Employees look to their leaders for cues on how to model their behavior.
So, for example, if leaders regularly send out e-mails in the evenings and over the weekends, it’s a near guarantee that their direct reports will feel compelled to read and respond to them. Not surprisingly, even when leaders explicitly say they don’t expect responses on late at night or on weekends, their actions speak louder than their words.
The “values” that shape organizational culture are not merely those values that are typed up and laminated for employees to tack up next to their computer monitors. These are the values that are deeply rooted and visible to everyone in an organization. If your organization states they “value” wellness and flexible work arrangements, this means your leaders must not only avail themselves of these values, they must also create visibility for their employees.
Ultimately, it does not matter how many policies and programs an organization may devise around wellbeing, if those at the top aren’t using them, then those attempting to climb the ladder will take this as a signal that they shouldn’t either. This sends a very strong signal to the rest of the workforce, as well. Having leaders provide wellbeing programs isn’t enough either. They need to use the options in a way that is visible to the rest of the organization.
While it is essential to have the support of senior managers, the use of internal champions to communicate the wellbeing message is very effective in helping to embed wellbeing into the workplace. This requires the wellbeing message being made relevant to every level of the organization with champions and supporters openly encouraging their colleagues to greater achievements. Wellbeing champions also play a huge role in establishing and maintaining cultural norms that encourage healthy behaviors.
Resources
Workbooks, videos, tools: Wellness
- Activity Breaks PDFs UC Berkeley
- Aggie Movement Breaks (short videos for the desk worker from UC Davis Campus Rec)
- Healthy Meeting and Event Guide UC Berkeley--complete guide
- WorkWell with Checklist (PDF) Healthy Habits at Work (workstation ergonomics and habits)
- UCLA's Free Guided Meditations--play them right on your computer.....
- UC Smart Break; LImber Up Office Flexibility exercise videos UC Irvine
- UC Smart Break; Cheer Up Stress relieving videos UC Irvine
- Wellness Program Supervisor Kit (PDF) UC Riverside
- Wellness Culture Audit (PDF) UC Riverside
- Work-From-Home Exercises To Keep Active While WFH Virgin Pulse
Workbooks, videos, tools: Worklife & Workplace Flexibility
- Work-Life Balance Toolkit Virgin Pulse
- Managing Employee Stress During During Significant Change Virgin Pulse webinar
- A Ten Step Guide to Working More Human Globoforce 2017
- Creating a More Human Workplace Where Employees and Business Thrive SHRM Effective Practice Guidelines Series 2016
- Seven Components of an Effective Workplace SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management)
- Eight Tips for Evaluating Telework Performance Reviews.net
- A Guide to Managing your Remote Workers /HBR
- Tips for Coaching Someone Remotely /HBR
- 6 Tips for Virtual Supervision: Advice for Supervisors /LinkedIn
- Remote Working: Setting Yourself and Your Teams Up for Success/LinkedIn video suite
- Work-Life Balance & Disability website
Good Websites to Bookmark for Daily Inspiration/Ideas/Digging Deeper:
- UC Wellbeing Channel UC San Diego
- Greater Good Science Center UC Berkeley
Technology Tools
Articles, Research and Informative Resources
- What Engagement at Work Really Looks Like Limeade e-booklet (A corporate wellness technology company on employee engagement)
- Seven Fundamental Steps for Building A Great Place to Work Limeade e-booklet
- Why Work-Life BALANCE is Dead Limeade e-booklet
- The Whole Employee: What Every CHRO Should Know Limeade e-booklet
- How's Your Work-Life Balance? Psychology Today article on work-life balance and how to achieve it
- Dealing with Burnout Psychology Today collection of articles on specific topics
- Burnout Isn't Just Exhaustion, Here's How to Deal with it. NPR listen
- Leadership, Stress, and the Importance of Self-Care Mercer article on self-care for managers/supervisors
- Ten Ways to Be More Mindful at Work Mindful Magazine
Articles Cited in Toolkit
- Managers with High Well-Being Twice as Likely to Be Engaged Gallup News Business Journal,
- A Ten Step Guide to Working More Human Globoforce: Work Human.
- The Business Case for Wellbeing Gallup News 2010
- Work and Life, A behavioral Approach to Solving Work-Life Conflict ideas42 report:
- New America Better Life Lab Better Work Toolkit
- Is Your Workplace Killing You? Jeffrey Pfeffer, Stanford Graduate School of Business:
Videos Cited in Toolkit
- Jeffrey Pfeffer, Stanford Graduate School of Business: Is Your Workplace Killing You?
- Work, Family & Health Network: A Better Way to Work Video, findings from a pilot study
Infographics and Postables:
- Choose Health, Drink Water
- Cover Your Cough
- Fight the Flu
- Sitting is Killing You
- Desk Exercises
- UC Davis Stair List
Works Cited:
- Lu C, Schultz AB, Sill S, Petersen R, Young JM, Edington DW. Effects of an incentive-based online physical activity intervention on health care costs. J Occup Environ Med. 2008;50(11):1209-1215. doi: 10.1097/JOM.0b013e31818dc438.
- Worker productivity. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site. http://www.cdc.gov/workplacehealthpromotion/businesscase/reasons/productivity.html. Updated 2013. Accessed March 10, 2015.
- Loeppke R, Taitel M, Haufle V, Parry T, Kessler RC, Jinnett K. Health and productivity as a business strategy: A multiemployer study. J Occup Environ Med. 2009;51(4):411-428. doi: 10.1097/JOM.0b013e3181a39180.
- Partnership for Prevention. Leading by Example: The Value of Worksite Health Promotion to Small- and Medium-sized Employers. http://www.prevent.org/data/files/initiatives/lbe_smse_2011_final.pdf. Published 2011. Accessed March 10, 2015.
- Boles M, Pelletier B, Lynch W. The relationship between health risks and work productivity. J Occup Environ Med. 2004;46(7):737-745. doi: 00043764-200407000-00018.
- Stewart WF, Ricci JA, Chee E, Morganstein D. Lost productive work time costs from health conditions in the United States: Results from the American productivity audit. J Occup Environ Med. 2003;45(12):1234-1246. doi: 10.1097/01.jom.0000099999.27348.78.
- Partnership in Health Report: Prevention and Lifestyle Risks. Davis, CA: Kaiser Permanente; 2014.
- Hudson, Warner T. Unpublished Report. WorkStrong Results 31 Months of Data After WorkStrong Graduation. 2015