Experts from Mitie, Heathrow, and Jacobs shared challenges and solutions to keeping Board-level investment in wellbeing at our Make A Difference Webinar this November.
We started the event by asking attendees a simple poll question:
What do you believe is your Board’s main priority when it comes to the wellbeing of your people?
- Reduce cost (i.e., staff absence, loss of productivity, cost of replacement workers)
- Reduce risk (i.e., ESG goals, insufficient staffing levels, employment tribunals)
- Enhance employer brand (i.e., being able to attract and retain the best talent, D&I goals)
And in a result that surprised some, 50% of attendees selected option 'c', perhaps indicating a 'shifting of the dial' in terms of Board-level perceptions of the value of a healthy workforce.
Indeed, among the many topics covered were:
- More progressive senior leadership styles, and the art of art of appealing to different leaders' viewpoints to secure buy-in; 'hearts vs. minds' and 'emotion vs. data'.
- The power of data in illustrating the value of employee wellbeing; understanding what metrics are useful, and how to translate them into a meaningful narrative and measurable actions.
- The value of staff absence data beyond cost alone, and how to understand the indirect costs associated with absence.
- And how to achieve an accurate understanding of the impact of employee wellbeing across large organisations, particularly when health and wellbeing teams are limited, nurturing shared responsibility and upskilling line management.
We'd like to thank our expert panel for their time and insights:
- Rebecca Eaton, Group Occupational Health and Wellbeing Lead at Mitie
- Luke Woodward, Health and Wellbeing Senior Programme Manager at Heathrow
- Paul Hendry, Global Vice President for HSE at Jacobs
- Jonathan Best (Chair), Chief Customer Officer at GoodShape
Watch the webinar in full below.
And to learn more on 'Getting board-level buy-in for better wellbeing', download our free guide here.
50% who responded to our MAD Webinar poll said 'enhancing employer brand' is their Board's top priority for employee wellbeing support. (27% said 'reduce cost' and 19% said 'reduce risk'.) 
