Three steps towards a more productive, resilient workforce

1. Fit for
Business
T hree steps to
improve your
company’ s
competitive
advantage
Martin Crisp

2. Fit for
Business
T hree steps to
improve your company’s
competitive advantage
E dited version
Martin Crisp

3. © 2011 Martin Crisp
The right of Martin Crisp to be identified as the author of this work is
asserted world-wide. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may
be produced, stored or transmitted in any form by any means, electrical,
mechanical or otherwise without the prior written consent of the author.
Edited by Marie-Louise Cook.
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4. Contents
Introduction 5
Are your premises lowering your employees’ resilience? 7
Step No.1: Gaining full buy-in from the senior 9
management team
Step No. 2: Initiate and then continuously reinforce the 12
value of individual health and well-being to everyone
within the organisation
Step No. 3: Nurture a healthy eating culture 15
3

5. 4

6. Introduction
With all companies constantly competing to gain market
share and position, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to
provide a product or service that is genuinely unique. When
unique products do arrive to market they are quickly copied
or improved by your competition. In such a market, one
of the most effective ways to establish your competitive
advantage is by out-behaving the competition. Out-behaving
leads to out-performing; however, delivering this level of
competitive edge can be highly stressful for your senior
management and their teams.
Such is the rate of change that day to day demands will, if left
unchecked, impact on an individual’s resilience and personal
effectiveness, which in turn undermines your competitive
advantage.
Absenteeism as a result of long-term health issues (such
as stress, cancers and chronic diseases) is on the increase.
The CBI reports that absence through sickness costs the
economy £13.4 billion per annum. Companies now have to
consider the many senior managers who face the prospect
of having to work additional years before they consider
retirement. Losing this resource for even a relatively short
period of time leaves employers potentially depleted of both
experience and wisdom.
5

7. Worse still, it is likely that ‘presenteeism’ (attending work
but underperforming due to illness, stress or depression)
is going to become an increasing problem as colleagues
struggle to keep pace with the demands of the workplace.
There are other health concerns too. The rise of obesity
within the UK is alarming with one in six people over the
age of 40 developing diabetes. The average man now weighs
a stone more than in the mid-1980s. Economists are truly
concerned about how the UK will afford to support and treat
the predicted levels of obesity and associated conditions.The
Government is beginning to form policies to try and reverse
this trend and will be looking to legislate to ensure employers
adopt a level of corporate responsibility to support their
employees improve their health and well-being.
In fact, the Government’s recent public health white paper,
‘Healthy Lives, Healthy People’ talks of “working with
employers to unleash their potential as champions of public
health” whilst suggesting that employers “should look to
support the health and well-being of their staff”.
This booklet is aimed at providing you with cost-effective, easy
ways to ensure your work environment is not only supportive
but also boosts your people’s physical and mental well-being
which is essential when building a resilient workforce.
Martin Crisp
Martin Crisp
Executive Coach
www.martincrisp.com
6

8. Are your premises
lowering your
employees’ resilience?
H ow many times have you entered an organisation and
felt there was something lacking? Did the environment
affect your behaviour? This effect, termed the ‘Power of
Context’, helps explain why we whisper in hospitals, feel
anxious in police stations and sad in cemeteries. Physically,
many workplace environments are drab and uninspiring
and they can dampen the enthusiasm and energy of those
working within them, which results in bland thinking.
Working environments are often not conducive to improving
the resilience of people who work within them. This is
especially important when you consider how many workers
are office-based and how much time they spend sitting in
front of computer monitors. One of the biggest challenges
faced by senior managers today is the need to keep abreast
of new ways of working and technological developments.
This fast pace can bring additional challenges and place more
pressure on employees. This can have a negative impact on
employees – whereas they might once have felt exhilarated
by their work, they begin to feel stressed.
7

9. Research suggests that companies engaging in programmes
that improve workforce resilience achieve better results
through improved productivity, better employee engagement
and lower absenteeism. It should come as no surprise
therefore that many of the ‘Times Top 100 Companies to
work for’ have invested in this area.
Initiating a focus to improve workforce resilience needn’t
involve a massive investment as the key is often one of
raising awareness, effectively signposting services locally and
supporting colleagues to consider the benefits of making
some small yet fundamental changes to their everyday
routines that together produce considerable benefits.
The ideas aren’t complex but like anything, they only work
when they’re actually used regularly… creating a culture that
makes them stick is what makes the difference. How many
programmes and courses have you been on where you’ve
left feeling highly motivated with a hastily written action
plan that promises to change the world only to find it three
months later stuffed into the bottom of your briefcase?
People take action and remain motivated when they see
improvements and to do this, some clear measureable
targets need to be firstly set and then regularly reviewed.
With that in mind, I’ve chosen seven steps that are easy
to implement with over 40 actions for you to consider
which will help you to dramatically improve your company’s
productivity, talent retention and employee engagement.
8

10. Step No.1: Gaining full buy-in from the
senior management team
It’s not always easy for senior managers to fully appreciate
the return they will receive from a programme to improve
workforce resilience. In 2008, David MacLeod and Nita
Clarke were commissioned by the Department for Business
(BIS) to take an in-depth look at employee engagement and
to report on its potential benefits for organisations and
employees. In their report, ‘Engaging for success: enhancing
performance through employee engagement’, they
demonstrated a clear link between improving employee
engagement and productivity.
So what benefits can a health and well being initiative to
improve resilience provide employers with? Well, those who
have invested report the following effects on their workforce:
• increased productivity
• reduced stress and anxiety
• lower rates of absenteeism and quicker return to work
after illness
• fewer injuries in the workplace
• improvement in communications, morale and working
atmosphere
• a positive corporate image which attracts higher calibre
employees.
Here are some actions to consider when building a business
case for a well-being initiative:
9

11. Action 1. Calculate how much absence is costing your
business.
No. of employees x average days absence/employee
per annum = Total days absence
Your company’s average daily salary rate x total days
absence = Cost of absence
Actual cost of absence = Cost of absence x 3*
MacLeod confirmed that engaged employees took an
average of 2.69 days of absence per year compared with
6.19 days per year for those who felt disengaged.
*average contribution to the business lost from each
employee absence day
Action 2. Consider staff turnover by determining the
number of employees who have left the company in the
past year and multiply by £7,500 (which is the average
cost to replace an employee based upon a CIPD study).
Remember, this doesn’t take into account the potential time
it takes to bring that person up to a similar level as the
previous jobholder. It is also worth considering the likely risk
of members of the senior management team being absent
from the business either from ill-health or because they have
moved to pastures new. MacLeod established that engaged
employees are 87% less likely to leave the company when
compared with those who felt disengaged.
10

12. Action 3. Another area to consider depending on your
business is the impact a healthier, more resilient senior
management team could have on your sales line.
It has been proven that there is a clear link between
leadership and motivation of colleagues. John Adair, one of
the world’s leading authorities on leadership and leadership
development, suggests that 50% of motivation comes from
an individual’s environment, especially from the leadership
encountered there. Harvard Business School in turn
identified a clear link between motivation and engagement
whilst MacLeod linked improved engagement to improved
productivity and measurable output.
How many additional sales and customers are being lost
through ‘presenteeism’ in your business?
11

13. Step No. 2: Initiate and then
continuously reinforce the value of
individual health and well-being to
everyone within the organisation
Many companies have a clear purpose, vision and mission with
a set of company values to help guide them towards success
and prosperity. There is often considerable investment to
help employees appreciate and understand these business
goals; however they are often lost as short-term priorities
take over.
All of us have our own set of personal values and beliefs,
although we often don’t bring them to the surface. It is well
known that frustration and discontentment can often arise
when individuals feel their values are being compromised
by the company they work for. When completing a ‘values
exercise’ with many professionals, I’ve found that ‘health’ is
often identified as one of their core values. More often than
not, this value doesn’t emerge until very close to the end of
the discussion. Furthermore, when asked to prioritise their
core values, ‘health’ usually comes in the top three. This is
borne out by a study done by the Really Rich Project where
over 1000 people were asked to value the things that were
important to them and ‘Having good health’ came out on
top being valued at over £180,000.
You may be thinking, ‘So what?’
Well I believe that generally people don’t really value
their health until something goes wrong. They wait until
a ‘significant emotional event’ happens. It’s a bit like not
12

14. getting your car serviced and wondering why it decides to
breakdown on a frosty December morning. So the second
step is all about how helping your employees truly value their
health will inspire them to take action before a significant
emotional event occurs.
Here are some practical actions for you to consider:
Action 4. Review awareness of the company purpose,
vision, mission and values, considering whether there is an
opportunity to re-communicate or re-invigorate them. If
you don’t have these, engage your employees to help identify
and appreciate what your company stands for.
Action 5. Help colleagues to consider their own personal
goals and core values and what’s truly important to them.
Even though ‘health’ might not come up specifically I would
be very surprised if it didn’t underpin at least some of the
personal goals identified. It could be a simple as ‘wanting to
kick a football around the park with my future grandson’.
Action 6. Consider carrying out an audit of the offices,
workstations, facilities, rest areas, bulletin boards, food
facilities and overall ambience to understand the simple
steps that could be taken to create a more energising
working environment. From the findings, create a clear
action plan with measurable goals and review dates.
13

15. Action 7. Build on the understanding that health and
well-being helps people to take a more holistic approach
to their lives, whether at work or at home. Working on the
different elements that contribute to better health actually
compounds the benefits. This can be demonstrated simply
using a model such as the Health Millionaire framework. An
initial ‘health awareness day’ offering to calculate Body Mass
Index (BMI), and assess physical activity levels and current
eating habits is a great starting point.
Action 8. Lead by example. Global professional services
company Towers Watson found that only 29% of UK
employees felt that senior management were seriously
interested in their employees’ wellbeing. It may seem like a
cliché but when members of the senior management team
are seen to place a high value on their own health and well-
being it inspires other to follow their example. A Harvard
study identified that great leadership from a motivated
senior management also improves employee engagement
and has a positive impact on the P & L. Consider therefore
the potential benefits of investing in a coach who could align
the resilience initiative with the delivery of company KPI’s.
Action 9. Identify ‘health champions’ within your company
who have a particular passion for supporting others to
improve health. They can lead initiatives such as an on-site
weight management programme or a walking group.
14

16. Step No. 3: Nurture a healthy eating
culture
The modern day workplace is a very different environment
to the one our parents worked in. One element however
has remained completely unchanged. … the inner workings
of the human body. In fact, not a lot has changed in the human
body since prehistoric times. This can help us understand
why today’s lifestyle can be so damaging to our general
health and well-being.
Rewind to our cavemen ancestors and their bodies, in a
fight or flight response to perceived danger from ferocious
predators, released adrenaline. We release adrenaline when
we deal with the ferocious pace of corporate life. The stress
can lead to potential burnout. Cavemen had to hunt for
food. When they ate their body released insulin to control
their sugar levels and store any excess as fat because their
bodies didn’t know when the next meal would come.
Fast forward to our modern day diet and our bodies are
bombarded by refined sugars that send blood sugars soaring.
Our bodies literally have to defend themselves by releasing
large amounts of insulin to ‘mop up’ the sugars which then
get converted into fat. If this process continues it results
in undesirable weight gain. More concerning, our bodies
effectively give up trying to defend themselves against the
onslaught of sugary snacks and insulin-resistance develops
which can then lead to diabetes.
So what actions are required to encourage employees to eat
a healthy balanced diet?
15

17. Action 10. Break down the myths of dieting. Let people
know that healthy eating is a habit that needs to be
maintained for a lifetime, not a sacrificial discipline to achieve
short-term weight loss. It’s also important for people to
understand that their body shapes differ depending upon
their inherited genes. There are three basic body types
(ectomorphs, endomorphs and mesomorphs) and these
should be considered when setting weight loss goals and
deciding on appropriate activity for exercising. For example,
Muhammad Ali would probably not have excelled in the 60
metres hurdles.
Typical traits of an endomorph:
• Soft and round body
• Gains muscle and fat very easily
• Is generally short and stocky
• Round physique
• Finds it hard to lose fat
• Slow metabolism.
Typical traits of a mesomorph:
• Athletic
• Hard body with well-defined muscles
• Rectangular-shaped body
• Strong
• Gains muscle easily
• Gains fat more easily than ectomorphs.
Typical traits of an ectomorph:
• Small delicate frame and bone structure
• Lean muscle mass
• Finds it hard to gain weight
• Fast metabolism.
16

18. Action 11. Help everyone appreciate the potential hazard
of eating a diet full of refined sugars and carbohydrates (for
example, fizzy soft drinks, muffins, white bread, etc.). Raise
their awareness of foods with a low ‘Glycaemic Load’ which
contain slower releasing carbohydrates and how these can
help stabilise blood sugar levels.
Action 12. Good eating habits develop when an individual
becomes more appreciative of the food they eat and how
full it makes them feel. A poster of a ‘hunger scale’ in the
canteen area can help employees to eat only when they
need to. (A ‘hunger scale’ encourages people to identify how
hungry they really are on a scale from one to 10 with one
being ‘feeling faint with hunger’ and 10 being ‘not hungry at
all’.)
Action 13. Champion breakfast. Everyone seems to buy in
to the notion that having breakfast is a good idea but very few
seem to find the time for it. How can your company support
your people start their working day on the right foot? One
way would be to provide a microwave so employees can
make porridge if they wish when they arrive in the morning.
Action 14. Encourage people to bring in mid-morning and
mid-afternoon snacks. Review how easy it is for employees
to access snack foods containing a healthy balance of slow
releasing carbohydrates, protein and healthier fats. Such
a snack might be a small piece of fruit and a handful of
almonds and pumpkin seeds. Not all fruit is the same in terms
of controlling blood sugars - bananas and grapes are the worst
culprits; berries however contain the slower releasing xylose
sugar which has a far lower glycaemic load value.
17

19. Action 15. Most people appreciate the need to drink plenty
of water at regular intervals throughout the day but very
few actually do. Sometimes the feeling of hunger can be
simply due to lack of regular fluids.This can be very common
in long meetings where an opportunity for a break usually
sees people drinking cups of tea or coffee rather than the
water their bodies crave. Lack of water in the body can
often be misinterpreted as hunger so encourage colleagues
to drink a glass of water, wait seven minutes and then review
how hungry they really feel.
Action 16. Why is it that the snack options for energy
maintenance at meetings take the form of Haribos, milk
chocolate snacks or muffins? There are plenty of healthier
alternatives that can provide a longer, more sustained source
of energy without sending blood sugars through the roof.
Why not start regular ‘Fruity Fridays’ and encourage people
to consider healthier snack alternatives?
Action 17. Public displays of an individual’s weight can put
people off from participating in a programme so consider
an alternative measure such as a ‘total circumference
measurements’ figure. This is simply determined by adding
the measurements of the waist, hip, thigh and upper arm
circumferences together.
18

20. Get the Full version
So there you have it. Three steps to consider
that I believe will make a real difference to any
business.
I hope you have found the steps and actions useful and feel
inspired to share them with your colleagues.
You can download the full version of this booklet which contains
four more steps.
.just go to www.martincrisp.com/freebook/ for details.
19

21. About the author
Martin Crisp, director
of London-based Fit4Life
Coaching Ltd, qualified as a
pharmacist in 1987.
He worked steadily through the corporate ranks at two
leading health and beauty organisations to become Head of
Pharmacy responsible for over 200 practices.
Along the way, he acquired a wealth of experience and
knowledge in health matters, leadership, speaking and
personal development. As a fully qualified ILM Level 7
accredited Executive coach, he offers a unique blend of skills
and experience to support companies to become truly fit
for business.
20

22. Testimonials
“Martin helped me take control of my life at work
and hence reduce my stress levels considerably.
I would recommend him to anyone trying to balance
work and family life and feel that they are ‘sinking’
or at best ‘floating’, when they should in fact be
‘swimming’.”
Caroline Hargrove
Programme Director at McLaren Applied
Technologies
“Martin really makes you stop and think. His style
is both challenging and supportive which generates
both clear objectives and the inspiration to take
action.”
Sean Watret
Regional General Manager at Superdrug

23. Fit for Business complete
Seven steps to dramatically improve your
company’s competitive advantage
With all companies constantly competing to gain
market share and position, building workforce
resilience is key to improving your company’s
competitive advantage.
You might think that such a programme is a luxury that only the largest
companies can afford to run. But in this booklet, Executive Business Coach
Martin Crisp explains how such a programme can be introduced at a low
cost. The returns, as he explains, are well worth the small investment.
He provides seven steps that will considerably impact your company’s
bottom line. They are:
Step No.1: Gaining full buy-in from the senior management team
Step No.2: Initiate and then continuously reinforce the value of
individual health and well-being to everyone within the organisation
Step No.3: Nurture a healthy eating culture
Step No.4: Encourage activeness
Step No.5: Help your people focus and they will deliver
Step No.6: Have fun giving something back
Step No.7: Signpost local services and create opportunities to bring
health and well-being into the workplace
By the time you’ve finished reading this booklet, you’ll know how
to start your own cost-effective programme to build a resilient
workforce truly fit for business.
“Martin really makes you stop and think. His style is both challenging and
supportive which generates both clear objectives and the inspiration to
take action.” Sean Watret - Regional General Manager at Superdrug
www.martincrisp.com