Employee Wellness Programs, Workplace Innovation and the Bottom Line

What makes a great place to work? It’s an essential question in all businesses, but especially senior housing and services.

For insights into that question, we’ve turned to Robin Dunbar, vice president of human resources at Ecumen. Ecumen was recently named #11 on the Star Tribune’s “Top Workplace in Minnesota” list and the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal has honored the company as one of its “Best Places to Work” consistently since 2005.

CA Blog: What role does innovation play in creating a great workplace?

Dunbar: It’s extremely important because innovations come from people who are highly engaged in their work, enjoy it and want to make things better. We strive to provide ample opportunities for people to share their ideas and create a culture of collaboration and courage to turn ideas into reality.

An example of this is our recent launch of an online social media tool called Ecumen Idea Box, which is designed for employees, most of whom are separated by geography, to share ideas and connect with each other to try new approaches or make existing ones better. Innovation is a contact sport, and through Idea Box and other venues we seek to foster connections.

We also keep our ears wide open because workplace innovations can come from employees, customers, vendors – virtually anyone that is connected with our work environments.

CA Blog: What new trends are you seeing in companies striving to create a better workplace?

Dunbar: More and more companies are realizing how valuable of a resource people are and designing workplaces differently. For example, you now hear a lot about companies and their wellness programs. Employee wellness wasn’t as big a topic 10 years ago. Our local business journal just recognized the top corporate wellness programs. That’s new.

We’re seeing more flexible work schedules, where people are empowered to work in the way they find best to get the work done, rather than be tethered to a specific schedule in a specific place. That’s not as easy to do when you’re providing direct care for someone, but I think in the United States we’ll find new ways to provide more flexibility in the direct care area, also. I’d like to see us lead the way in that.

Another changing area is more employers recognizing the role of the family in one’s work life. For example, more and more employees are balancing caregiving for children and/or adult parents. That reality led us to create a flexible leave package the provides caregiver leave when they need to care for a seriously ill family member.

CA Blog: How can companies create a pro-employee culture that also benefits the bottom line?

Dunbar: I think a positive financial culture and positive financial performance go hand in hand. Without people, there are no products, no services, no business. Employees’ well-being has to be part of the overall business equation. It’s human nature to want to work in an environment that values you as a person and contributor.

One way to create a good culture that also is financially successful is to measure employee engagement just as you measure financial performance. It’s critically important to have an engaged work force. Another aspect that’s important is to look at a company’s “brand” much deeper than simply as a logo or piece of collateral. To build a strong brand and culture, you have to have team members who are aligned with the company’s values. As human beings we just feel more comfortable and more engaged in a place where we feel we fit. Another essential to creating a pro-employee culture that is also financially successful is to create a relationship of trust. If, for example, you say you empower people as a company, you have to back that up by empowering people.

CA Blog: What “little things” make a difference to employees?

Dunbar: I think the “little things” are actually big things. Showing gratitude, for example, is critically important. Gratitude doesn’t cost money. It’s simply one human being expressing appreciation and honor for another human being. Employees tell us one of the most important things to them is having a leader that will listen to them and that acknowledges their contribution in the work place.

Listening is another important thing we’re all capable of. No one has all the answers. Listening invites collaboration. Listening opens the door to possibilities. It tells the other person “I care.” And it’s an essential building block to creating a great workplace.

Robin Dunbar can be reached at 651-766-4351 or robindunbar@ecumen.org.