Insights: Why employee wellbeing is key for productivity

Employee wellbeing has become a priority for organisations since the start of the Covid pandemic. While dealing with the direct and indirect impact of the pandemic on employees, it has become clear that an effective wellbeing package needs to take a holistic approach to meet and support their needs and demands.

The demand for holistic employee wellness programmes has never been greater – in view of the rising concern to address employees’ mental health and burnout issues to providing them with real-time, personalised telehealth services. Encompassing mental, physical, and spiritual health, holistic wellness has evolved as a strong focus area for employees across societies and geographies.

The evolution of this landscape means that the employees are increasingly looking to their employers for resources that go beyond the traditional benefit offerings, including how employees consume health and wellness.

During the ‘Great Resignation’ phase amidst the pandemic, the importance of health and health insurance came into focus for employers to retain their best talent. According to a survey we conducted with US-based health insurance provider, Oscar, 47 per cent of the small business owners felt their companies would lose out on the best workers if they couldn’t offer competitive benefits and 60 per cent said they limited healthcare benefit options because of high costs.

Tailored solutions
In view of this, it has become imperative for employers to be abreast of the healthcare and wellbeing benefits being offered to the employees, and to ensure that the solutions are what employees truly need.

Companies need to prioritise the work-life balance, by identifying overwork in teams, open channels of communications, and focus on rewarding outcomes and value-addition rather than the working hours. Companies also need to provide overall support – from increased flexibility to empathy, career growth and upskilling opportunities, to remain competitive, besides identifying health insurance plans that meet the needs of the organisation, with telehealth access for employees and tailored wellness programme to cater to the employees.

Overall, empathy is critical, and employers need to provide mental health and resilience programmes for employees and managers to get the best results. Employers who stay ahead of this shift and offer the vital healthcare benefits to their employees will earn their loyalty, and ensure a more cohesive, resilient, and engaged workforce.

The writer is the CEO of Cigna MEA and SEA