The idea of employee well-being is nothing new. Every organization, including colleges and universities, wants happy and healthy employees yet, few organizations actually take the necessary steps to support their employees’ well-being.
Nowadays, organizations need to have a great benefits package in order to attract and retain top talent. Some institutions have succeeded by focusing on improving their benefits plan. These organizations took action by implementing well-being programs which have become very popular over the years. These well-being programs usually include annual screenings, wellness events, on-site medical practitioners and nurses, fitness centers and health education. You might say that some of these companies are well on their way to exceeding their efforts to ensure employees’ have the resources they need. While it seems like some of them have it figured out, there is one key aspect that is missing from the well-being equation; that is engagement. While organizations might have the right resources in place, many employees fail to take advantage of these resources and therefore they become unhappy and unhealthy employees. This is where organizational leaders come in. Organizational leaders often forget the significant impact they make when it comes to influencing their employees.
Why leaders need to pay attention to employee’s well-being?
Every leader wants productive and engaged employees. Leaders count on their employees to use their skills and capabilities to deliver the best quality of work in hopes to reach goals and objectives while contributing to its overall growth. Leaders have the ability to empower their employees to do their best.
Organizations are spending on average $742 on each employee per year on wellness. On the other hand, disengagement costs are up to $550 billion a year. Realistically, costs add up fast, but what if companies are able to see others benefit from their investment? About 54 percent of American companies have wellness programs in place but only about 40 percent say they benefit from the program and one-third don’t use them at all.
Employees who engage in their well-being are generally happy and motivated to bring their best self to the workplace. As a result, happy and healthy employees are generally better performers; making them present at work, reducing absenteeism. Most importantly, they are committed and loyal to their leaders because they know they’re leaders have a sincere interest in their overall well-being.
What can leaders do?
