Improving employee motivation.

According to a 2018 study by reward and recognition consultant, Motivates, the proportion of people saying they are not motivated at work rose to 29% in 2017, from 18% the previous year. Amongst reasons such as lack of career progression and poor communication from senior management, over a fifth of respondents said they have a poor work-life balance and 27% cited they have concerns about health and wellbeing.

By investing in the physical and mental wellbeing of your employees and encouraging a healthy balanced lifestyle, you can expect to improve workplace motivation and as a result, productivity, absenteeism and staff retention. Our recent social media poll at Health Shield provides significant evidence for this, as 57% of people said that if their employer proactively supported their mental wellbeing, it would help them to feel more loyal, be more productive and take less time off. Our poll also revealed that 62% of people said that if their employer proactively supported their mental wellbeing, it would help them with a better work-life balance, another subject that came up in the Motivates survey.

We’ve come up with three simple suggestions to help you improve workplace motivation through supporting the health and wellbeing of your employees:

Improving Employee Health and Wellbeing:

Health and wellbeing solutions in the workplace are often disjointed, treating health issues in silos rather than aiming to improve the employee’s overall health. Implementing a holistic wellbeing strategy which treats physical and mental health in a coordinated way is a great place to start. At Health Shield, our Health Cash Plans offer integrated treatment pathways tailored to the individual, allowing for the right care at the right time. Our plans allow employees to seek support for physical and mental health issues in a coordinated way, with benefits including money back* on everyday healthcare costs, our NHS-approved** mental health app, On-Demand Physio, our GP Anytime service, access to a 24/7 Support and Counselling Helpline, access to face-to-face counselling and many more. Good health is a fundamental part of employee motivation and a Health Cash Plan which focuses on prevention and early intervention is a great way to support employees to stay in the best of health.

Encouraging Work-Life Balance:

By encouraging a healthy work-life balance through benefits such as Flexi Time, generous annual leave and discouraging working from home, your employees are more likely to feel engaged and motivated at work. Rest is as important as hard work and giving your employees the chance to de-stress and unwind is a necessary part of improving workplace productivity, as employees who feel drained and overworked are likely to feel underappreciated, fed up and demotivated. Our mental health app, Thrive, is a great aid to de-stressing. The app allows users to unwind on a remote, idyllic island and leave behind the stresses of their day. Designed to track and monitor progress, Thrive also enables employers to download anonymous progress reports (if the app has over 50 active users within the same company) detailing the general mental health of their organisation over time, providing insights into the effectiveness of the app and an idea of return on investment.

Introducing Incentives and Rewards:

When asked what would motivate them more than their basic salary, nearly a third (32%) of Motivates survey participants cited incentives and rewards as a motivating factor beyond salary. Introducing a recognition portal or a reward scheme is a great way of giving back to your employees and showing that they are appreciated. A Health Screening Programme is also an attractive company benefit and a means of rewarding staff for their hard work by taking an active role in monitoring and improving their health. Even simply thanking your employees and acknowledging their hard work can be effective in improving motivation. Our recent social media poll supports this, as we found that 1 in 3 people said that poor managerial support prevents them from thriving at work and is an issue they currently face. Bill Alexander, Chairman at Motivates, commented: ‘People are getting satisfaction from a good work-life balance, working with great peers and a manager who shows their appreciation with reward, recognition and a thank you.’

* Up to agreed limits.

** The app meets NHS quality standards for clinical effectiveness, safety, usability and accessibility and has a supportive evidence base.

Sources:

https://www.employeebenefits.co.uk/third-employees-poorly-motivated/