Can a Boss Affect Happiness?

  
    
  
  
    
      Love them or hate them, 56% of Americans say their relationship with 
      their boss has a direct impact on work-life happiness. This finding is 
      from a recent survey conducted by Adecco, the world leader in workforce 
      solutions. As National Boss Day approaches on October 16th, 
      workers reflect on their employee-supervisor relationship and what they 
      see not only varies from office to office, but is also based on an 
      individual’s gender and generation.
    
    
      Key Findings:
    
    
      
        Generation Y Leaves Work at the 
        Office: More than half of Generation Y workers (53%) 
        claim that their relationship with their boss has no impact on their 
        work-life happiness. As Americans get older, however, manager impact 
        weighs much heavier with the majority (62%) of baby boomers reporting 
        that bosses have a strong influence on their day to day lives.
      
      
        No Gender Gap: 54% 
        of workers are ambivalent on which gender they would want to report 
        to, saying it doesn’t have an impact on 
        their performance. Of those that did have a preference, 26% stated 
        that they work better with males and 13% favored females.
      
      
        Little Impact on Productivity?: 
        Americans are split on whether or not managers help increase 
        worker output. When asked if their relationship with their boss 
        impacts productivity, 49% said yes and 48% responded no. It does 
        appear that more men are impacted than women, with 52% of males 
        responding yes compared to 44% of females.
      
    
    
      “The relationship between a worker and his/her 
      manager has very real implications on both employee satisfaction and 
      performance,” said Ray Roe, president of 
      Adecco North America. “It is important for 
      both managers and employees to be cognizant of the different dynamics at 
      play and actively work together towards building a stronger 
      relationship. Doing so will not only increase work-life happiness, but 
      also improve on-the-job efficiency and productivity.”
    
    
      In celebration of National Boss Day, Adecco provides insight on 
      ways employees and managers can better work together.
    
    
      
        Get better acquainted – Often, 
        strained relationships result from preconceived notions about 
        individuals and their motives. Get to know each other by getting some 
        coffee, talking by the water cooler, or participating in a team 
        building event. This will allow for better understanding and help you 
        build more effective working relationships.
      
      
        Be open minded – Generation Y was 
        born during the age of the internet and expects quick results in all 
        aspects of living, whereas baby boomers tend to be more loyal and 
        vested in long-term success. Diversity of backgrounds and ideas bring 
        value to any team. Understand these fundamental differences and be 
        open to learn from and adjust to each other. Don’t 
        shut out new approaches or time-tested methods as both can add value 
        to the workplace.
      
      
        Engage in two-way feedback – 
        Managers are responsible for providing employees with regular feedback 
        on their job performance to set objectives and identify areas of both 
        strength and improvement. Although this feedback is often a one-way 
        exchange, supervisors should take the time to ask staff how they’re 
        doing as a manager. This sort of open dialogue will enable bosses to 
        better understand how they’re being 
        perceived in the workplace while allowing employees to feel their 
        voice is valued and respected.
      
    
    
      The Adecco North America 2006 National Boss Day Survey is a part of its 
      ongoing “Workplace Insights” 
      series, focused on exploring what’s on the 
      minds of today’s workforce.
    
    
      Survey Methodology:
    
    
      The current results are based upon telephone interviews among 573 
      employed adults selected from a representative sample of 1,006 adults, 
      18 years of age or older. Opinion Research Corporation’s 
      Caravan conducted interviews between September 14-17, 2006. The margin 
      of error is approximately plus or minus four percent. A copy of the 
      survey questionnaire can be provided upon request.
    
    
      ADECCO WORLDWIDE:
    
    
      Adecco S.A. is a Fortune 500 company and the global leader in HR 
      services. The Adecco Group network connects over 700,000 associates with 
      business clients each day through its network of over 33,000 employees 
      and 6,600 offices in over 70 countries and territories around the world. 
      Registered in Switzerland, and managed by a multinational team with 
      expertise in markets spanning the globe, the Adecco Group delivers an 
      unparalleled range of flexible staffing and career resources to 
      corporate clients and qualified associates.
    
    
      ADECCO NORTH AMERICA:
    
    
      Adecco is the workforce solutions leader in the United States and 
      Canada, with a comprehensive service offering that includes temporary & 
      contract staffing, permanent recruitment, outplacement and career 
      services, training and consulting.
    
    
      In addition to its established Office & Industrial business, Adecco 
      operates six professional business lines, including Engineering & 
      Technical, Information Technology, Finance & Legal, Human Capital 
      Solutions, Medical & Science, and Sales, Marketing & Events
    
    
      Adecco S.A. is registered in Switzerland (ISIN: CH001213860) and listed 
      on the Swiss Stock Exchange with trading on virt-x (SWX/VIRT-X: ADEN), 
      the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: ADO) and Euronext Paris - Premier 
      Marché (EURONEXT: ADE).
    
    
      Additional information is available at the company’s 
      website at www.adeccousa.com.
    
  
Love them or hate them, 56% of Americans say their relationship
with their boss has a direct impact on work-life happiness. This
finding is from a recent survey conducted by Adecco, the world leader
in workforce solutions. As National Boss Day approaches on October
16th, workers reflect on their employee-supervisor relationship and
what they see not only varies from office to office, but is also based
on an individual's gender and generation.

   Key Findings:

   --  Generation Y Leaves Work at the Office: More than half of
        Generation Y workers (53%) claim that their relationship with
        their boss has no impact on their work-life happiness. As
        Americans get older, however, manager impact weighs much
        heavier with the majority (62%) of baby boomers reporting that
        bosses have a strong influence on their day to day lives.

   --  No Gender Gap: 54% of workers are ambivalent on which gender
        they would want to report to, saying it doesn't have an impact
        on their performance. Of those that did have a preference, 26%
        stated that they work better with males and 13% favored
        females.

   --  Little Impact on Productivity?: Americans are split on whether
        or not managers help increase worker output. When asked if
        their relationship with their boss impacts productivity, 49%
        said yes and 48% responded no. It does appear that more men
        are impacted than women, with 52% of males responding yes
        compared to 44% of females.

   "The relationship between a worker and his/her manager has very
real implications on both employee satisfaction and performance," said
Ray Roe, president of Adecco North America. "It is important for both
managers and employees to be cognizant of the different dynamics at
play and actively work together towards building a stronger
relationship. Doing so will not only increase work-life happiness, but
also improve on-the-job efficiency and productivity."

   In celebration of National Boss Day, Adecco provides insight on
ways employees and managers can better work together.

   --  Get better acquainted - Often, strained relationships result
        from preconceived notions about individuals and their motives.
        Get to know each other by getting some coffee, talking by the
        water cooler, or participating in a team building event. This
        will allow for better understanding and help you build more
        effective working relationships.

   --  Be open minded - Generation Y was born during the age of the
        internet and expects quick results in all aspects of living,
        whereas baby boomers tend to be more loyal and vested in
        long-term success. Diversity of backgrounds and ideas bring
        value to any team. Understand these fundamental differences
        and be open to learn from and adjust to each other. Don't shut
        out new approaches or time-tested methods as both can add
        value to the workplace.

   --  Engage in two-way feedback - Managers are responsible for
        providing employees with regular feedback on their job
        performance to set objectives and identify areas of both
        strength and improvement. Although this feedback is often a
        one-way exchange, supervisors should take the time to ask
        staff how they're doing as a manager. This sort of open
        dialogue will enable bosses to better understand how they're
        being perceived in the workplace while allowing employees to
        feel their voice is valued and respected.

   The Adecco North America 2006 National Boss Day Survey is a part
of its ongoing "Workplace Insights" series, focused on exploring
what's on the minds of today's workforce.

   Survey Methodology:

   The current results are based upon telephone interviews among 573
employed adults selected from a representative sample of 1,006 adults,
18 years of age or older. Opinion Research Corporation's Caravan
conducted interviews between September 14-17, 2006. The margin of
error is approximately plus or minus four percent. A copy of the
survey questionnaire can be provided upon request.

   ADECCO WORLDWIDE:

   Adecco S.A. is a Fortune 500 company and the global leader in HR
services. The Adecco Group network connects over 700,000 associates
with business clients each day through its network of over 33,000
employees and 6,600 offices in over 70 countries and territories
around the world. Registered in Switzerland, and managed by a
multinational team with expertise in markets spanning the globe, the
Adecco Group delivers an unparalleled range of flexible staffing and
career resources to corporate clients and qualified associates.

   ADECCO NORTH AMERICA:

   Adecco is the workforce solutions leader in the United States and
Canada, with a comprehensive service offering that includes temporary
& contract staffing, permanent recruitment, outplacement and career
services, training and consulting.

   In addition to its established Office & Industrial business,
Adecco operates six professional business lines, including Engineering
& Technical, Information Technology, Finance & Legal, Human Capital
Solutions, Medical & Science, and Sales, Marketing & Events

   Adecco S.A. is registered in Switzerland (ISIN: CH001213860) and
listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange with trading on virt-x (SWX/VIRT-X:
ADEN), the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: ADO) and Euronext Paris -
Premier Marche (EURONEXT: ADE).

   Additional information is available at the company's website at
www.adeccousa.com.