In HRchat episode 227, we discuss the importance of organizational culture and ways to measure it. My guest this time is Mary Marzec, Senior Strategy Health Scientist at Virgin Pulse.
Listen to this episode to get Mary’s take on how tech can help corporate wellbeing efforts and why measuring the effectiveness of your company culture is key to achieving investment-driven results like high job performance, resilience, and reduced healthcare costs.
Listen to this HRchat with Mary and discover:
- How can organizations start building a supportive culture of wellbeing? How does this help to increase employee engagement?
- How can organizations maintain a strong company culture and employee engagement during these difficult times?
- How can organizations establish a sense of culture with a dispersed workforce?
- In what ways have organizations’ ROI and VOI been impacted since COVID-19 forced many employees to begin working from home?
- In general terms, VOI measures the impact that the wellness program has on employees through increased productivity, higher employee morale, and a reduction in absenteeism. Why does VOI matter?
Key Quotes and Highlights:
Q: How can organizations start building a supportive culture of wellbeing and how does this help to increase employee engagement?
A: “It actually isn’t as hard as it sounds, culture seems like a very big nebulous thing to influence. You think about it in terms of it being the manifestation of all the physical and social influences on our lives and behaviors at work but in terms of your wellness programs, I like to break it down into very specific domains that are actually easy to measure.
One is leadership support; do leaders give support, do they even know about what wellbeing programs are offered? So many times wellness sits in the realm of HR and it almost doesn’t get out of that silo, but the if you have senior leadership engaged and supportive and encouraging people, you know, the difference that makes for your wellness program alone is huge! The second is about support (from) your managers to encourage healthy behaviors and participat(ing) in the wellbeing programs. The third is your policies; everything that people want to do in terms of their healthy behaviors needs to be surrounded by policies and an environment that supports them.”
Q: In what ways have organizations’ ROI and VOI been impacted since COVID-19 forced many employees to begin working from home?
A: “I think (there is) a huge opportunity for companies to support employees and emphasize health and wellbeing … I believe that, even post-COVID, this level of flexibility will probably be sustained in the workplace, as people have found benefits from the ability to have greater, work-life integration.
People feel that companies are valuing their wellbeing more than before, when it might’ve been taken for granted … Companies are offering greater flexibility around family care and the measures taken to protect people from COVID directly, has highlighted the importance of employees and their role in an organization as never before. So I think those are all things that have actually increased to VOI in terms of you know, employees, health and wellbeing.”
Q: How can organizations establish a sense of culture with a dispersed workforce?
A: “It isn’t just companies that are striving to maintain their culture and that sense of togetherness with employees being remote or in disparate locations. Supervisors and management teams are also struggling. So I’ll back up to the larger point of the company culture (and) … what are some helpful things that a company can actually do.
I think town hall meetings with the CEOs and senior leadership talking about their vision and plans and having a robust Q&A (can offer) that sense of stability – as much as is realistic and relevant, depending on the situation for that company.
Other ways that a company can help is by supporting charities and allowing people perhaps to donate their rewards or just participate in things that are in their community that are supported by their company. Some companies are also doing things like virtual 5k days where you’ll have a start time and an end time, and everybody does it from wherever they are, but you sort of have that sense of togetherness.”
About Mary Marzec, PhD
Mary is a Sr. Scientist with Virgin Pulse. She leads the workplace culture initiative. Dr. Marzec has over 12 years’ experience working with employers on population health and employee wellbeing strategies.
Previously at the University of Michigan, Mary led the development of the Workplace Culture of Health survey (aka Work & Wellbeing Check), which quantifies social determinants of health in the workplace environment and culture. This is a main component of Virgin Pulse’s Culture Check. By identifying strengths and opportunities, organizations can leverage cultural factors to more effectively support the health of their populations.
Mary has a master’s degree in Biostatistics and a PhD in Kinesiology, both from the University of Michigan. Her publication areas include the impact of population-based interventions on health risks and the use of structural equation modeling to identify predictors of health-related outcomes. With over 20 scientific publications, she has received multiple outstanding research awards and frequently presents at various speaking venues.