That is why an outsider helps in defusing the tension. Obviously, this is just the beginning of the technique for relieving stress. The entire emphasis is on executives becoming realistic rather than feeling panic-stricken. There are not many stress managers who are familiar with both the psychology of stress management and the way industry operates. Although some stress managers know executive behavior only through information gleaned from books, there are a few stress consultants who do have an intimate knowledge of executive behavior in industry, of the sort of decisions that have to be made, of how decisions are made, and of the responsibility involved.
Stress also undermines team cooperation.
Here are two examples. In the first case, the manufacturer of components received some complaints from a major customer that the last few shipments contained a high number of below-standard parts. A team went into action to seek the cause. The team found that as a result of restructuring, a quality inspector had been hurriedly promoted to quality manager due to the release of one tier of management. As a quality inspector, the individual had been personally responsible for calibration, components testing, and final assembly testing.