Is your organisation a Wellbeing Champion?
By  Dr Lee Williams is a business mental toughness coach and the commercial lead for My Wellbeing Index (MWI)

Employee Wellbeing is a relatively new concept even if the benefits of having a fit and healthy workforce are intuitively obvious.  Growing evidence of workplace mental health issues, the impact of COVID and more recently the cost-of-living challenge has put pressure on organisations, not just to keep employees safe at work, but to support their whole wellbeing inside and outside of work.  Whether it’s purely altruistic or simply a commercial decision, investments in wellbeing do pay off, with Deloitte estimating that for every £1 spent on effective wellbeing support, organisations have seen a £5 return.

However, the business case for wellbeing isn’t as tangible as building a new factory or adding a new service, nor is it something that we can just throw money at and expect a return.  The knee jerk reactions of 2020/21 did bear fruit and built short-term goodwill amongst employees, but many wellbeing investments are now failing to meet individual employee wellbeing needs, with some organisations now being accused of wellbeing washing.  This is largely due to a lack of insight into the actual needs of employees and no clear method of measuring and reporting wellbeing improvements.  In this blog I have identified three key behaviours that Wellbeing Champion organisations display and how they help to deliver a ‘profitable’ wellbeing culture that is holistic, data driven, measurable and authentic.

Behaviour 1 – They take a holistic and proactive lifetime view of wellbeing.

Wellbeing Champions provide wellbeing support across the whole employee lifecycle rather than as a set of discrete events such as a Mental Health Day.  They do not rely on quick fix or topical wellbeing solutions such as fruit bowls or mindfulness apps, expecting these actions alone to see everyone’s physical and mental wellbeing to improve.  Of course, it’s nice to have fresh fruit and mindfulness does help, but these solutions are not for everyone. They seek out solutions that support all aspects of their employees’ wellbeing including financial, professional, social, and societal/environmental wellbeing.  They are considerate of diversity and inclusivity and understand that wellbeing demands change as we progress through our working lives and proactively address life events such as pregnancy, marriage, divorce, redundancy, promotion, and bereavement, understanding equally their disrupting and distracting effects not just to the employee but also to their families, colleagues, and the organisation.

Behaviour 2 – They make data driven wellbeing investments decisions.

Making wellbeing investments without first gaining an understanding of individual wellbeing needs and challenges can be a colossal waste of time, effort, and money.  As wellbeing fluctuates over time Wellbeing Champions are constantly capturing employee wellbeing insight to ensure their wellbeing strategies are delivering demonstrable wellbeing improvements.  Regular engagement through wellbeing plans and wellbeing insight surveys demonstrates a real commitment to wellbeing and engages employees in their wellbeing; they make wellbeing personal to the employee.  Data driven wellbeing strategies also make it easier to signpost employees to solutions as and when they need them and allows organisations to track investment efficacy and demonstrate a return on wellbeing investment.

Behaviour 3 – They are authentic about wellbeing and follow through on their promises.

Wellbeing Champions don’t make misleading claims about their wellbeing benefits to their current and future employees, they follow through on their promises and ensure employees can access wellbeing support as and when they need it.  When this doesn’t happen, either by accident or by design, organisations can be accused of Wellbeing Washing.  This leads to a lack of trust and credibility and leaves employees feeling frustrated and disappointed. This also reduces motivation and engagement, increases the potential for stress and burnout and reduces the likelihood of employee retention as employees are more sensitive to job opportunities where their health and wellbeing are prioritized. Simply stating that wellbeing is important, and even spending some money, is no longer enough.

Summary

Wellbeing Champions take a holistic and lifetime view of wellbeing, they deliver on their wellbeing promises by making data driven investment decisions, that demonstrably improve the employee wellbeing experience and reported employee wellbeing levels within their organisation.  They are transparent and honest about their wellbeing culture and willingly provide the necessary resources and support, to ensure employees have access to the tools and solutions they need to maintain their wellbeing.  This fosters a culture of trust and engagement among employees and improves organisational wellbeing and performance.

About the author:

 Dr Lee Williams is a business mental toughness coach and the commercial lead for My Wellbeing Index (MWI), a WellTech business that specialises in helping organisations become Wellbeing Champions.  MWI’s Digital Wellbeing Champion platform KAYA connects employees to wellbeing solutions through quarterly Wellbeing Pulse Surveys and My Wellbeing Plans.  These anonymous surveys capture employee wellbeing experiences, challenges and needs, so employers can understand which wellbeing solutions to invest in and allow employees to take control of their wellbeing and access appropriate support.  Wellbeing insight reports and wellbeing solutions are accessed via the KAYA Platform where Company, Team and Individual Wellbeing Actions Plans are created and managed.  Established in 2022 by Dr Ram Raghavan and Dr Lee Williams, KAYA is the UKs first Digital Wellbeing Champion solution that provides organisations with a demonstrable return on wellbeing metric, the KAYA Wellbeing Index.  Visit https://kayawellbeingindex.com where you can sign up for a free Wellbeing Baseline assessment and compare your score against the KAYA Wellbeing Index.