Sponsorship Guide
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By Jamal Khawaja
In a recent CareerFOCUS survey, we asked readers to reveal their most agonizing work-based fear. A silent fear of technology ranked second, just below loss of job security. According to the survey, an alarming number of professionals (83%) experience anxiety toward advancing technologies in the workplace.
The demands created by technological advances have caused increased stress levels in the majority of the American workforce. Larry Rosen, co-author of the book TechnoStress, claims that "there's still a lot of fear and loathing about technology. As many as 85% of us have at least some level of discomfort around technology, including PCs." Technology has led to an increase in productivity but has fostered a new corporate dilemma: how to deal with technology-related stress.
One of the looming factors for any new technology initiative is the pace at which users embrace the technology. Their reasons for embracing it are numerous: It makes their jobs easier, moves mundane tasks from them to the system, allows the company to minimize cost through standardization, etc. But the reason for the slow pace of adoption for most new technologies has nothing to do with what the company wants or needs. It has to do with overcoming the fears of the users.
When you boil these fears down to their most fundamental elements, you'll find a common thread. Most people fear what they don't understand. Helping people understand technology will quiet their fears and thus help companies adopt new technologies more rapidly. Given that the pace of change is likely to accelerate in the coming years, it's a good idea to begin mitigating these fears now.
How Technology Relates to Stress
"Adjusting to new technologies-like the web, networks, personal communications-that have saturated today's workplace is creating new demands on workers, and that's causing more stress," says Odette Pollar, president of Oakland-based Time Management Systems. Information regarding new technologies must be made available to workers before they are required to use the devices in their day-to-day tasks. Managers must consider the significance education has in making the adjustment to new technology as easy as possible.
For example, system integration is easier now than ever before, but the complexity involved in this process is a source of stress. Many individuals are excited about the opportunities that new technologies provide but are hesitant when it comes to actually using such devices. Larry Rosen states that "In work settings, two-thirds of people are 'hesitant' about technology." Employees find that the moment they feel comfortable in their ability to operate a high-tech system, the system is replaced by a new, higher-tech development. This can be a very frustrating issue for personnel, frequently creating tension and aggravation.
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