Employment related stress especially when it comes to mergers deserves greater evaluation. The emotional stress employees experience can be viewed as tangible in that their value as employees translates to tangible goods and services. So-called procedures to “stop, breathe, reflect and choose” do little to comfort employees that have committed themselves and invested in professions, vocations, skills and crafts only to be marginalized by those who will be afforded the lion’s share of the benefits from such corporate decisions. My take is that the tangible stress anticipated and recognized is also a direct responsibility of leadership, including human resources, to mitigate as high-profile corporate adjustments and transactions impact employees. When considering that leaders receive greater compensation for their increased headcounts, of which of course includes related talent, the leadership pyramid should also be accountable for the stress they induce upon those they are leading rather than, trying to manipulate team members to operate at the highest point so as to achieve the optimum productivity during the anxiety curve.