The complex, always-on modern workplace is raising the stress levels of employees everywhere. Yet a healthy and happy employee is the key to unlocking innovation and ultimate business success, says Anton Fester, Director at Sedna Industrial IT Solutions.
“The modern employee needs to be as mentally and physically fit as possible to tackle the challenges of today. There is a very strong connection between wellness and operational success and so it is crucial employers do more to ensure their employees are given the tools to cope,” he says.
And this has nothing to do with offering advanced excel training. “A wellness programme must ensure they are mentally as fit as possible to tackle these challenges,” says Fester.
“Every workplace has been challenging through the ages, but I think many employers are becoming more understanding. They are realising you can’t just look at people in isolation and focus on activities that drive output. That is just the tip of the iceberg – 90% of the heavy lifting is actually happening under the surface and it is here where a complete wellness approach really comes to the party,” he says.
According to Fester, a holistic yet flexible view to wellness is needed.
“There must be more ways to differentiate and reward work delivery and to encourage mental agility and innovation. If you get it right then employee wellbeing leads to greater level of satisfaction and enjoyment in the workplace.
“We live in a talent-scare environment and so greater wellness will also give us an added edge against competitors – more people want to work for you and those who do, stay,” he says.
To ensure Sedna – a technology solution pioneer in the industrial and mining space – delivers a holistic wellness journey for its staff, it has joined forces with Strove, which has built a comprehensive employee app-based wellbeing solution. Via the Strove app, employees have access to the tools, knowledge and incentives they need to lead a healthier and more balanced life. The solution includes activity tracking, healthy competition, wellness challenges, meditation and sleep content, guided video workouts, 1:1 behavioural coaching and therapy, rewards, and personal health insights and analytics.
The mobile app gives employees access to the following resources and features:
- Physical wellbeing – integrations to activity trackers (Apple Health, Fitbit, Garmin etc) enable employees to sync wellbeing activities into the Strove app.
- Mental wellbeing – meditations, breathing exercises, sleep stories and mental health screening tools.
- Rewards – vouchers from brands such as Amazon, Nike, Adidas and more can be redeemed with points earned for wellbeing activities.
- Social connection – company and departmental leaderboards drive healthy internal competition.
- Personal motivation – monthly challenges, activity streaks and feats keep employees engaged and motivated.
- Virtual consults – employees can book 1:1 sessions with life coaches, counsellors, nutritionists and therapists to assist with personal and professional matters.
Via the admin web app, HR and leadership teams gain access to aggregated health data and insights that can be used to inform HR and people management strategies.
“We have started rolling this out and our staff are very excited and enjoying getting on this journey. The flexibility ensures they get involved at the level which suits them. Through improving our wellbeing initiatives, we aim to increase productivity, retention, engagement and the employee value proposition (EVP),” concludes Fester.
