It is no secret that sleep-deprived brains are less effective and make more bad judgements. While it may ultimately be the individual’s responsibility to manage their sleep, employers can play a significant role.
In recent research from McKinsey and Company (Read it here) the links between a good night’s sleep and effective leadership are clearly demonstrated through an extensive survey of 82 organisations comprising 189,000 people around the world.
Unfortunately many organisations encourage and reward employees who routinely work extensive hours, or who answer their phone and emails at all times. I wonder how many of these entities would tolerate an employee being on the job with a blood-alcohol level of 0.05 (the drink driving limit)? Yet that is how the brain performs after 17–19 hours of wakefulness!
What can organisations do to encourage employees to have better sleep patterns and therefore better effectiveness and productivity? McKinsey note some suggestions in their article, a few of which include:
1. Training employees in effective sleep patterns
2. Ensuring company policies reflect outcomes. For example:
- Travel – ensuring employees have opportunity to get good sleep while travelling
- Emails – discouraging the use of emails outside of work times
- Culture – discouraging a culture of long hours and “all-nighters”
3. Preparing for the new generation of employees who won’t put up with current practices
The Avondale Business School can help you and your team develop leadership skills – find out how by contacting Warrick Long at the Avondale Business School.
P: 02 4980 2168