5 key takeaways from our Workplace Wellbeing Webinar to support a positive work culture.

When we reflect on the global events of the past few years, there have clearly been significant changes. These changes come hand-in-hand with a new set of challenges - challenges affecting our home lives, social lives and also our places of work.

We (The Resilience Project) recently held a Workplace Wellbeing Webinar led by our founder and best-selling author, Hugh van Cuylenburg, alongside wellbeing leaders; Mel Wainwright - 澳洲国民银行 , Erin Gooey - Medibank , and Brooke Dwyer - Qantas . We took away so many insights during the session, including strategies that businesses of varying sizes can incorporate to start fostering workplace wellbeing.??

Empowering Leadership?

Erin Gooey from Medibank told us that up-skilling leaders to establish authentic connections with their teams had been essential in creating a mentally healthy workplace. High-functioning teams and organisations are built on trust and connection, and leadership helps steer this direction when they're willing to share vulnerabilities. Defining what leadership truly means in your workplace and ensuring your leaders (and aspiring leaders) are willing to play this role is critical to building a culture of wellbeing.

Wellbeing is everyone’s responsibility

In the same breath, it was also discussed that team wellbeing is not the responsibility of a single individual. For example, Medibank has appointed wellbeing champions in all business sectors to facilitate the spread of positive mental health practices and learning. Building a positive wellbeing culture is a collective responsibility, and it takes practise.

Understand staff needs - wellbeing surveys?

How do we learn what employees want, need and experience in the workplace? Well... We ask them. All three panelists (and Hugh) agreed that wellbeing surveys can be an effective way to help understand and address staff needs, providing valuable insights into employees' perceptions and experiences. Mel Wainwright from NAB emphasised the importance of setting the scene before sending out surveys to ensure feedback is genuinely valued and will be acted upon. The good news is that this doesn’t have to be an overly complicated process. You could use a wellbeing survey provider or simply ask some wellbeing questions through an internal form. Culture Amp’s set of wellbeing questions, which is grounded in research, could be a great place to start.?Click here for Culture Amp's set of wellbeing questions.

The 4-day work week

A popular topic in workplace wellbeing is the 4-day work week, which envisions a world where we don’t count down to public holidays for extra time off. Erin shared that Medibank, in collaboration with Macquarie University, are midway through a 6-month trial of a 4-day work week aimed at enhancing productivity and work-life balance. To make this work, Medibank first sought to identify and eliminate low-value tasks and then reduce the number and duration of meetings. Interim results show positive outcomes, including increased work engagement, reduced staff turnover, a 13% boost in overall health, more employees exercising, and better work detachment. Complementing this approach, NAB has implemented an initiative called ‘Wellness Wednesdays’ which provides a 3-hour “no-meeting” window every Wednesday for employees to focus on activities like building authentic connections, upskilling, or exercising. If you'd like like to read more on the topic, here's a great article from The University of Queensland.

Bite-size & accessible online wellbeing content

It'll come as no surprise to anyone that our ability to pay attention is on the decline - especially as we consume more and more things digitally. For any wellbeing initiative to be successful, it's important to deliver concise, impactful messages to keep employees engaged. Brooke Dwyer from Qantas spoke to the benefits of implementing The Resilience Project’s Digital Wellbeing Series: “With 82% of our 32,000-person workforce being service-based or front-line, we needed a way to deliver digestible and accessible wellbeing content," said Brooke. "The GEM (Gratitude, Empathy, Mindfulness) formula worked for us as it provided a common language that facilitated cultural change." By delivering easily-digestible information in an accessible 'micro-learning' format, organisations can foster a supportive and resilient workplace culture.

Every organisation is unique and so there is no one-size-fits-all approach to workplace wellbeing. While not all businesses can implement 4-day work weeks, appoint wellbeing champions, or conduct wellbeing surveys - prioritising wellbeing (in any capacity) can have a profound impact on staff and business outcomes. We hope these insights provide a few ingredients to help you create your own wellbeing recipe for your workplace.

If you missed the webinar, but would like to watch the recording you can do so here. If you’re interested in looking at The Resilience Project’s ‘Discovering Resilience’ Workplace Wellbeing Program, you can read more here.?