Workplace areas for recreation help fight stress

Recreational areas in the office help staff to de-stress and improve their productivity, according to companies in Dubai that have introduced them. And the stress-busting pioneers are urging other businesses to follow suit.

There are many causes of stress and fatigue, and overwork is one of them. This kind of stress builds up over a long time and can take a hard toll on the body. It can be triggered by working too much or too hard, and can also be caused by not knowing how to manage time well or failing to take time out for rest and relaxation. Work-related stress can be one of the hardest kinds to avoid because many people feel the factors that cause it are outside their control.

Increasingly, companies in Dubai are realising that it is important for their staff to de-stress while at work as it helps them to relax and then return to the task at hand with a fresher mind.

"We are an advertising agency and we have to work really hard as we do whatever it takes to meet our deadlines and our clients' expectations," Vatche Keverian, Gulf CEO of JWT, told Emirates Business.

"So we not only put in long hours at work, we also sometimes work odd hours and at the weekend and also sometimes during holidays.

"Believe me, there is nothing more stressful than working on a weekend or a holiday. However, we are in the creative business, which does not follow any schedule. An idea for a good campaign can come in a minute or it can come in a month, and deadlines create a lot of stress."

Reda Raad, Group Managing Director of TBWA\ RAAD, said: "Yes the creative business is quite stressful, but I think that at the end of the day all jobs are stressful."

The IT sector, which is all about the next big thing and fast-changing technology, can be just as stressful as the creative industries.

Patricia Trodd, Marketing Manager of AMD, said: "When we are linked to Europe we have to work long hours, that's standard for IT. We are a small team and we cover a large region – the Middle East, Africa and Turkey – so we are expected to multi-task. We have deadlines to meet, customers to deal with and issues to sort out. It is a fast-changing and dynamic industry and stress is something we all have to deal with."

The connection between one's health and one's stress level is undisputed. For example, research shows that air traffic controllers have one of the most stressful jobs of all, with continual responsibility for the lives of thousands of people. They also have levels of hypertension five times higher than the rest of the population.

If staff are unhealthy, more call in sick and companies lose precious man-days and productivity. So what can companies do to ensure that their workers stay healthy? Most of the companies this paper spoke to said providing a working environment that gave people ample opportunities to unwind and relax went a long way towards keeping work-related stress at bay. And they don not just talk about it – they walk the walk too.

TBWA\RAAD takes top honours for providing its staff with not just a beautifully designed office but also a pool table, a garden with picnic tables, a basketball court and walls where people can vent their thoughts of the day or week. JWT is not far behind with a table-tennis area, a football table, a PSP and computer games. And AMD has a ping-pong table and an exercise machine to relax those tense muscles. So has all this resulted in happier and more productive employees?

Keverian said: "People work in two modes – play and survival. Creativity works best in play mode as it inspires them to come up with good ideas. If they work in a survival mode, a fear mode, then their creativity will be stifled. So we have provided them with a work environment where they can unwind and de-stress. They spend such long hours in the office and sometimes when you focus too much on something you get a mental block, but if you get away from it then it freshens your mind."

Raad added: "Our employees are motivated and happy people. I think that due to this beautiful working environment and the facilities they have they are more inspired. We take our work very seriously and we find that the happiness of our staff is reflected directly in the work they are doing."

Does that mean that earlier generations that worked in the creative field were not productive enough? Keverian said: "I would not say that. I have been in the industry for 27 years and I know that a good office environment does give a fillip to creativity. However, this does not mean that the earlier generations were not good enough. Far from it!

"However, different generations have different ways. The work environment that was good enough fort my generation is not suited for the generation today as now we are out of the industrial mode of office work.

"The old-school thinking was punch out and punch in. It was a more formal work environment, but now it is a much more informal environment. We have to change with the times. We realise how important it is to have an environment that spawns creativity so we provide our staff with that."

But how do they ensure that their employees do not take undue advantage of the facilities and end up wasting their time?

Keverian said: "With great freedom comes great responsibility. There is a lot of self-monitoring going on in our office. People don't like to play when the others are working. Plus there is a protocol in place. People can play during the lunch hour or before or after hours. We are now looking at providing them with a lounge area where they can have a little change of atmosphere."

Trodd said: "There is no monitoring of how and where they spend their time. There is no need for that as they all manage their own time and they know their responsibilities. However, the only restriction is that there should not be a noisy game of ping-pong going on when visitors arrive."

Raad said: "We don't put any restrictions as the recreational areas don't act as a distraction at all. These areas actually act as a creative catalyst and often a great exchange of ideas happens in these places."

So would they encourage other businesses to create staff recreational areas?

Raad said: "Yes I would, especially if they are in the service industry. It's a good business decision in the end."

Trodd said: "I would recommend it, but the fact remains that providing a recreational area for staff is not easy for everyone as it requires money. Real estate is quite expensive in Dubai and taking out a large area out of your office space is not possible for everyone.

"However, if they can afford to do it then I would most certainly recommend it as it not only boosts productivity, it helps the staff de-stress and keeps them healthy. It also bonds them closer together as people from different areas of responsibility come in contact with each other. It helps them to work more cohesively together. It's like a team-building exercise."

Keverian said: "I would absolutely recommend creating a recreational area in the office as it boosts staff productivity, especially for companies that have people doing a lot of brainwork."

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