The
attendance and depth of engagement at the Workplace Trends Spring Summit (26th
March) on the Healthy Workplace showed the high level of interest in the
subject. As is common now, debate spilled out across social media, with 141
contributors posting over 1,000 tweets.
AMA’s Alexi Marmot set the scene in her
opening presentation by reminding the audience not to think about workplace
health in the narrow sense of the absence of discomfort or pain but in the
broader sense of wellbeing. Indeed, the World Health Organisation’s definition
of health as far back as 1948 was "a state of complete physical, mental,
and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”
It’s important
to remember that the “office” is not the typical workplace for many people and
many occupations, she said. In some parts of the world the workplace is
hazardous and can severely limit life expectancy. Over 1,000 workers died when
a Bangladesh garment factory collapsed in 2013.
Alexi
described how wellbeing has been adopted as a goal by many companies, agencies
and governments and is now the subject of academic study, including attempts to
link it with productivity. She suggested keeping in mind the three dimensions
of wellbeing – individual, organisation and planet.
From an
individual perspective, the New Economics Foundation has proposed five ways to achieve
wellbeing: Connect; Be Active; Take Notice; Keep Learning and Give. At an
organisational level, many of the schemes to promote or recognise good
workplaces put much more emphasis on factors such as stress, autonomy, pride
and trust than on the physical environment.
However,
said Marmot, when trying to improve wellbeing you should think about the
physical workplace as well as individual behaviour, job design and the
organisation.
Addressing
the current interest in standing at work, Marmot says: ““Too many offices make it clear that the norm
is sitting. They don’t provide places to stand, walk or just to work
differently. Prioritising short term efficiency over productivity is part of
the problem. Clients, designers and managers should think about the longer-term
implications for both individuals and organisations. As well as being
healthier, activity and movement in the workplace can stimulate innovation,
creativity and communication.”
There
may be a lot of interest in workplace wellbeing, said Bridget Juniper
(occupational psychologist and founder of employee health and performance
advisers Work and Well-Being Ltd.) but there’s a very small evidence base.
She is
very critical of employee surveys - the popular Gallup Q12 employee
engagement survey, for
example, does not reference the
workplace. Employee well-being is subjective and dynamic, said Juniper: “It’s
employees’ interpretation of an event rather than the event itself.” Therefore,
it’s essential to rank what is important to each employee, rather than dealing
in averages and generalities.
Picking
up on a common FM theme, she said: “We rarely see HR and workplace come together
at the outset of a project. Why is workplace so neglected in discussions on
leveraging staff costs and performance?”
Call
centres typically have high sickness and attrition rates. Juniper presented a case study that
used impact analysis to identify how employees’ work affected their well-being.
The assessment used 33 questions across eight “domains” including facilities.
Five of the top ten issues were workplace related.
Picking
up Juniper’s point about the paucity of evidence, Tom Helliwell of architects
and designers Pringle Brandon Perkins + Will, said that few companies measure the
results of changes to the workplace, leading to a vicious circle of lack of
data on which to base future decisions.
Helliwell
explained how “big data” could help. He ran through the multiple sources of
information on individual behaviours and building performance that could be
combined to create a picture of what’s happening in the workplace. These
include network log-ins, access control data, restaurant use, and online
diaries. Some metrics, such as tracking what food people buy and how
frequently, have Big Brother connotations . Would people accept such
"surveillance" even in their own interests?
Sound
in the workplace receives less attention than aesthetics, ergonomics or
technology. Paige Hodsman, a “concept developer” with acoustic ceiling supplier
Ecophon, said that there’s a 20 year history of dissatisfaction with acoustics.
It was somewhat ironic that she was speaking in a space where the acoustic
treatment has been stripped out to create an industrial aesthetic!
Research
shows that noise affects performance. The Leesman Index found that noise levels
are a top ten factor in the “effective workplace” and over a quarter of
respondents were dissatisfied with them. Lack of control and privacy are key
acoustics issues for workers, said Hodsman: “Overheard conversation is a
particular problem as we don't habituate to people talking as we might to other
background sounds.”
Hodsman offered some practical advice on workplace design to improve
acoustics. Locate collaboration spaces away from other workspaces rather than
placing them centrally. Provide visual cues to guide behaviour. For example
spaces may be labelled or designed as “cafes” or “libraries”. Map noisy and quiet
individuals and teams and control workplace density. Promote “acoustic
etiquette” to manage loud talking, interruptions and ring tones and to provide do
not disturb signals.
Australian private health insurer Medibank set out to embed the values implied
by its ‘For Better Health’ slogan in the new 46,000 sq m headquarters it was
building in Melbourne’s docklands. Anthony Dickens of architects Hassell
described how the design of the new workplace was part of a major cultural
change plan for Medibank, transforming it from a traditional health insurance
business to a healthcare provider focused on preventative health and wellbeing.
The result is an evolution of activity based working that places the mental
and physical health of people at its heart. According to Dickens, the aim was
“a living and green building inside and out; that encourages movement, supports
social connection and provides spaces that allow for rejuvenation of the mind.”
The astonishing atrium at the heart of the building, with its sinuous
staircases, encourages movement and communication. Across the building, staff
can choose from 22 different types of work setting to match their task and
perhaps their mood. On the non-dedicated “plaza” floor, Hassell collaborated
with four other designers to bring variety to zones designated: Healthy,
Collaboration, Innovation and Inspiration.
The results? 79% of staff surveyed say they feel more collaborative; 71%
say they feel more connected to Medibank’s “for better health” mission; 70% say
they are healthier; 66% of staff feel more productive; and there’s been a 5% reduction
in absenteeism in the call centre.
It’s encouraging that we’re seeing renewed interest in the way work
affects health, not just from the narrow perspective of absence and
productivity but with a broader view of wellbeing. What’s needed now is more
solid research to build the evidence base and a commitment from workplace
professionals to incorporate findings in design and management.
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