So many websites, organizations, foundations, and consulting firms have been devoted to the issue of wellness in the workplace. The key assumption is that wellness drives so many costs for an organization that the employer needs to make workers healthier.

Yet, a report that will soon be published by Mercer indicates that healthcare costs are not the primary issue that employers are facing. Instead, planned and unplanned absences may cost as much as 36% of total payroll, according to a briefing published by the Society for Human Resource Management. That means absenteeism would be costing an organization about twice as much as healthcare, with the bulk of those costs coming from planned absences, such as vacation and other scheduled time off.

So, what does this mean? Healthcare costs organizations millions of dollars and these organizations respond by relying on plans that cost employees more, incentives to encourage healthier behaviors, and penalties for unhealthy behaviors. If absenteeism is costing them twice as much, what will the response be, especially given that millions of Americans do not even use the full amount of their time off? Will we see penalties for taking time off, incentives to avoid taking vacations, and recognition for perfect attendance? If so, what will that do to employee stress and consequently to employee health?

Perhaps the answer lies with workplace flexibility. Offering more flexible options for when, where, and how employees interact with their work responsibilities can allow employees the flexibility to have some time off without negatively impacting organizational performance. Although I am not advocating a complete trading of the physical office for the virtual office, which was recently recommended in Wired Magazine, there should be a greater emphasis on workplace flexibility within an organization’s culture. This would permit employees to take time out from work, without an all-or-nothing approach. Given that most Americans don’t use their entire vacation time and tend to “dig themselves out” afterward anyway, such an approach would seem to represent a win-win for the organization and its employees.

However, this approach does not come without accountability and responsibility. An organization has to be willing to allow employees the real flexibility they need to get away from work, manage non-work demands, and yet maintain productivity. This means providing managerial support for flexibility, as well as working out arrangements that will be genuinely beneficial for both the organization and the employee. Employees, on the other hand, would have to learn to manage themselves outside of the workplace in a way that allowed them to maintain their productivity in the face of other distractions. So, both the organization and employees would need to learn a new style of the work-employee interface. The question is: Will that happen?

“You’re so lucky you work from home!” is a response I hear frequently when I tell people about my recent switch from a traditional office arrangement to a teleworking (aka telecommuting) schedule. I think people envision me lounging around in pajamas, making gourmet lunches and working whatever hours suit my mood.  

Myriad research supports the benefits of working from home. Here are a few recent articles: Making Telecommuting Work (BusinessWeek, October 17, 2008); Telecommuting Improves Health (Network World, October 14, 2008) & Telecommuting Improves Productivity, Lowers Costs, New Survey Finds (CIO, October 7, 2008). I have to admit, teleworking full time is different than I expected, and much different than working from home occasionally – but, I can’t complain. After all, wasn’t I the one who swore that nothing could be worse than my daily commute? I used to spend my long train rides daydreaming about the time I could have been spending at the gym or taking leisurely strolls with my dog if I wasn’t stuck in a moving vehicle three hours a day.

Although the flexibility of working remotely can’t be beat, there have been some bumps along the way. It took me a few weeks to adjust to my new schedule and surroundings. Organizing my home office involved jamming furniture in places where it was clearly not meant to go, a lucky drive-by acquisition of a filing cabinet someone had retired to the curb, the ordering of a chair that still hasn’t made its’ debut and a lot of wiring (phone, computer, router, printer, fax, etc.). Setting boundaries with my family was rather simple: When the door is closed, pretend I’m not even here! It’s the boundaries I have to set for myself that are the hardest to follow (more on this later).

So here’s my beef with telework (not to be interpreted as complaints, but merely observations)…

24/7.

When I receive an email at 10 pm, even though I know it can wait until morning, I usually answer it anyway. When my phone rings after hours, I know I don’t have to pick it up, but it’s much easier than waiting till morning, retrieving the voicemail and tracking the person down (I mean who would knowingly instigate a game of phone tag if you can avoid it?). To me, this is the “cost” of flexibility. Then there’s the money I save on commuting and making my own (not quite gourmet) lunches.

Cabin Fever.

Your physical work environment, no matter how nice of a setup you have, gets old quick when you spend ten plus hours a day there. It only took me three days to start feeling claustrophobic. I never felt this way working from home occasionally, but when it’s 24/7, it just gets to you. This is actually where those walks I dreamt about come in handy – a quick trot around the block with my trusty Labrador is quite reviving, the fresh air does us both good, and the best part is it doesn’t take more than five or ten minutes out of my day.

Separation Anxiety.

I miss my team. Even though we do an excellent job of staying in touch by email and phone, it’s just not the same. I’m grateful I got to know my team and coworkers well enough on a professional and personal level before I left so that our communications are not awkward. I also appreciate the institutional knowledge I gained that wouldn’t have been possible if I hadn’t put my time in at the office before making the switch. Still, it’s hard to be so far away and I can’t help but feel like something is about to happen and I’ll miss it because I’m not physically there.

Social Isolation.

I miss chatting with my coworkers in the hallway and listening to funny stories about their kids, but it’s more than just being separated from my team. I’m separated from everybody. It feels like I’m on an island of isolation somewhere that doesn’t have ferryboats. I miss the seemingly transparent “Hello, how are you?” I got in the elevator, and my favorite receptionist’s smile in the morning. Although I don’t miss waiting in line for the microwave at lunchtime, I do miss those brief interactions that let me know life exists outside my office. It’s pretty hard to get that at home during work hours.

Solutions?

I came across these tips on how to work around some of the downsides to teleworking that are pretty useful, but for now I think I’ll just continue to do what works for me and hopefully my insights will help others. Thankfully, tasks like dishes and laundry aren’t appealing enough to me to be distracting (oh, if we could all be so lucky), but I do take quick breaks from the computer every hour by doing something constructive like reading the newspaper or wall push-ups (sometimes you have to get creative, and it’s better than climbing the walls). I often seek refuge at Starbucks and as a result, I have gotten to know my local baristas quite well. Working in a different environment can spark creativity and it’s fun to be around someone other than my dog (sorry Max!) for at least part of my day, plus the caffeine probably contributes to the productivity boost.

For me, having a plan is key, and sticking to it is essential, but I shake it up day-by-day to keep things interesting. I make it a goal to always wake up early, get out of my PJs, eat a balanced breakfast and organize my to-do list before diving into my work – this helps me focus. Then to prevent boredom from setting in, I vary the rest of my routine. Sometimes I’ll exercise in the morning, other times it’s a quick afternoon jog, I try new places for lunch if I do eat out, and I usually start earlier on Fridays so I can shut down mentally before the weekend begins. Don’t get me wrong, working from home is great, but it’s important to be aware of the potential challenges and find ways to work around them. The last thing you want to happen is to burn out on telework. That would give you way too much to complain about and you wouldn’t be able to hide your smirk the next time someone asked you about working in your jammies.

Many organizations have jumped on the wellness bandwagon, that is, offering programs geared towards promoting healthy lifestyles among their workers with the hopes of reducing healthcare costs, absenteeism, and productivity loss. However, a recent report by Hewitt Associates has found that many employers are finding that wellness programs are not having their desired effect. They found that many of the most popular programs, at least in terms of the frequency of employers that offer them, have sickly participation rates. For example, 73% of the companies surveyed offered a nurseline, but only 7% of employees actually used the program and only 45% of employers were satisfied with that program. Across all of the organizations examined, only 10% of the costliest employees actually participated in employee wellness programs.

In 2005, Aon conducted a survey and found that the top four reasons for lack of participation were (a) lack of motivation, (b) too busy, (c) privacy concerns, and (d) not placing a high priority on getting healthier. Though more and more organizations are beginning to use incentives to spur participation, specific incentives are wrought with their own challenges.

Why might employees be experiencing a lack of motivation when it comes to participate in wellness programs? Though the list of reasons is immense, largely one can point to the organization’s culture and a failure to involve employees. If the culture does not support and actively promote wellness behaviors in the workplace, then why would employees get on board? In addition, if an organization does not offer programs that employees are interested in, then why would they participate? For example, going back to the Hewitt Associates survey, onsite clinics were utilized by 25% of employees and onsite pharmacies were utilized by 50%, and 81% of the companies that offered onsite clinics were satisfied with them, while 95% that offered onsite pharmacies were satisfied with them. However…only 19% of the organizations offered onsite clinics and only 11% offered onsite pharmacies. So, if organizations would start offering wellness and disease management programs that employees are already motivated to use rather than focusing on finding ways to incentivize programs that employees don’t want to use, perhaps employers would see better results.

Multitasking impedes our ability to complete our work in the most effective and time efficient manner, and yet, it’s widely touted as a “skill” or “ability.” What’s there to brag about, anyway? Doesn’t everyone do it?

In some situations, juggling tasks can be beneficial, like eating your breakfast while reading the paper, or keeping your kids from pulverizing each other while you’re grocery shopping. However, that’s different than trying to pay attention at work while multitasking projects, meetings, deadlines, email, calls, IMs and more. The brain interprets lower level tasks (like eating) differently than higher level/executive tasks (like writing and thinking), so although you might not find it distracting to read while you eat, we all know it’s impossible to read a book and drive (and clearly not advisable). This is because the brain can’t successfully multitask when it comes to balancing those higher level tasks. NPR recently had an interesting research news piece on the myth of multitasking – “Think You're Multitasking? Think Again” describes multitasking as a process of shifting attention very quickly from one task to the next, which we might think is multitasking, but really, we’re just deceiving ourselves.

I don’t know about you, but on my next resume update, I fully intend to replace “ability to multitask in a results-driven environment” with something along the lines of “fully capable of differentiating between when it makes sense to multitask and when it’s just stupid, and furthermore (this part is important), being able to exert the necessary willpower required to fully concentrate on the task at hand, and only that task, for as long as it shall require.” The ability to fully concentrate on one important task sans IMs, YouTube videos and other “background” noise is especially necessary with all the electronic gadgets that surround us at work and in our everyday lives. Gen Y employees in particular have been “multitasking” since 3rd grade, and this approach alone can hinder their ability to be successful at work. Prioritizing and making deadlines are crucial, but turning out a superior product requires full concentration and don’t kid yourself, your boss can tell when you’ve put all your energy into your work.

According to developmental molecular biologist and research consultant Dr. John Medina, the rate of error when multitasking is 50% and, multitasking doubles the time it takes you to complete that task. For the best evidence, try it yourself – a work day without multitasking. Allocate your time and work on tasks one at a time. Don’t worry, no one will know the difference at the end of the day except you – you might even have extra energy to spend at the gym or make dinner from scratch. Think about it – if it took only five minutes to really concentrate on an email response you’re crafting, (1) you would have gotten it done while only having to think about it once, not five different times throughout the day, (2) the quality of your response would have been better, and (3) you would feel a sense of accomplishment (be it a small one) as opposed to trying not to let this task fall off your radar the entire day, which takes up precious brain power (and face it, we could all use a little extra mental mojo).

Recently, there has been a lot written about effective ways to manage Generation Y and Millennial employees. A recent article in Personnel Today emphasized the need for an organization to adapt to these employees rather than requiring them to adapt to the organization. The article focuses on career development planning, giving employees autonomy, providing work-life balance opportunities, and allowing employees to utilize networking software (such as Facebook), and providing continuous feedback.

There are at least two issues that exist in these commentaries on younger workers, and these issues are seldom addressed. First, these articles represent a shift in terms of who is supposed to fit in. Traditional management approaches typically make the assumption that employees are to be socialized into the existing culture. However, many of the current articles on younger workers seem to suggest that organizations should change to accommodate these younger employees, ignoring the presence of older generation workers. While organizations can tailor specific benefits and practices to meet the needs of different employees, it seems like an extremely tall order to ask organizations to overhaul their entire culture—which is vital to successfully implementing and supporting programs—to meet the needs of a sub-group of employees. Furthermore, culture change tends to be extremely difficult, painful, and lengthy, so changing the culture for existing employees will likely not occur until after those employees have left the organization. By the time culture change has occurred, odds are that this it won’t necessarily fit the post-Millennial workers…and the organization back to square one.

A second issue that is often not addressed is the structural issue in organizations. Hierarchical, mechanistic organizations tend to have limited flexibility, ambiguous promotion potential, and other issues that may reduce the ability of the organization to adapt to the needs of employee groups. Therefore, to be responsive to younger workers, a mechanistic organization may need to consider structural changes that will better allow it to meet the needs of those workers, such as a decentralized management system or re-organization of workgroups and tasks. Again, structural changes can be very difficult, costly, and often require a corresponding change in culture. An organization that emphasizes top-down management possesses cultural assumptions that will need to be addressed if structural change is to be successful.

So, while adapting to the needs of Generation Y and Millennial employees sounds like a good idea, organizations and managers need to be aware that doing so comes with some demanding change requirements. Furthermore, because change can be painful and because resistance to change is a common problem, organizations that wish to adapt their culture and structure to fit the Generation Y and Millennial workforce need to be aware that some substantial work needs to be done before that can happen, along with considerations for the rest of the workforce.

There’s a saying, “Summertime in DC – the oppressive heat, influx of tourists, and swarms of summer interns are enough to make you want to stay home.” Maybe I’ve mangled that a bit, but I think you get my drift. Washington, DC, like other large cities, certainly gets its share of interns each summer. The question I’ve been throwing around lately is – how can we make the most of the time we have them.

Energy is contagious, but an intern’s energy level can start to take a nose dive after a few weeks on the job without interesting projects to work on. This is why it’s essential to brainstorm project ideas before interns show up for their first day of work. With a bag of ideas to pull from, once you get to know an intern’s interests and strengths you can decide on assignments that most benefit both parties. After all, you never know what type of student you’ll get – you could have the overachiever that turns projects around more quickly than you expected, and the last thing you want is to be caught empty handed.

Managers may find that interns require a unique set of management skills. In general, today’s interns like to understand everything. Try to level with interns and explain why a particular task is important to the work you’re trying to accomplish and how it will help prepare the intern for the future (and yes, it is possible to draw parallels between the importance of photocopying and an intern’s long-term goals – think “attention to detail”). One great resource to recommend interns check out is Brazen Careerist, a Web site dedicated to providing career advice specific to Generation Y. As far as what you can do, there are three main areas that require managers to be flexible when working with interns that I’d like to hit upon briefly – teamwork, writing and time management skills.

There’s no “i” in teamwork. College typically fails to adequately prepare students for the type of teamwork they’ll encounter in the workplace. This is a challenging obstacle for interns who are with you for a short period of time because learning how to successfully work with others comes from experience. One suggestion for speeding up this process is to involve interns in team meetings so they can see the process first hand. Another approach is to break down an old project as an example and go through it step-by-step with the intern. Show how each team member was instrumentally involved, what the expectations were and how deadlines were met. This might take a little prep work upfront, but it will pay off, especially when interns genuinely understand the consequences of not meeting a deadline.

College papers vs. business writing. Interns are accustomed to writing for college assignments and the transition to business writing is not always smooth sailing. College writing often focuses on personal experiences and beliefs, and term papers can go on forever (or so it seemed at the time), whereas solid research translated as concisely and concretely as possible is more common in the workplace. A suggestion from one of our summer interns was to create mini writing assignments and go through them piece-by-piece with each intern to explain how and why each edit is necessary and discuss alternative ways to reach the same goal. It will likely take more than one run before interns feel comfortable writing his way, but managers can help this transition by giving consistent feedback that includes the reasoning behind edits. If your interns need a little extra help with the basics, you might suggest they read or re-read Strunk & White’s Elements of Style. And lastly, in the words of one wise intern – don’t let a project drag out with endless edits. If it’s not working, cut the project loose and start anew.

Juggling Priorities. Time management is a skill, and oftentimes one that interns don’t possess at the same level we come to expect from our regular employees. Managing a full-time college schedule, part-time work and extracurricular activities might seem like “practice” for the real world, but it’s not. The lack of syllabi and constant re-prioritizing are reality in the workplace. This is all new to most interns and your job is to help facilitate that change in expectations. Try a good ol’ In-Basket Exercise with your interns. Make it fun, and don’t be surprised if you find you’re helping them through the entire thought process at first. Encourage your interns to ask questions, but to try and work it out themselves before they ask. The goal should be to guide them to a point where they can say, “Now that I have been assigned Task A, which you have identified as a priority for today, I just want to make sure I’m clear that I’ll be shifting yesterday’s project to next week, is my understanding correct?” Right on! 

Wrap-up. What wisdom have your interns imparted to you this summer? If you haven’t already done so, carve out a time to sit down with your interns and ask them to share their experiences and any suggestions they may have. Interns’ feedback can be invaluable, but you’ll never know unless you ask. Make sure you also follow up by telling them how their work contributes to your department’s goals and objectives, and how the skills they learned over the summer will help them in years to come.

Employee engagement is one of those recently hot topics in organizations. It is such a hot topic that the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology recently published its journal with a central focus on engagement. Though there was no real consensus on the topic, there were definitely five key points that the reader could come away with.

1. Engagement is defined by the experience of being energized and focused at work. Employees are stimulated physically, mentally, and emotionally. 
2. Some people are predisposed to be engaged, some are predisposed to be disengaged, and the majority of them can be influenced at work. Therefore, an organization needs to focus its attention on this third group. According to Gallup, the best way to engage employees is to focus on the relationships that employees have with each other and with management.
3. Engaged employees tend to be more committed to the organization and demonstrate greater performance-enhancing behaviors than do disengaged workers. This can be observed in several published studies, which results in increased profits for the organization and for shareholders.
4. Be careful, though, because sometimes employees can be too engaged, leading to workaholism and burnout. In fact, an article by Shaufeli and colleagues found that burnout, engagement, and workaholism, though distinct, were related. So, organizations need to ensure that all employees, even the engaged employees, get a chance to recharge and refresh, or else they may be likely to suffer negative long-term effects of over-engagement.
5. And last, but not least, what it means to be engaged in a particular organization is something that has to be defined by that organization. Though there are general measures of engagement out there, what it means to be engaged in an IT firm may not be the same as what it means to be engaged in a social services agency. There may be key behaviors and attitudes that identify an engaged worker in one setting, but different behaviors and attitudes that identify an engaged worker in a different setting.

So, rather than focusing strictly on “published research” about engagement, organizational and departmental leaders need to give serious thought to what it means to be an engaged employee in their organization, and develop tailored strategies to improve that level of engagement.

How many times have you found yourself in a similar situation: You come across something that you know you’ve read before, but you can’t figure out where it came from. Or, it’s crunch time and you’re throwing together PowerPoint slides but need one little fact to fill in a blank somewhere, and for the life of you, you can’t figure out why Google won’t read your mind this one time you really need it! If only you had been one of those über organized people and saved (in categorized, flagged, and keyword marked electronic file folders of course) that important document, journal article, or magazine clipping, or at the very least knew where to look for it! Sound familiar?

Admit it, there are a lot of facts, stats, and figures out there and even those type-As would have a challenging time keeping track of them all. That’s why we pulled together a few helpful facts and put them into a Fact Sheet that you can view online or download and keep as a reference (no color coding required). The Psychologically Healthy Workplace Fact Sheet: By the Numbers covers topics such as workplace stress and demands, work-life balance and flexibility, employee health and healthcare costs, mental health issues, and employee and organizational outcomes. It’s also fully referenced so you can easily locate the original source – more than half of the references even have embedded Web links.

The plan is to update this document as time goes by and more research comes out. So if you’re ever snooping around for some good reading or are in search of an impressive stat to hit your boss up with to get (fill in the blank), check back and see if anything new catches your eye.

Happy stress-free reading!

How many of us work for an organization that offers gifts for employees that hit important milestones? Five years? Ten years? If you don’t, then you are in the minority. According to a recent World-At-Work report, 86% of all organizations use length-of-service awards, by far the most popular type of recognition program.

And it doesn’t stop there. Organizations offer employees incentives to participate in wellness programs, they offer employee-of-the-month programs, and on and on. These are all designed to motivate employees to perform or to stay with the company. But do they really work?

According to Bob Nelson, who recently appeared in an episode of the Good Company Podcast, the answer is a resounding “NO!” Organizations waste countless amounts of money each year on recognition programs that have almost no effect on employees. If these programs really don’t work, then why do they waste their money? Answer: because they think that’s what employees want.

Though it may sound logical, the problem is that they never asked. Instead of finding out what employees actually value, and what is likely to motivate them, organizations spend an inordinate amount of money on these programs without considering that there might be more unique and innovative ways to get the desired effects. One recent example of an innovative program appeared in Employee Benefit News. Some organizations have begun to recognize that a small bonus or increase in the 401k plan or chintzy coffee mug is not likely to produce the desired effects. So, instead, they are beginning to offer…concierge services. Employees can have the oil changed in their car, have their dry cleaning picked up, and have other errands run, with little or no cost to either them or the organization.
 
Best of all, concierge services offer benefits that employees can use regularly. They don’t just get some coffee mug they’ll never use or a free lunch, but instead they have access to needed services without having to take time off. They provide employees with an increased sense of work-life balance along with the feeling that the organization values them. And, because such a program comes at a lesser cost than expensive bonuses, plaques, and lunches, it is a win-win all the way around. In this age of cutting costs and improving the bottom line, more small- and medium-sized organizations would do well to identify more innovative ways of showing employees that they value their contributions. This can easily be done with the most innovative strategy of all: just ask them!

As a commuter who relies on mass transit, the rise in gas prices has not had the same effect on me as it has employees who drive to work daily, or even worse, those who drive for work.

Unless you live in commuter-friendly areas like DC (lucky me!) or NYC, mass transit isn’t always an option. For example, most Floridians are stuck driving to work, which is why I found research conducted by a Florida State University (FSU) management professor interesting. How are high gas prices affecting employees and what is the resulting dip in productivity doing to businesses?

At the time of the FSU survey, respondents were paying an average of $2.83 for gas, which has increased considerably since then -- in most cases over a dollar more per gallon. The cost of gas not only impinges on personal finances, people everywhere are stressed out about it and distracted at work. This is a problem that spans occupations for the most part. In fact, according to the FSU research, one in three people would trade their job for one closer to home. Considering these findings, maybe if I had to drive my two-hour-plus roundtrip commute, I would feel the same way – but please don’t tell my boss.

In a business world that (generally speaking) is trying to be more sensitive towards everyday “green” practices, the continual rise in costs associated with getting employees to and from work only strengthens the need for flexible work alternatives and better public transportation.

Leave it to South Florida to come up with a well-received arrangement that encourages employees to use public transportation. The city of North Miami now offers its very appreciative employees the opportunity to purchase mass transit passes for $15 a month (down from $75). 

Another way to beat the gas prices is by working from home. If telecommuting is a possible solution that you’re considering for your employees, check out the HR Capitalist’s take on this, as well as points to consider before implementing a company-wide policy. On a smaller scale, employers can encourage employees to carpool – set up a section on your intranet for employees, or post signup flyers in break rooms, and offer incentives if possible. One idea is to reward employees who carpool with coveted parking spots (e.g., inside parking garages and out of the winter snow or summer rain).

Of course, being the loyal Sierra Club member that I am, I feel obligated to pass on this message from a recent Sierra e-newsletter…

Memorial Day Weekend is coming and -- in spite of gas prices -- more Americans than ever are planning to getaway by car http://www.usatoday.com/travel/news/2007-05-17-travel-aaa-forecast_N.htm. But that doesn't have to cost as much as you think.

There are lots of ways to save gas (checked your tires lately?) but the easiest and most effective way is to slow down (just a little bit). When you add up the savings, it's like getting paid to relax.

So before you get behind the wheel for the upcoming holiday, show us what you're made of. Pledge to Drive 55 (or whatever the speed limit is on the roads you're traveling) for Memorial Day Weekend. Poor Sammy Hagar can't do it, but we bet you can. After all, even jets are slowing down to save money http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/2008-05-02-slow-fuel_N.htm!

The Union of Concerned Scientists tells us that dropping from 70 to 60 mph improves fuel efficiency by an average of 17.2 percent. Dropping from 75 to 55 improves fuel efficiency by 30.6 percent http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2008/04/28/MN9H10BFRS.DTL!

And lastly, it’s important to keep communication flowing in your organization to help employees deal with the frustrations they may be feeling about gas prices and other cost-of-living increases, which most likely are not being offset by any adjustment in pay (but this is one idea to keep in mind!). Let employees know that you understand, that it affects you too, and keep encouraging them to find alternative solutions. As always, the best way to get employees onboard is to serve as an example – your message will resonate more if employees can relate to you, and practicing what you preach will go much further than just the sermon. So the next time you run into one of your employees or co-workers on the train, say “Hi”.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go scope out the best route to the beach based on the gas stations with the lowest prices before leaving for my 3-day weekend…