Employee wellness should be a priority in your business

With increasingly long working hours and technology that never lets us switch off, employee wellness has never been more important. 

It is no surprise that women often have to rearrange their careers for family-related responsibilities more than men.

However, understanding this creates an opportunity for women-led businesses to make a change. It provides a chance to cultivate a work environment that encourages balance.

Fortunately, there are many small shifts in the world of business that can be made to encourage work-life balance for all. Here are five things you can do in your business to keep employees happy and healthy:

Put the Right Tools In Place

Have the right tools in place to make your employees' workflow more efficient, it is one of the fundamental ways to strike a balance. For example, having a Human Resource Management System (HRMS) can create a centralized database for employee data. This software creates streamlined processes for hiring, on-boarding, benefits management, and payroll, eliminating busy work for HR and accounting professionals.

Using cutting edge software, machine learning, and automation can reduce the monotonous, repetitive tasks. That way your employees get to focus on the high-value activities that engage their minds. With less monotony, they'll go home less frustrated and be able to reset for the next day.

Allow for Flex Time

Sticking to set hours is one of the most destructive things you can do to your business. Rather than demanding everyone be in from 9-5 every day, regardless of their workload, allow for some flexibility.

For example, if an employee must get home for childcare every day, let them work 7-3. If someone has a doctor's appointment in the morning, let them come in late and stay later than usual. This will be far more encouraging than docking them a vacation day.

Letting your people shift their work schedule to let life happen encourages balance and improves employee morale.

Create a Coaching Culture

Employees want to know that they are recognized as individuals, with opportunities to achieve their goals. Creating a coaching culture gives your employees the empowerment they deserve to chart their own course.

Start by taking the time to ask each employee what they need and what they hope to accomplish. Give them a platform to speak candidly about challenges they face within the organization, and the ideas they have for solving them. Educate those in leadership roles in coaching and mentoring practices to create a continuous chain of leadership development.

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Enforce Disconnected Periods

Technology is both a blessing and a curse in the modern business environment. On the one hand, technology creates an opportunity for more flexibility for remote work and can contribute to better balance. On the other hand, it can feel impossible to disconnect entirely.

Ensure that your people are completely disconnected when they go on vacation or go home at the end of the day. Consider installing an email blocker between certain hours, or a checkout policy for taking laptops home to work after hours.

Promote Physical Literacy

More employers are recognizing the importance of getting their employees healthy and active throughout the day. Sitting for hours on end has been compared to smoking in regards to health implications.

Give your employees room to move throughout the day. Make physical activity a part of the job. Many people, women especially, struggle to find time for fitness amidst work and family responsibilities. By carving out time and making physical literacy more accessible in the workplace, you are setting your employees up for better physical and mental health. As a result, you'll see improved stress management and reduced turnover and sick time.

Final Thoughts

While all these ideas are great starting points for creating a more balanced workplace, the number one priority is having leadership model the behaviour. If you're a business owner, show your employees that you are following the same initiatives to improve balance in your own life.

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