked to identify one factor they wanted to change, before determining a strategy for how this change could be accomplished. The researchers ensured, through follow up visits, that the work units drew up a strategy for change in accordance with their targeted organisational factor.
Practical applications: Although the interventions have been used in the retail sector, they is based on principles which are applicable in other organisational sectors and therefore the interventions can be tailored for most organisations.
Innovative aspects: Prior to the intervention, the cause of stress as perceived by the employees was identified. Additionally, the subsequent organisational level interventions were underpinned on sound theoretical traditions.
Evaluation (including process issues, outcomes and sustainability): The intervention was implemented into two different types of work units both in the service sector: municipal units and in retail units at a shopping mall. A total of 12 municipal work units participated in the study; eight units were randomly assigned to the experimental group (i.e., the intervention group), the remaining four units were allocated to a control condition (where the intervention was not implemented). While of the 30 retail work units that participated in the study; 17 were randomly allocated to the intervention condition and the remaining 13 to the control condition. The design of the study consisted of the following steps: pre-survey, interventions, interviews and observation, and post –survey. The variables under investigation, and further explored by the survey, were: job stress, subjective health complaints, burnout, and sickness absenteeism. During the qualitative element of the evaluation, observations in the workplace and unstructured interviews with participants were conducted during the implementation of the interventions. These were subsequently studied, analysed, and discussed among the researchers throughout the data-collection period. Researchers examined participants’ reactions (either positive or negative) to the interventions.
Benefits (including cost effectiveness): The survey results demonstrated positive changes on two factors for the retail sector employees; namely, depersonalisation and subjective health complaints. However, no significant differences in any of the outcome measures were observed in employees in the municipal units. The qualitative data demonstrated that constraints related to interactional and organisational practices acted as an significant barrier in the full participation of employees in the study during the implementation of the interventions.
References: Dahl-Jørgensen, C. and Saksvik, P.O. (2005). The impact of two organizational interventions on the health of service sector workers. International Journal of Health Services, 35(3), 529-549
Comments: Since the decision on whether to implement the project was decided at the administrative level of the organisation and because employees were not consulted in regards to the types or content of the intervention, nor whether the intervention should be implemented, the evaluation does not indicate the potential benefit of the intervention.