ABSTRACT
292The share of services measured in terms of gross domestic product is consistently rising in the emerging economies. The rapid growth has brought its own challenges and opportunities for the service organizations. The performance of the organizations is dependent upon the quality and consistency of service delivery by employees. The well-informed customers demand customized, efficient, and valuable service instantly. The co-creation of services in disruptive and hypercompetitive environment in which the organizations operate today makes the role of employees all the more challenging. The employers face an uphill task of recruiting and retaining people with right skills and expertise in an age of diminishing loyalties and changing cultural values. The employees on the other hand are under constant stress of upgrading knowledge and technical skills, working in cross functional teams and adapting to changing organizational structures and systems. This chapter explores the causes of stress for employees and employers and the measures employed to manage the same in the service organizations. The literature has been reviewed to determine the potential causes of stress, its effect on employees and employers, and preventive and remedial measures taken by organizations. Round table and focus group discussions were conducted to arrive at the managerial implications for organizations. The organizations need to be adaptive and innovative with appropriate organizational climate and systems to mitigate the negative stress and enable the employees to be proactive and dynamic in service co-creation in this ever changing world.
