Case Studies
- The Case of the Overheating Department
- Heating Oil Company
- Help Getting Support
- When Something Happens in the Life of a Loved One
The Case of the Overheating Department
Beacon was called upon by the Director of Human Resources for a large company to provide assistance to a small but very important department where employees were not “seeing eye to eye.” The department only consisted of six employees; however the conflict was causing diminished productivity at both the individual and departmental levels. A Beacon consultant was assigned to meet with the Director of Human Resources to develop an action plan.
The Beacon consultant met with all six employees of the department as a group and gathered information about how the problems were being perceived and what employees thought they needed to address. Once the concerns were identified Beacon developed a “Communication Enhancement” strategy which included three face-to-face meetings with everyone in attendance. The employees agreed that their individual interests had to be secondary to the collective interests of the department. The theme of the group became learning ways to take problems “seriously but not personally.” The employees explored avenues to address angry feelings in a productive manner in addition to practicing skills for active listening.
Beacon helped to show this group that there will always be differences between people and conflict is not to be unexpected. However, everyone has the responsibility for talking out differences before they rise to the level of being destructive to co-workers, customers, and the community. The Communication Enhancement Group strategy was a success by all accounts. The employees carried these skills out into their everyday work and productivity began to increase once again.
Heating Oil Company
A Service Technician had been reported to be abrupt and discourteous with customers. The Plant Manager called BEACON and asked for a consultation regarding this valued employee.
The BEACON Counselor suggested the employee could benefit from constructive problem solving counseling to address what appeared to be an issue with management while delivering service to customers. The Manager agreed and the Technician willingly met with a BEACON Counselor on several occasions to address the way he was coping with stress on the job. These counseling sessions were successful and there were no additional reports of customer dissatisfaction. But there is more to this story.
The Plant Manager was very pleased with the progress that was made with the Service Technician and decided to provide training for all of the company employees on the topic of “Managing the Stress of Customers Service.” BEACON’S Lead Trainer dedicated two full days to doing 6 trainings which involved every employee in the Company. The training received excellent reviews by the participants who expressed gratitude to their employer for not only providing the training but also acknowledging the pressures they are under in a very competitive market. The cost of the training was seen as an investment in the value of the company to customers and employees. The loss of the employee and/or customers would have been substantial.
The Plant Manager has suggested to his Corporate Office that BEACON be considered as a resource for other locations.
Help Getting Support
Beacon assisted an employee who became dependent on pain medication after a serious injury. The employee was out of work on Workmen’s Compensation and was concerned about returning due to the drug use, of which the employer was unaware. Becoming free of serious dependency on some pain medications can be extremely difficult and uncomfortable.
Beacon helped this employee to access appropriate support and medical care but learned that the employee was not able to do this successfully on an outpatient basis. Because of Beacon’s continued monitoring and support, Beacon was able to assist this person before all the complications and consequences of initial failure of detox became too great.
Beacon helped the employee to gain access to a more extensive level of care and ultimately to return successfully to work.
When Something Happens in the Life of a Loved One
When something important happens in the life of a loved one, it may feel as if it is happening to us. Our need to respond to such events may interfere with our ability to meet other demands, including our work. The case of someone we’ll call J is an example of this:
J called Beacon because her young adult daughter was badly hurt both physically and emotionally. The young woman was overwhelmed and was taken from an emergency room to a psychiatric hospital where things seemed to get worse. J felt that part of the problem was that most of the other patients in the coed unit were older, and many were men. J’s daughter just never felt safe. J worked at two jobs and could barely concentrate on either. J missed some time while trying to get better services lined up but despite calls and meetings, felt no one was really listening. Beacon listened to J. We were able to understand the personal and treatment concerns and identify options including a specialized treatment program. Beacon helped establish contacts with the right people, and coached J on advocacy and getting past roadblocks to transfer care to the new group. Instead of taking unpaid leave, J was able to keep working and know that healing could begin.