2016 Workforce Solutions Conference Session 402 - Wellbeing in the Workplace May 25, 2016 ~ 2-3 p.m. Brandon Sullivan, Ph.D. Senior Director of Leadership and Talent Development Senior Lecturer, Carlson School of Management Graduate Faculty, Center for Spirituality and Healing How are organizations doing? Americans hate their jobs, even with perks -USA Today (6/30/13) Surprising, Disturbing Facts From The Mother Of All Employee Engagement Surveys -Forbes (9/23/13) Why You Hate Work -New York Times (5/30/14) The Enormous Cost of Unhappy Employees -Inc. (8/27/14) 9 Reasons Your Employees Are Unhappy -CIO (1/16/15) Less than a quarter of Wall Streeters are happy at work -Business Insider (5/4/15) Highly Paid Tech Employees Are Unhappy At Work -Yahoo! Finance (9/16/15) What is wellbeing? Happiness 1
What is wellbeing? Happiness Satisfaction with Life What is wellbeing? Happiness Satisfaction with Life Purpose and Growth What is wellbeing? 2
Why is wellbeing important? Individual wellbeing is a driver of Helping others (organizational citizenship behaviors) Quality relationships Healthy behavior Health and longevity Productivity, resilience, and turnover intentions Why is wellbeing important? DUE TO THE CURRENT WORKLOAD, THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL HAS BEEN For organizations, wellbeing is the key to human sustainability (hint: this is the business case for wellbeing) Discussion questions What are the current challenges facing human sustainability in your organization? What might happen if these challenges are not addressed? 3
Wellbeing programs Common focus areas Improvements in health and wellbeing of Wellbeing programs Common focus areas Improvements in health and wellbeing of Cost savings through appropriate use of health care services Wellbeing programs Common focus areas Improvements in health and wellbeing of Cost savings through appropriate use of health care services Enhanced individual and business performance metrics 4
Common methods Education Risks associated with an unhealthy diet and lack of physical activity. Information about the benefits and costs associated with action or inaction. Social-influence Considers the role that social norms have on health behavior and decision-making. Includes peer education, social support and role modeling. Cognitive-behavioral Goal setting, reviewing goals, problem-solving, and self-monitoring of behavior. Includes the keeping of records (e.g. food diaries) or wearing a pedometer to monitor daily activity levels. Motivation enhancement Techniques to clarify desire for change and reduce ambivalence. Helps people increases their willingness to change and reinforces healthy behaviors using rewards, such as money or prizes. Exercise Includes stand-alone exercise programs. What works? The typical program has a small, but positive affect Motivation enhancement approaches are the most effective in driving behavior change Motivation enhancement and cognitive behavioral approaches are most effective in maintaining behavior change in the long-term Success requires support Leaders must be visible champions and role models Must be integrated into the culture of an organization Culture of health: individuals are able to make healthy life choices in an environment that values, provides, and promotes options that are capable of producing health and wellbeing 5
Key steps in designing a program Define Success Identify Opportunities Address Motivation and Behavior Align Leadership and Culture Cost savings (positive ROI) vs. investment in Focus areas (e.g., health, security, relationships, community, environment, purpose) Any specific issues within those areas? Enhanced individual / organizational performance (attracting and retaining talent, productivity, engagement) Where can your organization realistically move the needle? Are cost savings realistic? Any specific health behaviors? Challenges recruiting, retaining, or engaging? Consider your workforce! How are you going to motivate people to participate? How are you going to support them in sustaining behavior change? How are you going to measure progress and success? Ensure leadership support and role modeling Integrate into organizational culture (make it easy to engage in healthy behaviors and ensure support is readily available in the work environment) Discussion questions What actions are you taking or considering to enhance wellbeing? What are you hoping to accomplish? What is one thing you might do to improve the odds of success? Further Reading 1. Diener, E. (2013). The remarkable changes in the science of subjective well-being. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 8, 663 666. 2. Callan, V.J. and Lawrence, S.A. (2008). Building employee engagement, job satisfaction, health, and retention. In S. Cartwright and C.L. Cooper (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of organizational well being (pp. 411-438). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. 3. Goetzel, et al. (2014). Do workplace health promotion (wellness) programs work? Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 56, 927 934. 4. Hutchinson, A.D., & Wilson, C. (2011). Improving nutrition and physical activity in the workplace: A meta-analysis of intervention studies. Health Promotion International, 27, 238 249. 5. Pfeffer, J. (2010). Building sustainable organizations: The human factor. Academy of Management Perspectives, 24, 34 45. 6. Ryan, R.M. & Deci, E.L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141 166. 6
Thank You! sull0179@umn.edu 7