| Business Leadership
Corporate wellness is when a company as a whole, and not just individual employees, designs its practices around healthy behaviours that boost the wellbeing of the workforce.
While this usually takes the form of company-wide retreats and guest speakers brought in to raise awareness on wellbeing practices, many believe that corporate wellness is a privilege that only large, wealthy companies can afford to put into practice. This isn’t necessarily true.
Firstly, corporate wellness is an ongoing process that must be enforced to be effective. While corporate wellness retreats or professional wellness speakers help foster wellness in a workplace, without actions taken within the company to uphold these practices, they can lead to nothing.
Corporate wellness needs to include components of exercise, at least one relaxation technique, healthy eating, medical checkups, massage therapists, and a culture where this wellness knowledge is readily available and practised by upper management.
Corporate wellness is about ensuring that the workforce is not only mentally and physically healthy, but that they know how to take care of their wellbeing when difficulties arise. The current COVID-19 pandemic dramatically altered everyday lives and forced businesses to take swift action to protect their employees. This has forced many businesses to switch to WFH business models.
The benefits of a culture of corporate wellness is more noticeable in times like these.
The benefits of corporate wellness
During times of uncertainty, when the world is in crisis, it’s more important than ever before that businesses safeguard their employees’ wellbeing. A company with established corporate wellness practices and methods, will find that their employees adapt more easily to new circumstances and challenges. Their focus is better, morale is up, their regard for the company is higher, they’re more productive and motivated - all aspects of a workforce that helps a company recover from economic downturns, such as the inevitable aftermath of the pandemic.
Moreover, a workforce that has healthy stress management mechanisms, healthy living practices, and better mental health will lower the health costs of a company and allow for these funds to be invested elsewhere in the business; such as in employee training and development. Corporate wellness is a system of prevention, the benefits of which only multiply over time.
The concept of self-care and the focus on mental wellbeing has helped cement the idea that mental health and physical health are of equal importance in all environments, including the workplace. However, the concept of wellness has become so popular that many describe it as a fad. Unlike fads, corporate wellness shows no signs of fading into oblivion. In fact, more than 80% of companies have some kind of corporate wellness programme. This figure reaches as high as 92% in companies with 200 or more employees.
Making corporate wellness a reality
There are many ways in which to initiate a corporate wellness programme. Even during WFH periods, there are many online resources that can effectively nurture a culture of corporate wellness that will continue long after regular working practices are restored.
Awakened Mind is a mindfulness resource that aims to foster mindfulness and wellbeing, in every aspect of life. It’s the most technologically advanced mindfulness app available on the market, and it’s formulated specifically for corporate wellness practices.
Awakened Mind resources are available online, making it the perfect resource for remote working professionals. This integrated mindfulness practice includes guided meditation tracks, a learning centre for all manner of mindfulness information, Neurosync™ a pioneering brainwave entrainment technology, amongst a host of other features.
It demonstrates proven results, with companies all over the globe reporting a 58% reduction in emotional exhaustion, a 22% increase in focus and job satisfaction, a 37% improvement in engagement, as well as improvements in leadership, teamwork, and workflow.
Awakened Mind can improve leadership skills, boost the efficiency of teams, and help with the personal development of each individual employee at their own pace, making the workforce stronger as a whole .
Mental wellbeing & mindfulness mobile application
Less stressed. More resilient. Happier. It all starts with just a few minutes a day