Employers typically aim to reduce sickness absence levels, boost staff engagement and keep their workforce healthy and happy through workplace health schemes. There are also ways for organisations to track the progress of health and wellbeing benefits, namely through their return on investment, as well as the development of their employees.
“I think there is an important issue missing here. Employers should understand what the key drivers are that determine a healthy workforce, e.g. nutrition, mindset, fitness, sleep, working environment etc. Then the wellbeing proposition should be holistic and integrated, extending well beyond benefits.
“And, contrary to some of the expert advice given, it is possible to demonstrate a correlation between wellbeing and productivity. For instance, Arup’s proprietary business user survey, which is based on a proven well-building standard, is able to show, inter alia, a correlation between a building environment, e.g. clean air, space, nutrition, light, water, facilities [and so on] and engagement/productivity.
“I also think that one of your commentators does a disservice to HR by stating that we do not tend to be ‘that analytical’. I’m not sure what exposure he has with the market but certainly in our case HR undertakes quite considerable workforce analytics in terms of demonstrating the value of a wellbeing programme to the business.
Evan Davidge, associate head of reward, programmes and data management, Ove Arup and Partners International