Workplace mental health: how to be caring, not just compliant
Providing meaningful mental health support does not have to be complicated or costly for employers. By taking a simple three-staged approach to wellbeing, businesses can reap the benefits of a healthier, happier and more productive workforce. The average person today is said to spend roughly a third of their life at work – so it’s […]
Dig deeper: how to take our humanity out of hiding
Our inability to re-humanise our workplaces stems from three detrimental behavioural traps. How can we release ourselves from these harmful habits and get back in touch with our humanity? We’re not making sustainable shifts towards human-focused workplaces because we’re staying superficial when we need to dig deeper. If you’ve been involved in personal development for […]
Mental health: why a digital detox is essential for both wellbeing and productivity
Our ‘always on’ digital culture is having a negative effect on our mental health. It’s time to switch off. Here are three top tips to help you detach from that smartphone and start living in the real world again. Most of us use technology every day at work, at home and on the move. Modern […]
Workplace culture: why it’s time to bust the myth of the ‘ideal worker’
Many company cultures require people to compartmentalise their lives and prioritise work over all else, but research has proven that this is detrimental not just to employee wellbeing, but to the bottom line as well. I just got off the phone from my daughter who is travelling for work. This week she flew overnight, had […]
Are you really awake? Why conscious leaders are key to unlocking wellbeing
Positive wellbeing in the workplace does not come from discounted gym memberships and free fruit. It comes from a healthy working culture spearheaded by conscious leaders who instill good habits and value people’s need to switch off. We’re facing increasing complexity and stress in the modern world of work. Everywhere we’re seeing headlines about increasing […]
It’s not JUST emotions: putting energy and feelings at the heart of your work
For centuries we’ve been in denial about our human nature when it comes to work. Some of the most basic norms of the workplace are incompatible with peak human performance. Sitting down for large portions of the day, lack of natural light and air, wearing restrictive clothes and shoes, and being separated from our families […]
Workplace stress: why good leadership is key to stress management
Work-related stress is on the rise, so it’s down to leadership teams to set a good example and take mental health more seriously. In today’s ‘always-on’ and hyper-connected workplace, work-related stress is becoming a real problem – so much so, it’s become the top cause of absenteeism for UK businesses. According to NHS Employers, stress […]
De-stressing the business: getting managers and workloads in check
Stressful working environments harm employee wellbeing and productivity. To get a handle on this, businesses need to address their management style and how they approach workloads. A recent CIPD study has revealed that poor management and heavy workloads are the biggest causes of workplace stress. These findings will raise some important questions for businesses, but […]
Mental health awareness: spotting the signs and starting the conversation
Two in three managers feel confident promoting wellbeing, but less than half of staff think managers would spot their mental health problems. For the last three years, we’ve been delivering our Workplace Wellbeing Index, a benchmark of best policy and practice when it comes to employers promoting good mental health among their employees. This year, […]
Wellbeing at work: why we need a culture shift, not just a policy change
Wellbeing isn’t just a ‘nice to have’ – it should be a core part of your employee strategy. Here, we look at the business drivers for this and how to implement good wellbeing practices in your organisation. Bereavement, sleep loss, relationship issues, stress, anxiety and depression – these are just some of the common mental […]
Wellbeing initiatives: are employers expected to be life coaches?
Workplace wellbeing initiatives have boomed in recent years, but are employers going too far in what they are offering? Organisations are not responsible for managing every aspect of each employee’s life, yet the move towards nanny territory is fast approaching. Employee wellbeing is becoming a more prominent feature on organisations’ agendas. What used to be […]
Wellbeing at work: how self-care and success work hand-in-hand
It is undeniable that our outlook on life and our interaction with those around us has a direct effect on our experience at work. We so often hear of the importance of taking better care of ourselves, both physically and mentally, and yet putting this into practice at work might seem unfeasible. Faced with the […]
Is your team suffering from innovation stress?
As more businesses seek to transform and disrupt, the under-explored phenomenon of innovation stress is likely to increase. To mark National Stress Awareness Month 2019, we shine a spotlight on the detrimental impact of pushing employees to innovate without clear guidance. Although others have used the term ‘innovation stress’ before me, it is not a […]
Stress Awareness Month: managing stress in a modern ‘always on’ work environment
With technology and an always-on culture contributing to our highly stressed workforce, Stress Awareness Month is the perfect time for HR professionals to remind themselves of the multi-faceted approach to combatting stress among employees. In the modern world of work there are times when we need to work outside of our normal hours; meaning early mornings, late […]
Disconnecting belonging from exclusion to create workplace harmony
Is there an untethered link between belonging and exclusion? And, if so, how can we break apart these polarities to create truly inclusive workplaces? I have a problem with the idea of belonging. Why? Because belonging is almost always defined by its polar opposite: excluding. Most of the time, our sense of belonging is defined […]
Five simple stages to creating a wellbeing strategy that drive positive business results
It is said that people are the backbone of any successful business, and employee wellbeing initiatives are now considered a ‘boardroom priority’. But in order to get results from your wellbeing efforts, it’s important to have a cohesive plan that’s built around the needs of your business. Encouraging your colleagues to lead healthy and fulfilling […]
Leadership: how to avoid anger hijack with emotional intelligence
Intellect can only get you so far in the workplace – emotional intelligence is what’s required if you want to be an effective manager. Work is good for your health, so we are told. It’s certainly true that a good job can provide meaningful activity and friendship, as well as a means of paying the bills. It […]
‘The Brain at Work in the 21st Century’ – Baroness Susan Greenfield at UNLEASH London 2019
What do humans do best? We learn. In a fascinating quick-fire lesson on neuroscience at UNLEASH London this year, Baroness Susan Greenfield couldn’t emphasise this enough. One important lesson we’ve not yet learnt though is that technology is having a damaging impact on our brain’s development. Neuroplasticity is a critical feature of our brain’s development. […]
‘The Wild New World of Technology’ – Josh Bersin at UNLEASH London 2019
If you missed Josh Bersin’s fast-paced, ears-on-the-ground update on the HR tech landscape at UNLEASH London this year, fear not. Here’s a condensed version to get you up to speed. Closing day one of UNLEASH, Bersin’s session ‘A wild new world of HR technology’ endeavoured to help the HR professional make sense of a highly […]
Why office culture is the most valuable employee benefit
Hit the right note, and the uptake on, and engagement with the benefits your organisation has to offer will see the return on minimal and passive investment. Often the case though, the benefits offered don’t hit the right note and instead please some but not the others. The latter feel as though they are missing […]
