Affinity Health at Work’s Post

What makes a good #wellbeingprofessional? Supporting the growth of professionals working in wellbeing at work is something I’m deeply passionate about. These professionals are essential to creating healthier workplaces, yet many face challenges due to the lack of a clear framework grounded in evidence-based practice. That’s why I’m so excited to share Affinity Health at Work’s latest research project: ‘Developing a Professional Framework for Wellbeing Professionals.’ This project aims to empower professionals and organisations by defining professional pathways, enhancing recognition, and ensuring the foundation for these roles is firmly rooted in evidence-based approaches. If your organisation is committed to advancing wellbeing through rigorous, impactful practice, please do join us!

As we add the final touches to this year's research around 📌 Interventions to address work demands 📌 I am really excited to launch our research topic for 2025. 🌟 We are going to be asking 'What are the key knowledge areas, skills, attributes and activities required by Wellbeing Professionals?' 📑 We will be developing a professional framework for Wellbeing Professionals. ❓❓Why are we doing this and why are we focusing on this topic? ✔️ With the focus on the importance of wellbeing in organisations increasing, so too is interest in, and need for wellbeing professionals without a clear professional pathway or framework, and with a focus on wellbeing spanning many professional bodies, there is a barrier for both organisations and wellbeing professionals ✔️This research will help wellbeing professionals to identify their progression pathways ✔️ This research will help organisations to know who to recruit, who to retain, and how to develop in order to best manage wellbeing ✔️ Having a professional framework will be a key step in gaining recognition for this vital group of professionals. If you would like to be involved or get more information, do get in touch!

New report this week: A joint research project by the British Safety Council and the UK Institute of Occupational Medicine investigated current employer practices in supporting employee wellbeing, with research conducted between June 2023 and September 2024. The research found that 87% of employers ground their wellbeing strategies in health and safety, recognizing the interconnectedness of these aspects. Furthermore, 70% of surveyed organizations linked their purpose to the wellbeing of their workers, indicating a growing awareness of its importance. However, a disconnect persists between the existing knowledge about wellbeing and its practical implementation in workplaces. The research recommends a multifaceted approach to improve worker wellbeing. This includes:  - Developing standardized metrics to assess wellbeing.  - Aligning wellbeing offerings with occupational health and safety strategies.  - Fostering an industry-wide culture of learning and sharing best practices.  - Grounding wellbeing strategies in a holistic approach that recognizes individual and group needs.  Read the full article: https://lnkd.in/eNxxAQDm

I attended an excellent webinar yesterday, where I got an insight into the value of neuroscience in improving employee health and wellbeing. However, a question came up in the chat about the responsibility of managing your health and wellbeing. The conversation started off by saying it is an individual’s responsibility and it took quite a while for someone to talk about the therapeutic value of “good work” Yes, managing your health and wellbeing is a personal responsibility, but if you have a poorly designed job in an organisation where there is a poor culture, the emphasis should also be on the employer’s side as well to make sure that they aren’t part of the cause of any decline of employee’s health and wellbeing. At SOHAS we are seeing an increasing number of people coming to use for advice and support because their job is poorly designed this is increasing their stress levels. We often find that lots of organisations don’t understand the dynamics of what is making their employee stressed and, in a few cases, they just don’t care because they don’t value their employees. I think that the next 12 months will see an increase in changes to employment and how employees perceive the value of their job. Culture will come back to being the top metric as to whether they stay or go and find a better job that aligns to what they want from employment.    The challenge for employers is to understand the dynamics of change in terms of their employees health and wellbeing and what they can do to mitigate any negative impacts.  

What do we mean by workplace wellbeing? The starting point of our work on developing a culture of staff wellbeing across the NHS is that fostering wellbeing is emphatically not the same as strengthening resilience, the ability to bounce back from difficulty.  As the Mayo Clinic say in their excellent book, 'Strategies to Reduce Burnout' (2020), focusing on building resilience can leave “staff feeling blamed for the failings of the organisation and systems and that they are at fault for not taking better care of themselves.” Whilst we all need to skilfully navigate workplace challenges, we do not subscribe to this underlying “strong worker” or “hero leader” mindset.  Instead, our aim is to generate the conditions that influence “how positive an employee feels in their job, which inevitably influences their sense of purpose, belonging and productivity.” (William Fleming, Wellbeing Research Centre, Oxford University, 2024); where we see occupational wellbeing as “feeling good and functioning effectively” (Professor Felicia Huppert) at work. In other words, we are actively “changing the workplace factors that affect wellbeing and effectiveness at work, rather than focusing on ways to help people cope with negative working environments” (The King’s Fund, The Courage of Compassion, 2020). Our future posts will describe these factors and how we’re starting to change them. #TheKingsFund #OxfordWellbeingCentre #MayoClinic #NHS #WorkplaceWellbeing #Leadership #LeadershipDevelopment

This week I am heading off on holiday! Recently, our leader, Rob, suggested that I look at my holiday days to MAXIMISE my time off. 🌞 In a world where many managers might prioritise business needs over employee wellbeing, Rob's gesture stands out. It's a testament to our company's commitment to wellbeing—showing that we don't just talk the talk, but we also walk the walk. 🚶♂️ This emphasis on prioritising employee health and happiness is a core part of our wellbeing offering. It's incredibly refreshing to be part of a team that values balance and understands that a well-rested, happy team is ultimately more productive and engaged. We've seen the positive impact of our approach firsthand through our work with Northumbria University. Our "Taking Control Of Your Work and Your Wellbeing" workshops have been incredibly well-received. Over 110 employees attended these workshops over a 12-month period, and the feedback was fantastic. Read more about our collaboration with Northumbria University in our case study below. Tailored Thinking

What do we mean by workplace wellbeing? The starting point of our work on developing a culture of staff wellbeing across the NHS is that fostering wellbeing is emphatically not the same as strengthening resilience, the ability to bounce back from difficulty.  As the Mayo Clinic say in their excellent book, 'Strategies to Reduce Burnout' (2020), focusing on building resilience can leave “staff feeling blamed for the failings of the organisation and systems and that they are at fault for not taking better care of themselves.” Whilst we all need to skilfully navigate workplace challenges, we do not subscribe to this underlying “strong worker” or “hero leader” mindset.  Instead, our aim is to generate the conditions that influence “how positive an employee feels in their job, which inevitably influences their sense of purpose, belonging and productivity.” (William Fleming, Wellbeing Research Centre, Oxford University, 2024); where we see occupational wellbeing as “feeling good and functioning effectively” (Professor Felicia Huppert) at work. In other words, we are actively “changing the workplace factors that affect wellbeing and effectiveness at work, rather than focusing on ways to help people cope with negative working environments” (The King’s Fund, The Courage of Compassion, 2020). Our future posts will describe these factors and how we’re starting to change them. If you would like to find out more about our NHS wellbeing work, please contact us at admin@livingpotentialconsulting.com. #TheKingsFund #OxfordWellbeingCentre #MayoClinic #NHS #WorkplaceWellbeing #Leadership #LeadershipDevelopment

British Safety Council and Institute of Occupational Medicine (IOM) have conducted a joint research project “Being Well in a Changing World,” which delves into the current practices that employers are implementing to support (or improve) the wellbeing of their workforce. The research identified several key findings: Lack of agreed definition: There is no universally accepted definition of wellbeing, leading to inconsistencies in research and practice. Measurement challenges: The absence of a standardised metric for measuring wellbeing complicates the assessment and comparison of wellbeing across different organisations and sectors. Diverse perspectives: Wellbeing priorities differ among various demographics and subgroups, highlighting the need for a more inclusive and targeted approach. Impact of change: Rapid technological, environmental, and social changes will define the next century, leading to uncertainty and anxiety for employers and employees alike. Policy and practice gaps: There is a disconnect between academic wellbeing research and its practical application, necessitating further research and integration. The report makes 5 principal recommendations to ensure that worker wellbeing is better supported. These are: Create and adopt standardised metrics for assessing wellbeing Align workplace wellbeing offerings with wider occupational health and safety strategies Foster an industry wide culture that encourages organisations to learn from each other Ground wellbeing strategies in a holistic approach to health, safety and wellbeing Ensure wellbeing strategies work at an organisation, person-by-person, and group level. There seems to be an enormous opportunity to include the topic of values in this exploration and yet it is not mentioned once in the report (unless I missed it! 😊 #wellbeing #leadership #employeeexperience #employeeengagement #values You can download the report at https://lnkd.in/eYHhK_q6

Big things are coming for Wellbeing Leads, HR, and Health & Safety professionals in 2025 from the Wellbeing Lead Academy ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️ We know you’re tackling some of the biggest challenges in workplace wellbeing: 💼 Building business cases that influence leadership 📉 Reducing stress-related sickness absence costs 🧠 Ensuring neuro-inclusion in your wellbeing strategy ⚖️ Staying legally compliant with Health and Safety Executive obligations That’s why we’ve created 4 free, high-impact events to help you hit the ground running in 2025: 1️⃣ From Data to Decision: Creating a Compelling Wellbeing Business Case 📅 30th January, 10-11 AM 2️⃣ Rethinking Inclusion: How to Make Your Workplace Neuro-Inclusive with guest speaker Sean Riley CPsychol AFBPsS from Pensa Psychology Ltd 📅 11th February, 12-1 PM 3️⃣ Wellbeing Strategy Sprint: Develop a High-Impact Strategy in 5 Steps 📅 24th February, 11 AM-12 PM 4️⃣ Work-Related Stress: Your Legal Duty and How to Cut Sickness Absence Costs 📅 3rd March, 1-2 PM These sessions are short, practical, and packed with actionable insights to help you overcome challenges and build confident, impactful wellbeing strategies in 2025. 📢 Want to be the first to register when these go live on the 6th of January? 👉 Follow us on Eventbrite here: https://lnkd.in/eWSSAcCw #WorkplaceWellbeing #WellbeingStrategy #HR #HealthAndSafety #WellbeingLead #WellbeingLeadAcademy #NeurodiversityAtWork #WorkRelatedStress

Hence proven! Employee wellbeing is now a thing. Day 1 of IBEForuM Wellbeing Summit has been refreshing, enriching and rewarding. So many organisations are putting their best foot forward for employee wellbeing. When I started working on this topic more than a decade ago, it was difficult to imagine that it would become so widespread as an initiative in organisations. I think back to my Brunel University London days and think how much Universities have been ahead of the game in terms of wellbeing, inclusion and integration. We used to have an organic fruit and veg farmers market each week, pilates for staff, a bank on campus, EA dedicated counselling lines, support groups for different groups, and so much more. There is still stigma around needs. Mental and emotional wellbeing needs are often still seen as being an indicator of poor performance in the future, for example. Carers needs, respite needs, life transitional needs, there are so many in a life span. Not everyone is fortunate enough to have a nursery, a grocery and a herbadashery at work but still, there is much to celebrate. I'm keen to know how organisations are meeting employee wellbeing needs, not just as data but as life experience you may wish to share. Have you ever benefitted from an organisation's employee wellbeing strategy? Do share here. #wellbeing #work