HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

Effectiveness of Employee Counseling

Abstract

There are several aspects of an organization that may cause an employee to feel stressed. Financial aspects as well as management ones can cause anxiety and panic in employees that may need professional help. Not only does stress affect an employee's job performance, but may have long term implications if not dealt with on time and through appropriate resources. Employee Assistance Programs aim to do just that with in-house or outsourced counselors available to provide guidance to employees that require it. These programs are not only for work related psychological problems, but for any issues that may render an employee to fall ill or not perform up to their usual standards in a work setting. These issues may include family related problems, substance abuse, various addictions, relationships with co-workers or major events in life that are too much to handle for some. The pattern to spotting the behavior of an employee who may be suffering is a fairly straightforward one, as the unfocused man always has something on his mind. An employee may be absent from his workplace more then usual, or may cause accidents in the work place or be inconsistent in their job performance. All these point to personal issues that may be causing an employee to be of ill-health and in need of assistance. This paper aims to evaluate the kinds and characteristics of Employee Assistance Programs, and whether they are as effective as may be required of them.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction4

Discussion5

Counseling and Wellness Services5

Characteristics of Employee Assistance Programs7

Effectiveness of Counseling9

Conclusion12

Effectiveness of Employee Counseling

Introduction

Human Resource Development refers to the expansion of human capital within an organization and the processes involved in ensuring achievement of optimum performance management. Many organizations believe that it is vital for the employees of the organization to be completely satisfied with their work setting in order for them to perform well, which requires that their needs be fulfilled in terms of training, organization and career development. The integration of these within their solid set of skills used to enter an organization lead to key competencies that drive an organizations success from within. It is considered a constructive tool in improving individual as well as group effectiveness within an organization.

Employee counseling is a concept that came about when a need for effective psychological health care was felt. It is for those working individuals who suffer through high levels of anxiety due to their work setting or job description. Counseling in this respect serves the same role as Human Resource Development, as it improves as well as maintains employee performance. It uses mostly the same techniques as HRD as well, so much so that analysis and planning involved in HRD are the same as Counseling and Wellness services. It is a proactive process that not only helps the employee through solving a problem, but also lends a hand to the employer in assisting by intervention and is often successful. Employee counseling is a recently introduced model utilized in ...