An Assessment of the Work-Related Factors that Cause Job Stress in an Outsourcing Company: A Study of Etelecare Inc.

Abstract

Before the 1980s ended a recession began which continued well into the 1990s. Governments were striving to reduce budget deficits and thereby were squeezing more and more out of business. The world witnessed sweeping changes. One of the ways to respond to global competition was for the organization to become ‘leaner and meaner’. Becoming meaner and leaner can be achieved by processes like downsizing, reorganizations, relocations of personnel, redesign of jobs, and outsourcing. Outsourcing is the strategic use of outside resources to perform activities traditionally handled by internal staff and resources. Outsourcing companies are booming around the globe but are more popularly known as call centers or customer service centers. The Philippines has already attracted several U.S. based call centers to set-up back-office operations in the country. But while call centers and other back-office operations have provided badly needed jobs to many Filipinos, there is a certain concern that the nature of work in call centers is causing a much pressure and strain on its’ employees. In a desire to explain the presence of job stress in outsourcing companies, the researcher focused on a particular call center or customer-oriented organization. The study aimed to answer the main question “What are the work factors that cause job stress in an outsourcing company?” This research aimed to identify and describe how work-related factors in an outsourcing company eventually lead to job stress. Due to limited time and resources the author focused on a particular organization, eTelecare Inc, for this research. eTelecare was founded in 1999 with the strategy to provide superior value for US clients and the vision to be the world leader in quality outsourced contact center services. Among its’ founders are Jim Franke, Derek Holley, Bill McLaughlin and Patrick Bevill who are experts in the call center industry and have all worked for Fortune 500 companies. It offers a wide range of customer contact services from customer care, sales and marketing, research, and value added services. eTelecare’s Philippine headquarters is located in Libis, Quezon City, a 300-seat call center. By locating its’ call centers in the Philippines, eTelecare takes advantage of the highly-educated, English-speaking labor force to offer high quality customer service associates (CSAs) at prices below U.S. service bureaus. Using Jack Maxwell Wood’s Job Stress Model, the author focused only on the work-related factors that lead to job stress. Work-related stressors included in this study are unrealistic task demands or factors intrinsic to the job, role conflicts, interpersonal conflicts, career progress, and organizational culture and climate. Under the five factors are also components that were used to study each factor. The author employed the interview method and non-participant observation as the data collection methods. The examination and analysis of these components, using the illustrative method, revealed that the five (5) work-related factors reinforce each other further intensifying work pressure and strain on employees. Findings revealed that eTelecare has a task/achievement culture that encourages creativity, decision-making and risk-taking. Yet, to survive in such culture, it is important to handle conflict effectively and be prepared to give and take criticism constructively, for when things go wrong, everyone tends to blame someone else. It was also found that factors intrinsic to the job appear that appear to cause stress on employees include shift work, long hours of work, work overload, and the constant use of various computer-aided technologies From the research, it was learned that the responsibility for decision-making about their jobs can be stressful at times because they can be blamed for the consequences of the situation since they make the decisions. Findings also revealed that the nature of the superior-subordinate relationship can be stressful at times. This is because Team Leaders are the ones in charge of performance appraisals of their subordinates. Their evaluations are important because these employees can either get promoted or demoted with their evaluations. Maintaining professionalism and these performance appraisals have hindered interpersonal relations between superior and subordinate. Superiors are pressured to consider the livelihood and feelings of the employees, while subordinates are always conscious and careful whenever their superiors are around. Findings also show that the frustration of not being promoted and the threat of the young population can induce extreme stress on the part of employees. Furthermore, promotions on eTelecare are fewer and require mastery of job performance. The process of being evaluated and appraised is also a stressful experience for most employees. In the aforementioned results, it may be inferred that work stress generally involves both the organization and its employees. A host of issues can act as potential stressors throughout one’s working life. Moreover, the results also revealed that the five (5) work-related factors reinforce each other further intensifying work pressure and strain on employees. Thus, there is a need to address these issues and stressors to avoid negative consequences on the individual and the organization.