How Do You Feel While Driving?

We are all exposed to having to deal with stress from time to time. Too much stress in the workplace can, however, have undesirable consequences on our mental and physical health.

Research shows that control is often the biggest factor in whether people feel stressed or supported when faced with a challenge. The more control and overview people have over their work, the greater their well-being, the higher the quality of their work and the lower their stress level.

Drivers must deal with the stress impact of traffic, on-time delivery, bad weather, aggressive and unfriendly drivers on the road, difficult customers, long and irregular working hours, and lack of sleep. In addition, there is also the responsibility of carrying goods and products of high value.

Of course, we can see the effect on the driver, but how does this affect the company?

Employee Stress Can Cause Consequences For The Company

Quite simply, if employees are exposed to a large amount of stress, then this stress factor can greatly affect the company's performance, both from an economical point of view and in relation to reputation. All of these factors can also lead to burnout at work as well as poor customer service.

For a customer, the only thing worse than a delayed delivery, is a rude and stressed driver! Accurate and punctual service provided with a smile is a far better way to do business. You do not need to be a psychologist to remove the stress to achieve this.

So what can your business do to manage and reduce these factors?

Driving Behaviour - Driving Data Can Be A Great Help 

Many companies use technology - fleet management solutions - to help them gain more control over the business.

By giving employees control, enables them to make the right decisions, the flexibility to organise their work the way they find the most efficient, and the authority to find and make improvements to how their jobs are performed.

To make this work, it requires giving employees the right training, coaching, information, and tools they need to make intelligent decisions.

But when a company does not take action to reduce employee stress, it can affect the business in many different areas, including high staff turnover and cost for recruitment, high sick leave, reduced productivity, and increased health and safety issues.

Some companies that create the best results have found that increased control helps to significantly improve driver performance and productivity.

For example, employees with lower stress levels are often better at managing their time, partaking in multiple simultaneous tasks, resulting in greater efficiency and higher workforce.

With regard to managing stress in the company, it is important to focus on the things you can control. To ensure driver safety on the road and give them the opportunity to do their job in the best way. ABAX Driving Behaviour analyses the running of your company cars and creates a Driver Score for your drivers so you have an overview of their stress level.