The Benefits of Focusing on Employee Well-Being

Employee well-being includes monitoring and taking steps to address both physical and mental well-being, as well as opportunities for advancement and a sense of belonging and inclusion.

This article was first published on July 5, 2023, by HR Daily Advisor, a sibling publication to HealthLeaders, and has been adapted for HealthLeaders.

Although there are many examples of friendships and romances in the workplace, it’s typically a professional environment where people keep personal feelings and information private. This tendency has increased significantly in workplaces that shifted to remote work in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is unfortunate because improving overall employee well-being can have important and positive impacts on the engagement, loyalty, productivity, and innovation of a workforce.

Although the term is broad, employee well-being includes monitoring and taking steps to address both physical and mental well-being, as well as opportunities for advancement and a sense of belonging and inclusion.

Self-Awareness

One of the biggest benefits of well-being programs is they often encourage employees to do some sort of self-evaluation—for example, to identify key strengths and weaknesses or sources of stress or anxiety.

By better understanding their current skills, areas for improvement, and mindset, employees are better positioned to improve their performance.

Feedback Loop

Another key benefit of well-being programs is the creation of valuable feedback loops and channels of communication among employees, their managers, HR teams, learning and development professionals, and others. These are vehicles for employees to express concerns or share feedback on company policies and initiatives, as well as to receive valuable feedback themselves.

The office isn’t intended to be a place where people overly share personal information, but employees’ general well-being does impact their work, and it’s influenced by a variety of factors that aren’t necessarily work-related.

When structured appropriately and with genuine business objectives in mind, employee wellness programs can successfully bridge the gap between the professional world and the outside factors that drive performance.