A few years ago, Pammi Bhullar, now the director of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) at Edelman Financial Engines, had a colleague who was grappling with anxiety and not given a welcoming space or enough mental-health resources to deal with it. Bhullar’s friend found a new workplace that not only allowed her to talk about her anxiety, but by giving her tangible mental-health resources, allowed her to be a more productive and overall better employee. Plus, she created a support system within the inner circle of her colleagues. “If she thought she was going to get a panic attack, she had a support system who recognized the early signs,” Bhullar told moderator Patia Braithwaite, the health director at Well+Good, during a From Day One webinar titled, “Enhancing Employee Mental Health and Wellness Benefits.”

This anecdote goes to show that investing in employee mental-health and wellness resources is not just an act of care, but it also has tangible benefits, such as employee retention, reduced absenteeism, and higher productivity. This is especially true in the late Covid era, when employees find themselves reprioritizing their relationship to work and questioning their identification with their own line of work.

A Challenge, Exacerbated

With the pandemic, a lot of challenges came to a head. The trend toward remote work had been increasing in recent years “... and the pandemic gave us a leap off the cliff,” said Anastasia Norton, who until recently was director of total-rewards management at USAA, which mainly serves the military community. “It was an entirely new environment in which to operate. The traditional means of connecting were no longer relevant,” she said. With such a paradigm shift, how could leaders reach out to employees, and find ways to connect with them now that everyone was essentially a hermit? “We had to rapidly shift our paradigm, figuring out how to connect with them and how to support them,” she said.

In this context, going to work stopped being the central part of people’s routines. With work-from-home policies, people started spending their whole days with their families, partners, and their kids, so that the idea of work being central got pushed to the side. Yet this shift also led to depression: Christine Celio, Ph.D., the national clinical director for mental health integration in primary care at One Medical, observed that her own psychotherapy patients went from asking, “How do I progress in my career and life?” to “What am I even doing?”

Managers Stepping Up

In this shift, the ideal benefits package should put therapy and wellness front and center. “You can’t understate the managers’ roles, to make sure they liberate their teams by checking in on them,” said Bhullar. “Do you have the resources you need? Do you have the accommodation you need? Are you set up appropriately?” are some of the questions that should be asked she said.

It’s crucial for managers to know people well enough to gauge when something is not right. “Prioritizing the relationship with direct reports is the most important thing,” said Marni McDowell, senior director of global well-being at Micron Technology. “We all heard the data that people don’t leave bad work, they leave bad leaders.” Celio, a licensed clinical psychologist, has some tips for managers to detect early signs of distress. They’re usually behavioral. “People make themselves and their lives a little smaller. They binge-watch TV instead of reaching out to friends, they tend to have trouble sleeping or they sleep too much. “How we behave correlates to how we feel, how we feel influences what we want to do,” Celio said. She recommends managers do weekly check-ins to get a sense of whether people aren’t doing as well as they used to do.

This relationship is not one-sided. “One thing to keep in mind is that workers look to their employers,” said Jake Spiegel, a research associate at the Employee Benefit Research Institute. “Employees really trust employers are going to pick a suitable suite [of benefits] for them, helping them improve the quality of being. Employers have a role to play, but employees trust them.”

Towards a Better Understanding of Mental-Health Challenges

More mental-health and wellness awareness also means getting rid of stereotypes. In the first place, stress is not to always be considered an inconvenience. “A stress-free work environment is not an ideal place to work,” said Celio. “We need our deadlines, we need structure.” In addition, burnout and structure-related stress are not necessarily related. “What has been coming up in the pandemic is that burnout creeps in when people feel overwhelmed, when they feel that what they do doesn't matter, that there’s lack of fairness and lack of control,” Celio continued. “We’re not all in the same boat, but we’re all in the same storm.”

Not being in the same boat especially pertains to the intersection between mental health and DEI. In certain underrepresented communities, Bhullar noted, there’s a lot of stigma around mental health, so people might not seek help nor openly talk about trauma, anxiety, and depression. “There’s the triggering of highly visible or invisible aggressions. Often those individuals become the educators, to someone who’s an ally,” she continued, indicating that educating allies can also be a burden.

Harnessing Data and the Potential of Digital

“When it comes to mental health benefits, there’s not a lot of data: it’s the Wild West,” said Spiegel. “What we found, though, as doctors’ offices closed, is that there's a pretty enthusiastic take on telemedicine. You’d think digital natives would be more likely to embrace it, but we found that the average age of a telemedicine user is higher than the average age of a person preferring an in-person appointment.”

“It’s such a time commitment to go to therapy,” echoed Celio. “Going to the office, parking, checking in and out. The convenience of a telehealth appointment, the ability just to log on and then log off, has been so helpful for so many people.”

Sure, cost remains a hindrance, but there are ways to mitigate the expense. “One of the ways we tied it together is a program where people earn points, so premiums are lower,” said Norton. “Usually it’s healthy activities, or virtual seminars, prerecorded resources on stress, anxiety. We incentivized that behavior so they could lower the premiums. We get info out there and it makes sense for them.”

Angelica Frey is a writer and a translator based in Milan and Brooklyn.

Support the Change: Why Menopause Should Be Part of Your Women’s Health Strategy

Did you know that signs of perimenopause can start appearing in women of childbearing age? Many of us are lacking crucial knowledge that can help us or our women colleagues navigate this time in their lives.Offering solutions to improve and support needs specific to women can also be an important factor to retention. But a new survey reports that only 1% of US women have menopause support as part of their employee sponsored benefits. What’s more, according to a new survey, 85% of women said they don’t know enough about menopause, and 83% experiencing menopause report that their symptoms impact their ability to work.During a From Day One webinar, panelists shared how employers can better support women experiencing the change, and the impact it can have on productivity, medical spend and retention.Often, the concept of “women’s healthcare” ends with postpartum. But Dr. Leslie Saltzman, chief medical officer at Ovia Health, says health care support for women of all ages is vital. “It’s so important to support women who are experiencing perimenopause and menopause because the symptoms aren’t just a nuisance. Evolving evidence is showing that severe menopausal symptoms, which impact a great portion of our population, also have long term health effects and accelerate cardiovascular disease and impact brain health. They’re having lots of negative impact in terms of quality of life and performance at work. We see women dropping out of the workforce just because of the symptoms that they're having,” Dr. Saltzman said.Juliet Vestal, corporate vice president, total rewards at B. Braun, says 50% of their workforce is women. “As our workforce continues to age, these are issues that we know are not being supported within the community by providers. And so we need to find solutions to help,” she said.Even younger employees are starting to ask about these topics, despite perceived taboos, says Melanie Baxter, director of global well-being at Alorica. “As a collective we stop women’s health awareness at motherhood. Opening a space of easy dialogue about any health issues when we're in the workspace can create a much happier workforce, can create longevity and can increase retention. It’s also just the right thing to do,” Baxter said. “It’s a way to communicate with our employees that, ‘Hey, you matter to us.’”Lisa Hammond, CHRO at Veradigm, says that she is answering the relatively recent call from employees to address this issue by providing webinars on the topic. “For me right now, it’s thinking about, how do we articulate menopause to our leadership, which is largely male, and help them get context for this in a way that’s not overly clinical or overly emotional, so that they can gain an understanding and become allies with us as we move through this next phase of our benefits programs and our culture internally,” Hammond said.Breaking Barriers to Healthcare AccessThere are a few issues that make it hard for women to get accurate and helpful information about menopause, says Dr. Saltzman. She cites a study from the Women's Health Initiative that “has been widely criticized [and] created a lot of fear” around the standard of care for menopause.The panelists spoke about the importance of menopause support in the workplace (photo by From Day One)This includes hormone replacement therapy (HRT), which is again now generally considered to be effective, though the stigma remains. Doctors also primarily experience “hospital-based training” tied to birth, and are less prepared for the one-on-one intimate office conversations necessary to discuss menopause. And lastly, the current shortage of primary care physicians means “we don’t have enough providers who are trained to be able to support the needs of women who are experiencing these symptoms,” Saltzman said. And when they do find a provider who can help, Vestal added, “there’s a six to eight month waiting period to get in.”Another part of the problem is the stigma and discomfort associated with simply talking about menopause. “For so many years, menopause and the symptoms were seen as, “a part of life and you just need to get over it and deal with it,’” said moderator Alice Park, senior health correspondent at TIME. “Are we getting close to really treating it as a medical condition in the same way that we treat conditions that affect men?”The unfortunate answer: yes and no. “Anyone who has experienced these symptoms themselves knows that this is not a psychological thing, and this isn’t something to be solved by dressing in layers or using a fan at night. But I still think that there’s a huge gap and lack of appropriate research,” Saltzman said. “As long as this market continues to grow, [with] more and more data supporting how important it is to treat women, there will be more and more solutions.”That means employers can help move the cause forward simply by being willing to address it. “The less we talk about something, the less people are likely to research it. My simple advice is to talk about it,” Baxter said. Since employees may be ashamed to bring it up themselves, leaders need to be proactive in making the service available to employees first, so they feel comfortable coming forward.Providing the Appropriate SupportProviding inclusive healthcare support that addresses menopause can make a workforce happier and more productive. “By not addressing these issues, people are suffering in silence and people are missing work,” Vestal said. The more employees and leaders are educated about the topic, the more they will be empathetic in their responses and in providing adequate support and planning. Additionally, Hammond says, the information will even be helpful to male employees whose partners or family members may be experiencing symptoms.A single point solution may not work for most organizations. “The experience of menopause varies dramatically from individual to individual, even when it starts,” Dr. Saltzman said. For some, it starts in their 50s, but others in their 40s, even those trying to conceive may experience symptoms. Therefore, raising awareness in general is most helpful, as is making sure there is access to healthcare providers with the appropriate training, including telehealth for easy access.Bringing in speakers is also beneficial. But be wary, as there’s a lot of misinformation. “If you’re looking for those resources, if you’re looking on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, make sure this is a licensed physician,” Baxter said.Especially given recent political developments in the U.S., panelists agree women’s healthcare education is more crucial than ever. “It’s a perilous time,” Hammond said. “We want to do everything we can within our organization to support women in making sure that, no matter what political party we are, we’re all humans. We all have bodies. We all should be able to maintain and enjoy power over our own beings.”Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, Ovia Health, for sponsoring this webinar. Katie Chambers is a freelance writer and award-winning communications executive with a lifelong commitment to supporting artists and advocating for inclusion. Her work has been seen in HuffPost and several printed essay collections, among others, and she has appeared on Cheddar News, iWomanTV, On New Jersey, and CBS New York.

How to Use Skills Data to Power Development and Achieve Business Objectives

The skills required for success are constantly evolving and organizations are struggling to adapt without clear visibility of the strengths and skills gaps in their workforce. This uncertainty leaves talent management and employee development journeys to guesswork, resulting in lost opportunities and strategic missteps. Being armed with skills data and then acting on it is a key strategy to keeping employees happy, loyal, and developing.Organizations that utilize data about their talent's skills, or catalog and organize the skills workers currently possess, as well as identify the skills needed for future roles, are actively preparing their workforce to tackle new challenges as they arise. During a From Day One webinar, leaders discussed how talent skills data can transform your approach to talent management.As a first step, companies must identify which skills are the most relevant to their business’ present and future, the panelists shared. This decision should not be made just by HR, senior leaders, and stakeholders, but by employees at other levels too, says Marquisa Nash, Head of HR, performance materials at BASF. “[There might be a gap between] what leadership thinks is important and what people think is important,” Nash said.Tomislav Vujec, director of learning at Red Hat, says it’s easier for HR to get a buy-in from business leaders when discussing employee skills as opposed to competencies. “We get to be closer to their problems and we open a door to validate what we can actually do, which is develop a skill. As opposed to risking too much by promising a business change, which often does not only depend on the skill being developed, but other factors,” he said.The rapid changes brought about by the pandemic also emphasized the need to focus on skill-building, says Didem Onem, Head of TA operations and programs at Eaton Corporation. “That made us look at our talent and skills availability and ask ‘where are we headed – and are we ready for that?’ It meant bringing a new type of talent into the organization,” she said. For Eaton, this meant an initiative for upskilling in digitization techniques so that employees would be more prepared for a digital way of doing business. Her team mapped out the new skills plan based on manager feedback, honest self-assessments, and forecasted what would be needed down the line.Those self-assessments, though, can be tricky. “Oftentimes people are not terribly good at assessing their own levels of facility with certain things,” said moderator Lydia Dishman, senior editor for growth and engagement at Fast Company. “Is there a way to make sure that what people are reporting is actually where they are?”The panel of industry leaders spoke about "How to Use Skills Data to Power Development and Achieve Business Objectives" in a session moderated by Lydia Dishman of Fast CompanyLarger companies, especially, must work hard to not lose track of each individual’s growth. “With 600,000 employees all around the globe, it’s hard to know who can do what and what they are good at,” said Abbe Partee, VP, head of global certified learning at DHL. So DHL created a Career Marketplace, which integrates both its learning and performance system. It includes an individual’s skills data not just from self-assessment but also manager feedback, succession planning meetings, and the combined skill profiles of their current and previous roles.“We want to build a culture of learning and continuous education,” Vujec said. That begins at onboarding and continues throughout an employee’s entire career journey, regardless of their level. It’s also important to recognize, he says, that “the foundational skills of today might not be the foundational skills of tomorrow.” In turn, the onboarding itself should serve as a mindset shift to prepare employees for continuous learning, rather than the expectation that development will stop after a few months on the job.Skills data should be something that is embraced by employees. “We know employees want to grow with the organization, and skills is a great conversation to get that going,” said Lucy Beaumont, solution lead, manager and leader at SHL. The biggest shift she is seeing is that the skills conversation during reviews is less about how employees are succeeding in their current roles, but rather where they want to go in the future. “What is your skills potential, and therefore, what is the right career path for you where can you lean into those strengths? If you do have those gaps, and they're relevant to the job you're doing or the job you want to do, how can we get around that and support that?” she said.Post-pandemic, individuals are more acutely focused on whether they are happy in their current position, so it’s important for employers to facilitate those conversations early and help workers move and grow internally, rather than externally, to boost retention.Beaumont says organizations should not only be measuring skills as they stand, but also tracking how those skills gaps are then bridged over time. While pulse surveys are helpful, they can sometimes have a tough time measuring soft skills, such as leadership. Therefore, the hard data must then be analyzed with a human approach. “We do take broad strokes, but then that aggregate view allows us to prioritize and see what it’s hinting at,” Vujec said. HR can allow the data trends to drive what areas will require a deeper, more complex dive.Nash notes this “human skills” area is, ironically, where emerging technology can be the most useful during employee surveys. “We use AI to go back into the comments to extrapolate, to see what other additional data points we can obtain to understand what skills employees are looking for,” Nash said. Then those themes are linked back to the organization’s business strategy and core values.What skills do the panelists see as most valuable going forward? All of them are tied to transformation. They include data analytics, to boost agility in reacting to needs; digitization, to make business more efficient; a digital mindset when it comes to problem solving; and an overall change in agility. And lastly, the skill of learning itself is vital. “Re-skilling potential: what does it take to be willing and able to learn new skills,” Beaumont shared, is integral in today’s rapidly evolving workforce.Katie Chambers is a freelance writer and award-winning communications executive with a lifelong commitment to supporting artists and advocating for inclusion. Her work has been seen in HuffPost and several printed essay collections, among others, and she has appeared on Cheddar News, iWomanTV, On New Jersey, and CBS New York.

Innovative and Engaging Approaches for Leadership Development

“The war for talent is over, and talent won.”This was a quote that resonated with Miguel Oliveira, senior HR director supporting the brand management and marketing teams at Danone North America, he said during a recent From Day One webinar.Leaders are now being evaluated “not only on the results they bring to the business, but on results from engagement, well-being, and retention,” he told moderator Lydia Dishman during a From Day One webinar about supporting tomorrow’s leaders.Amanda Grow, director of customer success for ETU, says the company has leadership training programs centered on skills related to values such as authenticity and courage, emotional intelligence, and psychological safety.“I always want to see inclusive and emotionally intelligent leaders, because that really does have a major impact on every organization and your culture and what you're trying to instill in your employees,” said Grow.Things have changed tremendously in the workforce in recent years, which impacts what leadership looks like, says Johann Laville, the chief learning officer at Merck.Remote work is becoming more commonplace, the workforce is younger and more diverse, and “technology is driving our future at light speed,” he said. As a result, leaders are listening more and focusing more on leading with humility, he says.Tips for Training Future LeadersEarly talent programs are a way companies can develop future leaders, says Minh Pham-Costello, vice president of business management at Santander. Employees can get an endorsement from their manager when applying.It’s crucial to make sure the employee is committed to the program “because sometimes you push programs to people and they either don’t have the capacity or the desire,” Pham-Costello said. It is also important to have programs that cater to senior leaders’ professional development needs.Programs for future leaders shouldn’t be one size fits all, according to Grow.“It’s great to have a global skill set that we’re trying to adhere to, but we also need to dig down and go to the level deeper and really understand how those skills show up at different role levels, different proficiency levels, and more, so that you really can personalize some of the training,” said Grow. For example, a senior leader who takes a junior-level course probably won’t find it engaging.The panel of leaders spoke about "Supporting Tomorrow's Leaders: Innovative and Engaging Approaches for Leadership Development" (photo by From Day One)Oliveira compared leadership training to trying to teach someone how to ride a bike. You can have trainees watch a movie on how to do it or “put them on a bike and have someone hold the bike to let them understand how it works,” he said.When exposing employees with leadership potential to management fundamentals, “It’s really important to create ways and mechanisms to give them visibility to what it looks like without the responsibility of leading someone directly,” Oliveira said. “I still see today many people stepping into their first managerial leadership opportunity and they still lack those fundamentals, and unfortunately, those suffering are those reporting to the individual.”How Employees Can Demonstrate Leadership SkillsAlthough organizations are investing in leadership development more than ever before, individuals still need to take the initial steps toward getting to the next level, says Pham-Costello.“Of course, other people can help you, but when you take the initiative with your career, you are not only developing your skill but also showing the organization that you are committed to the company and to your growth,” she said.Business resource groups (BRG) are essential when it comes to leadership development, says Pham-Costello. A BRG “gives you that visibility. People see you leading and influencing.”Laville said Merck has a true gig economy. This means if an employee wants to demonstrate their capability of being an effective leader and there’s something they are passionate about – whether it’s a topic, division, or product – they can apply internally, be interviewed, and be selected.That employee would then have support from the leader who releases them into the gig and the leader who would accept them “to come in and provide a new value,” Laville said.Seeking mentorship is another way for those who wish to be leaders to get to that level. Mentors are “subject matter experts that you can have some really open conversations with to help guide you on that path,” he said.Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, ETU, for sponsoring this webinar.Mary Pieper is a freelance writer based in Mason City, Iowa.

How to Enhance Mental Health and Wellness Benefits

RELATED STORIES

Support the Change: Why Menopause Should Be Part of Your Women’s Health Strategy

How to Use Skills Data to Power Development and Achieve Business Objectives

Innovative and Engaging Approaches for Leadership Development