An employee assistance program or EAP is a trusted and skilled individual or group whose position outside your company provides needed perspective.
The ideal workplace is healthy, safe, and productive. It’s an environment where the talents of many combine to achieve the goals of the organization. Even in a climate of organizational change, employees at all levels work together constructively and respectfully.
Unfortunately, this level of harmony and motivation does not always exist at work. Despite best intentions, thoughtful leadership, and reasoned policies, the workplace can be stressful and not fully on track. Looming external factors, such as the economy and competitive markets, may affect the organization as a whole. Countless personal challenges may also cause individual employees to become vulnerable and distracted. These factors can include:
- Work and family concerns
- Interpersonal issues
- Untreated depression and other mental health conditions
- Substance abuse
- Personal finances
When not dealt with responsively and effectively, these stress factors can have far-reaching consequences. It’s common for employees managing critical personal issues to experience burnout and emotional fatigue. The decreased productivity, absenteeism, increased accidents, higher turnover, security risks, and conflict among employees can impact an organization’s morale and bottom line.
There may also be organizational issues that emerge which require the expertise of outside professionals. Whether it is providing staff with tools to handle the challenges of everyday life or assisting managers to handle the complexities of the workplace, an employee assistance program can work with you to move your organization forward.
How An EAP Provider Can Help
Staff Development
An EAP Provider is prepared to jump-start your staff with customized training to meet the needs of your workforce. A team of experienced trainers can deliver engaging presentations on a wide range of pertinent subjects. For example, at CMG Associates, we offer a variety of learning formats, including lunchtime seminars, full-day workshops, and 12-month staff development programs. Our presentations are tailored to meet a range of learning levels and styles.
Organizational Development
CMG Associates helps managers resolve conflict, deal with difficult behavioral issues, and improve communication among staff. We provide expert resources to help managers identify and resolve problematic situations. We foster effective leadership by clarifying the flow of authority and responsibility in the workplace.
Management Training
Management training is an ongoing need in a dynamic work setting. A professional EAP staff will consult with managers and engage in an ongoing needs assessment to determine the primary training focus. The goal is to develop those skills that will strengthen your organization, including:
- Conflict resolution
- Communication
- Leadership and management skills,
- Performance evaluation
- Stress reduction
- Substance abuse
- Sexual harassment
- Diversity
Executive Coaching
Executive Coaching is a facilitative one-to-one, mutually designed relationship between a professional coach and a key contributor who has a powerful position in the organization. The coaching is contracted for the benefit of a client who is accountable for highly complex decisions with a wide scope of impact on the organization and industry as a whole. The coaching is usually focused on organizational performance or development, but it may also serve as a personal component as well. [Summary findings from the International Executive Coaching Summit, October 1999, compiled by Lee Smith and Jeannine Sandstrom.]
In addition to providing individual Executive Coaching in the public and private sectors, CMG Associates offers group coaching, as well as leadership programs specifically designed for physician and nursing leaders in health care institutions.
Learn More about Employee Assistance Programs
With over thirty years of experience, CMG Associates recognizes the positive impact employee assistance programming has on organizations. When your workforce feels supported, protected, and valued, business productivity and performance improvements are ultimately realized. Therefore, we are happy to partner with you to provide work-based intervention services to your human resource department, managers, teams, and individual employees. Contact us today to learn how we can help you implement and promote a custom EAP within your company.
