Just how resilient is your workplace?
- Numonde Content Team
- Oct 29, 2021
- 5 min read
Resilience and why every organisation needs an action plan
Mental health problems in the UK are currently costing employers almost £35 billion a year. With costs increasing year on year a robust workplace health and well-being programme isn't a 'nice to have' it's a cost-reducing, performance-enhancing necessity.
Resilience is the capacity to maintain stable mental well-being during difficult times and adapt to challenging circumstances. As explained by the mental health charity Mind, resilience is something that can be learned so will change and develop over time and is made up of three interlinked parts:
Well-being: Mental well-being is quite simply how an individual is feeling and how strong their coping mechanisms are on a day-to-day basis. It is important to appreciate that emotional well-being will change from day to day, month to month, and year to year.
Social connections: Mental well-being is most often improved by developing and maintaining strong social connections. So, by inference, feelings of isolation and loneliness will have the opposite effect and reduce resilience. In the context of the workplace, it’s important to have at least one individual who pro-actively champions staff well-being and encourages confidential discourse and support where necessary.
Ways to cope: There are many techniques available to help individuals build resilience from NLP, CBT and mindfulness to yoga, exercise, and nutrition. Improve mental, physical, and emotional health and build staff resilience by adopting a holistic and flexible approach to workplace well-being that encompasses myriad techniques to maximise effectiveness.
Fostering organisational resilience
WHY
In the workplace, mental illness manifests in many ways from apathy and presenteeism to outbursts, illness, and prolonged absenteeism. With the financial ramifications to businesses mounting, it is a cost employers cannot ignore.
Developing an effective organisational health and well-being strategy will help to both identify those employees facing mental health challenges and build a strong and supportive environment where mental, emotional, and physical well-being can flourish. Proactive, preventative measures will have a far greater impact on staff resilience than operating a strictly reactionary approach to mental well-being.
Mental illness, in the context of the workplace, is most often hidden out of fear for job security and/or public humiliation. A failure to encourage open discourse about the topics surrounding mental health puts an organisation at risk of developing a culture rife with undisclosed, yet widespread, chronic mental illness and related physical ailments.
HOW
A good place to start is to appoint an in-house Health & Well-being Champion. Someone who will make it their purpose to ensure a robust health and well-being programme is developed and implemented. This may be an individual within the HR department or someone who already shows interest in the topic and will naturally engender the trust and confidence of co-workers.
Variables such as organisational size, existence of previously identified mental health issues, and any contractual, legislative or internal goals/requirements specific to staff health and well-being will all determine the resources required to establish an effective action plan. Contacting an outside expert to help devise a solid framework for such a plan could be a worthwhile investment to both give the project impetus and offer ongoing support to the Health & Well-being Champion/s.
When devising a resilience programme it's important to review the needs of all stakeholders to ensure it's both fit for and sustainable.
Some essential questions to consider:
How will this intervention complement and promote our company ethos?
Is there an existing health & well-being programme in place either formally or informally?
If yes, will the new programme complement, replace or conflict with this existing programme?....address any concerns involving this matter before proceeding.
Staff buy-in. What will be done to communicate the introduction of the new programme? It is advisable to open the dialogue about the proposed plan as soon as possible. Don't wait for the initiative to be finalised as staff feedback will be an invaluable resource to help formulate an inclusive plan relevant to everyone.
What will be done to keep the programme alive and fresh? Monthly group meetings? E-mails? Posters? One-to-ones? An open-door, drop-in policy? Keep the programme credible and show organisational commitment by maintaining dialogue and have a firm action plan in place. Include the programme on the agenda of monthly management meetings to discuss progress and address any problems and resistance Champions may be facing.
How will progress be monitored? Progress can only be monitored if a baseline has already been established. Consider using confidential questionnaires at the beginning of the programme to understand company-wide attitudes to mental health and well-being issues and discover any underlying problems and/or concerns. Monitor regularly to test the effectiveness of new interventions. Have an action plan to support staff with specific mental health issues and employ external experts where necessary. How is the company monitoring anxiety, stress, presenteeism, physical well-being, etc.?
Back to work procedure. What policy is in place to help staff re-integrate after a long absence? Consider back-to-work interviews to establish what ongoing support may be required. Is the member of staff coming back after a bereavement? Employing the services of a professional bereavement counselor would offer the staff member essential support not necessary available in-house. Taking a serious yet sensitive approach to loss in all forms, including the loss of a pet, relationship breakdowns, and financial hardship, shows commitment to staff well-being and offers the best chance of addressing acute mental health issues before they become chronic and entrenched.
Most stress will not be work-induced however the workplace will likely be where stress, regardless of its source, will manifest. Consider hosting lifestyle coaching sessions to holistically review staff habits from sleeping patterns and nutrition to exercise and meditation. Ensure these sessions are informative and supportive whilst promoting inclusivity. It is essential, when tackling what could be sensitive subjects for many, to avoid a format that could feel prescriptive or judgemental so regularly monitor sessions and obtain participant feedback.
WHEN
Now. There is no time like the present to inject the topic of health and well-being into your organisation. Don't feel prepared? Start small. Canvas staff for suggestions. What would make them feel good about coming to work? Do they have any health worries? How do they feel about their lifestyles and would they welcome some coaching? What does 'stress' mean to them and how does it affect their lives? There is no one-size-fits-all solution as every organisation is different but one thing that will make every health and well-being project flourish is dialogue. So get talking. Simple is often best and the impact of giving individuals both a voice and the support of a listening ear can have a profound and very positive impact.
Conclusion: A resilient workplace is a healthy, sustainable, and efficient workplace. Absenteeism and staff turnover are both disruptive and costly creating a barrier to long-term productivity and organisational growth. With evidence mounting that workplace wellness improves both productivity and profitability it's a topic that needs to be on the agenda; today.
Remember: Keep it simple. As a manager, creating an environment where good mental health can flourish is less about new slogans and resource-heavy initiatives and more about taking a moment to simply check in with those around you.
We'd love to hear from you so contact us with any questions, queries, or observations.
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