The professional landscape post-pandemic is volatile, with worker shortages and employers working to navigate the dynamics of in-person versus remote work. Families are juggling personal finances amidst inflation and rising interest rates. Companies are being challenged to address the financial stressors facing their workforce regarding personal and household finances.
73% of Americans rank their finances as the number 1 stress in their life – and many reported financial anxiety and stress even before the onset of the pandemic (Washington Post, Mental Health America).
While remote/hybrid workforce options present mental health benefits, these options make it more difficult for employers to detect and offer in-person resources or support. Managers are also faced with mounting anxiety as they are asked to take on the complexities of managing and accommodating colleagues and direct reports remotely.
Tim O’Neil has dedicated his life to the wellbeing industry, successfully developing and integrating best-in-class employee health and wellbeing programs with progressive and proactive benefit plan design. He has positively impacted program costs while optimizing employee motivation, engagement, and performance. After fourteen successful years working at Dotdash Meredith, Tim recently joined TrueNorth, which has allowed him to expand the number of organizations he can help create award-winning wellbeing initiatives.
What was his secret sauce?
O’Neil says there are six key areas an organization must address to preserve and promote a healthy and vibrant workforce in today’s post-pandemic climate:
1: Cultivate your Culture: Organizations must understand how mental health and emotional wellbeing are perceived throughout the organization. Employee Assistance Program (EAP) user data and perception surveys can help decision-makers determine whether employers, supervisors, and family members are aware and taking advantage of the resources available to them. If they are, utilization metrics will help establish benchmark data to support adoption and support efforts to integrate additional resources and programming into the organization’s risk strategy.
Beyond quantitative metrics, perception surveys can offer qualitative insight into how mental health and emotional wellbeing are perceived within the organization. Together, these results can help leadership understand the financial implications of not addressing employee wellbeing in a holistic or efficient manner.
2: Train Management: Offer training that empowers supervisors and employees to identify when an employee is struggling and understand when and how to lend support. Provide a safe and welcoming environment for employees to approach a supervisor or colleague. Devise policies that are supportive, not punitive in nature. Operate with the understanding that everyone responds to stressors differently. Respect and acknowledge personal/family dynamics and make an effort to integrate these realities into existing training so they are regularly acknowledged.
3: Enhance your Communications: Take inventory of your programming and available resources. Simplify messaging on what’s available. Promote the organization’s commitment to colleague wellbeing and mental health. Reinforce this commitment with visible examples and stories and role modeling. Stress that everyone consumes information differently. It is critical to have the right program available at the right time. Establish goals and success metrics. Ensure your communication plan complements and affirms your strategy.
4: Evaluate your Strategic Plan: Enact a strategic plan for mental health and emotional wellbeing that engages employees and their families. Review plan effectiveness annually and hold your providers accountable. Take inventory of the organization’s mental health resources, including your total dollar spend, overall utilization, and key outcomes. Integrate providers into the organization’s strategic plan and be prepared to challenge those with poor results. Promote collaboration across departments to ensure alignment and acceptance among all stakeholders and management. Support and encourage employees to engage and seek help when needed.
5: Build your Employer Brand: It’s not just about pay and benefits anymore; candidates want to feel inspired by your corporate brand. Practice your value proposition. Get marketing involved. Leverage multiple channels, identify which social media platforms your target audiences will use, and leverage them. Solicit input from diverse perspectives and account for generational differences. Let your workforce play a role in shaping your culture and offerings.
6: Measure the Impact: Identify success metrics and the strategy’s impact on the business. Understand what you can/should measure and how to measure it. Measure the impact of your strategy against your current practice. Leverage vendors to assist with the evaluation. Focus on tying engagement/participation/improvement to the associated financial impact. Tie the strategy to complimentary initiatives (e.g., attracting and retaining quality candidates). Establish a dashboard to track key performance indicators (KPIs). Make it easy for leadership to evaluate success and offer feedback.
What is important is the success of your employees and/or clients in their wellbeing journey. People are your most important asset and, often, your organization’s largest investment. This is why your work culture initiatives must align with how your organization is charged with health, wealth, safety, and loss control. It’s no longer just the risk of workforce turnover, it’s the risk of not fostering an environment of productivity, creativity, innovation, belonging, and overall wellbeing.
