Demand from our director for performance is high. Pressure to meet all the expectations has brought down morale. Perfection is an expected goal and seems to be looked upon as completely attainable. The expectations seem to exceed the reality of what is physically possible. These pressures make it difficult to relax when not at work because we (the manager and I) are in a constant state of review. Continually reviewing our individual performance and team performance and how we can improve so that we can meet our directors expectation. Each step forward on one aspect seems to take us a half step back on something else. The frustration has us both evaluating if we can stay with the company much longer. I must say that recent change in our local leadership has us off balance and I'm not sure it's possible to get the balance back.
This is very unfortunate for us and the company, because I believe that the combined experience of 15+ years in this field and geographical area that my manager and I have is worth retaining and respecting. Keeping a healthy level of pressure on is good and can result in meeting goals not previously thought attainable. However, too much pressure on the main supports a building (core employees) will result in eventual collapse and the structure generally will never again see it's previous glory.