Have you ever given thought to the idea that perhaps you could (or would) do better if you felt better? Many people have given thought to this concept, and for good reason. As America’s job demands increase, employees continue to feel the burden of keeping up, often without any incentive or rewards for their extra effort. The result of this effort overload has been poor employee performance.
It’s been noted that lower levels of employee well being are responsible for about 33 percent of unsatisfactory business performances. These higher demands and lower performances have left many companies wondering how to get these two key elements aligned. One common solution is to improve employee well being.
Over the past few decades, numerous studies show that employee well being is directly related to employee performance. As a matter of fact, improving employee well being has shown an average return of business benefits on a 3:1 ratio, not only for general workers, but also for those at the top.
Extensive evidence shows that employees with higher levels of well being are more energetic, focused and positive. They are also more resilient and resourceful in how they work, thus producing significant performance gains. Not only that, employees with higher levels of well being have much lower levels of absence, illnesses, workplace accidents and disputes and conflicts with coworkers. Some evidence even shows that employee well being is more strongly correlated with performance than with job satisfaction.
Companies that implement even modest improvements of 10 percent in employee productivity gain an equivalent of 23 more working days a year instead of the current average of seven days of absenteeism. PwCalso conducted a major research project that showed for every $1 spent on employee well being, the company gained about $3 in cost saving performance gains.
For everyone, whether you’re a company or a worker, it may be worth noting that the largest untapped source of increased performance and competitive advantages may just well be in employee well being.
Author: Divya Parekh (ACC, CPC, LL, MS) is an international career leadership coach, Head Career Coach at International Coach Academy, and CEO of The DP Group. She assists executives, professionals, coaches and students plan, develop and achieve their career and leadership goals. She has been recognized by Worldwide Who’s Who as ‘VIP of the Year’ for showing dedication, leadership and excellence in leadership coaching. She has also been recognized by NAPW as a ‘VIP Woman of the 2014 Year’ for outstanding leadership and commitment in coaching. She is founder of the 1/1/1 Leader Project. The project prides itself on being simple. Set a goal. Work towards achieving it. Give someone a smile. Be nice to another person. Make the world a little bit nicer. It’s free so get started today!
Article References:
http://media.gallup.com/DOCUMENTS/whitePaper–Well-BeingInTheWorkplace.pdf
http://www.wellbeingwizard.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=415&Itemid=196