Health and Wellness in the workplace – Lunch & Learn

Health and Wellness was the hot topic of discussion at our lunch and learn event in London on 20 March. Clients and brokers joined us at Ironmongers’ Hall to learn more about the connection between workplace culture, employee health and productivity. Dr Leena Johns, Head of Health & Wellness at MAXIS, presented an interesting and eye-opening view of workplace culture. 

She addressed the benefits a positive workplace culture has on its employees and how a positive one can improve the overall success of a organisation. Some of the benefits can include lower healthcare costs, reduced staff turnover and greater financial results for companies. 

Dr Leena summarised the visible and invisible elements that make up workplace culture, how they can impact health and highlighted that culture is often a business’ health and wellness ‘blind-spot’. 

Financial wellness

We were also lucky enough to be joined by our network partners during our Lunch and Learn.

Jo Elphick, Marketing Director at MetLife UK, presented some fascinating insights into the world of financial wellness and focused on how financial wellness, or a lack of, impacts employees around the world, using data from MetLife’s Employee Benefits Trend Studies. 

Jo also talked about some practical solutions to help employers care for the financial wellness of their staff.  

She said that successfully engaging employees is an important factor when reviewing a financial wellness strategy and planning a variety of channels for delivering the message of financial wellness – from intuitive digital options, convenient online messaging and in-person guidance.

Lifestyle impacts on workplace health

With more and more employers realising the benefits of addressing their health and wellness concerns, understanding exactly which lifestyle factors matter most is vital. Chris Tomkins, COO Proactive Health at AXA PPP Healthcare, presented the trends seen in employees with a ‘poor’ lifestyle and the immediate impact this has on their health and the potential success of a business.   

Chris showed the direct link between cognitive performance in the workplace and healthy behaviours, including fitness, nutrition, lifestyle and mindset. According to AXA PPP’s healthcare data, high risk individuals are shown to drop out of the workforce, leading to individuals losing income and organisations losing experienced staff – again, highlighting the importance of looking after your employees!

Thanks to Leena, Jo and Chris for providing a morning of interesting and thought-provoking discussions.

Replay Dr. Leena’s webinar on workplace culture and download our whitepaper on the same topic – it’s a fascinating read.