The best way to get the benefits from them is to build a culture of self-help and allow peer influence to do the leg work. But how can such a culture be built? Flip Filipowski, CEO at SilkRoad Technology, offers five steps to boosting workplace wellbeing.
There’s no doubt that people are now working longer hours and retiring later in life. As a result employees are increasingly demanding that employers pay more attention to their health and wellbeing. Creating a culture in which people feel that their wellbeing is looked after is now essential, and HR directors can follow some simple steps to achieve this.
1: Inform don’t nag – information is power. When people have access to unbiased information about their health and how making improvements can benefit them in the long term, they are more likely to be engaged in their own wellness. However, while it’s all well and good encouraging your people to pay attention to their health, it is equally important not to create a culture of worry. Allow information (articles, websites, videos, biometric screenings, access to personal physicians) to be freely available to everyone and make sure your HR team is on hand to encourage them in asking further questions but don’t nag them about what they’re doing. 2: Motivate, don’t force – motivation has to come from within but you can certainly create motivating environments to assist your staff members in taking steps to improve their own health and wellbeing. For example, the Global Corporate Challenge (GCC), the world’s largest corporate health initiative, based on the World Health Organisation’s recommended 10,000 steps a day, is a simple but fun challenge which spans four months and encourages team-based support to improve co-workers’ activity levels, boost company morale and (research shows) even profits, through a virtual walking journey around the world. Encouraging your workplace’s involvement in global challenges like this or local mass participation events can not only do wonders for the overall health of a workplace but improve personal motivation at the same time. Set an example yourself, and your workplace will be inspired by you.
3: Encourage, don’t just pay lip service – every employee needs encouragement from their peers, boss and company if workplace wellness initiatives are truly to stick. Therefore, offering staff the flexibility to work on their personal health and wellness is key to their success. If, for example, you want people to get moving but don’t allow them to get up from their desk and take a walk or go outside for fresh air, you’re only paying lip service to the initiative. Try and encourage healthy eating by ensuring your staff cafeteria stocks wholesome food, possibly even at a cheaper price than the more indulgent options. Don’t expect people to spend time at the gym or relaxing at home when there is a heavy overtime culture in place. Walk the walk as a director to make sure your workplace follows.
4: Reward, don’t punish – if the budget allows for staff snowboarding lessons then great. However, rewards for making efforts are important but need not be costly. Occasional incentives are fun and keep things interesting without making it all about the reward. Gym membership is nice and at-desk massages probably even more welcome but cheaper initiatives such as lunchtime football matches or staff drinks can work as both incentive and reward. If people finish their work on time, then maybe they can leave early on occasion. Sometimes a “work until you drop” culture can have a negative impact on workplace health. If you force staff to squeeze every bit of productivity from every hour, you run the risk of them burning out. One idea is an incentive-based wellness programme where employees who are a part of a health plan and participate in activities receive points that they can claim for rewards in the form of gift cards. 5: Monitor, don’t ignore – Don’t assume just because the environment has been created that everything’s under control. The hazy nature of wellbeing can be tricky to track but in order for standards to be maintained, wellbeing and stress levels need to be monitored. Offer your workplace the opportunity to feed back on stress levels or brainstorm with your managers about potential issues. Wellbeing can come from a variety of sources, from personal control of workload, clarity of role and physical security to relationship with colleagues and sense of identity within the company. Check whether your initiatives are paying off and if they’re not, alter them. Get feedback from your managers and listen to their concerns. While these steps offer an insight into achieving health and wellbeing in the workplace, every business is unique, and so the manner in which wellness initiatives are implemented must remain flexible.
