Editor’s note: Ben Egan is a consultant at UK-based HR consultancy and bespoke technology firm ETS.
“How are you feeling – are you well?” It’s a question we ask friends and family every day. However, employers aren’t asking it enough.
And even if they are asking the question, they aren’t acting on the answers. This has to change, and fast.
What’s the problem?
When was the last time you asked your team how they’re feeling (outside of an employee survey)?
Employees today are under increased pressure. The rising cost of living, reduced headcounts and increased workloads are leading to declining well-being.
Employers cannot afford to ignore unhappy, stressed or burnt-out staff. Issues like those described above, coupled with other non-work pressures, inevitably takes its toll on health and well-being.
At an extreme, this can manifest itself in serious health problems (there has been an increase in mental health conditions in the last decade or so).
To avert this and to keep staff healthy, engaged and productive, companies need to better understand and improve employee well-being.
What do we mean by well-being?
Well-being might be seen by some as a ‘fluffy’ HR topic. However, it entails issues like absence management, occupational health and good management practice. Not at all fluffy.
The UK’s CIPD defines workplace well-being as: “creating an environment to promote a state of contentment which allows an employee to flourish and achieve their full potential for the benefit of themselves and their organization.”
Work can (and should) positively impact both our mental and physical health and well-being. Healthy and highly-motivated employees will have a positive impact on the productivity and effectiveness of a business. Of course, when the opposite is true, businesses and employees will suffer.
What affects well-being?
There are probably a number of things but I’ve focused on a few areas, in particular. Those of you with a grasp of employee engagement drivers will note strong parallels in the factors that also influence well-being:
- An employee’s relationship with their line manager
- Having a clearly defined job role and knowing what’s expected of you
- An involvement organizational issues and decisions
- The availability and acceptance of flexible working
- Having the workplace facilities and resources needed to do your job
- Employer awareness and understanding of occupational health issues.
Engagement vs. well-being
Employee engagement enjoys a higher profile in corporate circles compared with well-being. The truth is though, the two things are inextricably linked. You can’t have engaged employees without them feeling healthy and well.
Companies therefore need to better understand and enhance employees’ sense of well-being in order to realize increased engagement.
What action is needed?
- Get buy-in from senior leaders as this is essential to the success of any initiative.
- Secure greater investment in health and well-being programs. You must first though understand employee issues and concerns around health and well-being.
- Devise tailored solutions to fit the specific needs of employees. Much like measuring and acting on engagement, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to improving well-being.
The responsibility for health and well-being at work belongs to both employers and employees. However, employers must make the first move in addressing the problem.
The benefits of improved well-being
Today we all understand and buy into the business value of increased employee engagement. The ability to better harness employees’ efforts and channel them toward shared company goals offers a tremendously powerful competitive advantage.
The crossover between engagement and well-being means that you’re highly unlikely to increase engagement without also addressing well-being. So make sure both are strategic priorities.