Productivity creates wellbeing: Josh Bersin’s HR Predictions 2023
Sharmila Gautama, Founder of EnglishCoach Services
The Josh Bersin report on HR Predictions for 2023, reports that one of the factors that CEOs and CHROs will focus on this year is ‘wellbeing’. The earlier mantra that wellbeing creates productivity is now changed to productivity creates wellbeing.
What was once considered a benefit, is today a strategy for corporate growth. Economics and technology are changing at a pace that demands highly skilled employees who can learn new skills fast. This makes them the most important ‘supply chain’ asset for the organization.
Howard Schulz, Chairman of Starbucks, recently mentioned that his company’s biggest challenge is the mental health of his employees. Morgan Stanley has a Chief Medical Officer who reports directly to the CEO. Employee burnout feedback from one of the largest telecommunications providers shows that 68% of employees felt they had ‘too much to do’ with managers getting in their way of doing work with too many meetings, interruptions or other projects. Ultimately, employee burnout is not a personal issue; it is a management problem.
Studies show that companies that adopted a 32-hour-a-week policy at the same pay as the old 40-hour-a-week regimen, found a 94% reduction in burnout and the amount of work that was produced was equal or higher. Manufacturers in Germany found that output decreased when workers worked more than 50 to 55 hours a week. Mercadona and Costco found that when they over-staffed their stores, profitability went up.
It is clear that in 2023, employee well-being will not only be an issue of benefits and insurance, but it will be a design issue, wherein when a company is designed for productivity, employee wellbeing will flourish.
