SEVEN STEPS Through our analysis, we were able to draw up a list of recommendations which can help with this transition. • It is important to have realistic expectations of what might be deemed a successful wellbeing outcome. Direct improvements may be achieved in, for example, improved outcomes for healthy eating and lifestyle choices, but this does not mean employees will feel differently about their work or their employer. Given a broader context that is frequently counter-productive to wellbeing efforts, perhaps halting a further decline is a measure of ‘success’ in itself. • Wellbeing is a complex matter and is difficult to measure and manage; relying purely on quantitative measures can result in a partial picture that does not recognise what wellbeing means and how wellbeing interventions are experienced in practice. Qualitative measures provide insights into the rich, complex world of employee wellbeing and help explain what may or may not be working in the specific organisational context. • Understanding why wellbeing interventions are being undertaken sounds like an obvious question, but motivations are important. Successful outcomes are more likely if the objective is focused on improving health and wellbeing rather than improving performance or organisational efficiency. If employees fear wellbeing interventions come with a secret agenda, they are unlikely to engage. • Improving wellbeing requires an inclusive approach with strong employee involvement and voice. Workers need to be meaningfully involved in decisions on both the goals of wellbeing actions and in the selection and design. They need to be given the time and resources to actively participate in delivery to ensure that wellbeing interventions are working for them. • Senior management need to show visible and consistent support for wellbeing. This requires clear and continuing communication that wellbeing is a priority, with the necessary resources to back these claims with action. Critically, this needs to be an ongoing effort, even when competitive pressures make this difficult. In essence, senior management should not make promises they cannot keep. • Recognising the historic and current organisational context is important. Wellbeing does not operate in a vacuum. Employee experiences shape how they view efforts to support wellbeing and in turn impact how they may respond to them. For example, where there are intensive work demands, low levels of trust, a history of precarious work and redundancies, it is very difficult for wellbeing efforts to be effective. It is not just the intervention itself that is important, it needs to be seen in the broader organisational context. • Reviewing and adjusting the organisation of work and demands placed on employees is key to changing the organisational conditions and allowing effective support for employee wellbeing. This might include changes to job design and workload, improvements to job security, reviews of performance targets and giving employees more control over their work. In so doing, workers are more likely to engage with wellbeing efforts, and the organisational conditions should be more conducive to better wellbeing. These are challenging times for both employers and employees when it comes to worker wellbeing. There is no magic wand that can be waved to solve all the issues out there, and no blanket approach that can guarantee success for all. But if more organisations work to create an environment where efforts are built as a community and demonstrate continued commitment to supporting employee health and wellbeing, there is a greater chance of better results. Dr Kay Greasley, is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Organisation, Work and Technology in Lancaster University Management School. Her research focuses on work, employment relations, human resource management and the embodied experience of employees. The article When do health and wellbeing interventions work? Managerial commitment and context, by Dr Kay Greasley and Professor Paul Edwards is published in Economic and Industrial Democracy. Why do organisations engage in HR initiatives? A test case of a health and wellbeing intervention, by Dr Kay Greasley, Professor Paul Edwards, Dr Denise Baker-McClearn, and Professor Jeremy Dale, is published in Employee Relations. HR analytics: The onto-epistemology and politics of metricised HRM, by Dr Kay Greasley and Professor Pete Thomas, is published in Human Resource Management Journal. k.greasley@lancaster.ac.uk FIFTY FOUR DEGREES | 33
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