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Is your organization addressing holistic health? A leader’s guide

Having it all ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 
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For many organizations, managing employee health may no longer be just about providing adequate compensation and benefits. As McKinsey experts point out, “a large and growing body of research is catching up to a few thousand years of philosophical and religious teachings that recognize the linkages among body, mind, and spirit.” Leaders may need to embrace a broader vision of health that enables individuals to live and function fully, not just in the workplace but as productive members of their communities and society as a whole, too. Here are some ways to get started.
An image linking to the web page “Reframing employee health: Moving beyond burnout to holistic health” on McKinsey.com.

Ever since the pandemic highlighted the urgency of addressing worker burnout, companies have expanded their efforts to create a better work environment, including a greater focus on areas such as employee purpose and motivation. But organizations may need to go beyond that. New research led by McKinsey senior partner Drew Ungerman and colleagues finds that experiencing holistic health—growing and developing across physical, mental, social, and spiritual dimensions—may make workers more innovative and productive. To measure and improve holistic health, leaders may need to consider two critical factors: demands, which are workplace challenges, and enablers, which offset challenges and boost employees’ positive energy. Organizations can design interventions that address both—for example, job redesign or fine-tuning could be enablers that mitigate the demands of a heavy workload.
An image linking to the web page “Who is productive, and who isn’t? Here’s how to tell.” on McKinsey.com.

It may come as a surprise to some leaders that as many as 50 percent of workers may be dissatisfied in their roles—potentially eroding the morale and productivity of other employees. Coupled with lingering mental health issues following the pandemic, disengagement can leave people feeling lonely and isolated at work, observes McKinsey senior partner Aaron De Smet in a podcast. “When you look at the factors that induce engagement versus disengagement, at the top of the list are meaningful work and compensation,” he says. But three other elements—a supportive network of people, a safe environment, and an inclusive workplace—are even more important, De Smet adds. “If you don’t have them, people are going to find it difficult to get to that level of engagement that really helps increase productivity and performance.”
An image linking to the web page “To slow down attrition, pay closer attention to what workers really need” on McKinsey.com.

Despite upheavals in the economy and the world, people continue to leave their jobs at a vigorous rate—occasionally in destructive ways. “Understanding what drives resignation behavior is particularly important for companies,” note the authors of a Harvard Business Review article. “How well you take care of your employees does not just predict whether or not they will voluntarily quit their job, but it also determines how they will go about leaving.” Ugly resignations can harm an organization’s reputation and destroy morale. To counter this, leaders may need to create a culture that encourages constructive behavior, suggests McKinsey associate partner Bonnie Dowling: “Think about what it is you can do, how you can make a concerted effort to show employees you care about who they are.”

Lead holistically.

— Edited by Rama Ramaswami, senior editor, New York

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by "McKinsey Leading Off" <publishing@email.mckinsey.com> - 04:45 - 4 Dec 2023