Corporate Wellness Boosts Employee Productivity

by Spectrum Wellness

Employee productivity has a direct correlation with the company wellbeing and its bottom line, a metric that most companies keep a close eye on and rightly so! So just how can companies positivity impact their employee’s productivity, let’s take a look at some initiatives that are been put into action within successful corporate wellness programs.

Offering the right mix of these corporate wellness initiatives is critical for employers looking to retain current staff, recruit high quality staff and improve reducing levels of employee engagement all of which if addressed correctly can have can have a positive impact on employee productivity.

Fostering a Ethos of Health
Corporate wellness programs more often than not are left to be run by the human resource department who are over worked and understaffed. So while the initial intention was meant well and reflected the company’s directors/CEO as progression leaders, it’s the implementation that failed. Successful wellness programs that see end results like reduced absenteeism build a wellness team or committee that report into the human resources team. Historically and also proven is the top down approach of senior members of companies involved and actively campaigning for healthy initiatives thereby fostering that healthy ethos.

Supporting Mental Health
While many people have become more open about mental illness, it can still be a sort of taboo subject in the workplace. Over the last 10 years Ireland has undergone huge changes in attitudes towards mental health and some companies are beginning to focus on it and take steps to address vulnerable employees. Initiatives like ‘working smart, not long’, training managers so that they can spot stress and poor work–life balance and its effects on the individual and also developing policies that acknowledge the association between work related stress and mental health.

The Rise of Standing Desk
Ergonomics is more than just improving the physical comfort of the employee, it’s about safety optimising movement. When done correctly it can not only improve employee morale but also significantly improve employee productivity. Given that ergonomics can reduce costs while improving productivity it is standing evidence of the fact that it can also positively impact the bottom line. While standing desks have become quite hip they are proving their worth with large company’s jumping onboard including Google, Twitter and Facebook. In recent tests it’s been proven that these desks can improve employee productivity by as much as 10% and not only that, there was a number of other benefits including higher energy levels and higher concentration on tasks with fewer headaches.

Family Friendly Environment
More and more employees are looking for employers who understand that an individual’s personal and professional life can not always be distinctly compartmentalised. As employers are beginning to recognise this they have begun implementing family friendly policies. These policies have proven to help increase employee morale, job satisfaction and productivity while reducing absenteeism and disengagement. While family friendly policies can take many forms, employers are looking at different variations of the following in order to keep a competitive edge around flexitime, paid family leave, child care assistance and lactation support.

Smart Snacking
Business leaders often speak about the high costs of unproductive workers relating to distracted work environments, ineffective business systems and poor leadership. However eating habits which is often over looked has a very direct and immediate impact on employee productivity. Improved employee nutrition will not only increase productivity but lower costs related to absenteeism, stress and burnout. Employers looking to provide healthy snacks for the workplace should think about the basics of good energy and blood sugar management. A perfect snack for employee productivity should contain a mix of both carbohydrates and protein. Great workplace initiatives to improve snack options include arranging healthy lunches delivered to the office during busy periods, chief demos, fresh fruit deliveries & restocking the break room/canteen with healthy snack options.

Fitness
Those who exercise regularly understand there is more benefits then weight loss and staying in shape. Exercise helps improve all aspects of your life, including work productivity. Exercise also helps improve alertness and energy, mental health and illness prevention. There are different ways for employers to encourage their staff to keep fit as not every company has the budget for in-house gyms but there are low budget and very simple ways to promote fitness in the workplace. You could set up a company sports team, encourage staff to take part in a charity fitness challenge, bring in a yoga teacher or fitness trainer, have walking meetings, lunchtime walking clubs and discounted gym membership.

Why not boost your own workplace productivity and inspire healthy behaviours and encourage positive change in your organisation today.