James Gower Psychologist

I consult with individuals, couples, employees and employers.

My focus is firstly on individual health. However due to my extensive experience and involvement in employee wellness (EAP), I have a special interest in the health of employees and the organisations they work for! Neither the employee nor the employer can function independently. But they can create a perfect symbiosis where both parties’ needs are met and the one compliments the other in perfect harmony.

As South Africans though we are still very “stuck” in a situation where the employer believes that what they cannot see..... is not done. If the employee is not at work.....that means he/she is unproductive. This encourages micromanagement which has NEVER been a good management system and inevitably causes the “boss” to be overworked (checking and often re-doing employees work) and leaves employees feeling unappreciated, incompetent and have general low self-esteem which certainly does not encourage productiveness.

There has been a global trend to have employees work remotely and this has been met with great success (If a mother can pick up her kids from school.....she will tend to put in that extra hour of work for the deadline once the children have been put to bed) as she feels the company is looking after her and meeting her needs which she then returns with loyalty, hard work and passion.

This passion to change the work environment has come from my extensive work in employee wellness over the last twelve years where the traditional way to deal with problematic employee/employer issues are:

Company: “just get the employee well enough to come to work and be productive”

Employee: “I have to get back to work as soon as possible as not to be penalised or branded”

The solution is actually probably very different. A solution that is goal oriented. A solution that gives the person a task with a strict deadline and possible internal “progress report” deadlines as the project progresses. When the employee meets the deadline they are rewarded. The reward encourages hard quality work with both the employer and employee being in a positive space and all needs met.

We need to strive for greater flexibility and better management strategies. If COVIT 19 is not currently teaching us this.......what will? Change is inevitable! We have two choices - “drive change!” or let change drive us! So passenger or driver?