Presented by: Graham Lowe, The Graham Lowe Group Inc at OHSIG 2014, Thursday 11/9/14, NZI Room 5, 1.15pm

1. Creating Healthy Organizations
Actions for Sustainable Success
Workshop facilitated by Graham Lowe
OHSIG Conference
Auckland, September 11th, 2014

2. 2
Objectives
• Understand healthy organizations
• Identify how to strengthen culture and leadership
• Review your use of performance measures
• Assess opportunities for action
• Reflect on your role as a change agent

3. WHAT ARE YOUR
EXPECTATIONS?
3

4. 4
Okanagan Valley wineries, British Columbia, Canada

5. 5
Healthy Organizations
www.grahamlowe.ca

6. 6
Looking through a
health lens…
 Holistic
 Integrative
 Long-term
 Strategic

7. 7
The health promotion springboard
DIMENSION:
Workplace Health
Promotion
Healthy Organization
Target Individual Organizational
Change model Health promotion Organization development
Scope and focus Program-based Systemic and holistic
Timeframe Short and medium term Long term
Links to strategy Part of HR plan How the business operates

8. 8
The healthy organization
Inspired
employees
Vibrant workplaces
Effective people practices
Culture and leadership
Creating
value for
stakeholders
Sustainable
Success

9. 9
This calls for healthy organizations…
Work practices, workplace culture and
relationships, work-life balance, and
injury management affect health and
productivity.
Australian/New Zealand Consensus Statement on
the Health Benefits of Work

10. Health, Safety & Performance
Successful
and
Sustainable
Organizations
Collaboration,
leadership &
culture
Higher
employee
wellbeing &
engagement
Healthy and
safe
workplaces
This model
builds on the
WorkSafe
Vision of
“working safer”
10

11. 11
Culture & Leadership
www.grahamlowe.ca

12. 12
What is culture?
Shapes behaviour
Influences performance
Shared meanings
about how
organizational life
ought to be
conducted

13. 13
Culture as strategic advantage
Organizations with clearly codified cultures…
 become better places to work
 are more innovative, productive and profitable
 have stronger customer and employee
“ownership”
James L. Heskett, W. Earl Sasser, and Joe Wheeler. The Ownership Quotient: Putting
the Service Profit Chain to Work for Unbeatable Competitive Advantage, Harvard
Business Press, 2008.

14. 14
Mayo Clinic’s culture of respect
“Mayo Clinic’s core values nurture a culture of
respect that contributes to the quality of work
life. What is cherished (values) shapes
behavior (culture). The profound respect Mayo
employees typically have for patients, for each
other, and for the institution is palpable.”
L. Berry & K. Seltman, Management Lessons from the Mayo
Clinic. McGraw-Hill, 2008, p. 261.

15. We act with integrity, treating all with dignity, fairness, and respect.
• Always respect others’ opinions and viewpoints.
• Listen first, and then speak.
We commit to everyone going home safe and healthy every day.
• Always take time to do your work safely.
• Reinforce learning from each other’s errors.
We take personal responsibility for our actions and results.
• Live up to your commitments.
• Honestly give and accept praise.
We support each other to achieve our fullest potential.
We act responsibly to support a sustainable future for the communities and
environment in which we operate.
15
Teck Metals’ guiding principles

16. 16
How do you rate your organization?
How inclusive is leadership?
How positive is the culture?

17. 17
1 = Strongly disagree , 2 = Disagree, 3 = Neither, 4 = Agree, 5 = Strongly agree
How positive is your culture? To what extent do you disagree or agree that each of these statements
describes your organization?
Your
Response
1) The organization has strong people-focused values.
2) Employees know and personally identify with the values of the organization.
3) Supervisors are selected based on their people skills.
4) Employees are involved in planning and implementing change.
YOUR SCORE /20
How inclusive is your leadership? To what extent do you disagree or agree that each of these statements
describes your organization?
Your
Response
5) Managers encourage employees to take initiative.
6) Employees are able to improve their immediate work environment.
7) Employees feel responsible for living the organization’s values.
8) Employees are trusted to do what is best for customers / clients.
YOUR SCORE /20

18. 18
Discussion
 What scores highest?
 How have you achieved this?

19. 19
Trusting employees
• “If you treat employees
as if they make a
difference to the
company, they will
make a difference …”
www.sas.com
“We’ve worked hard to
create a corporate culture
that is based on trust
between our employees and
the company…”
SAS President and CEO
Jim Goodnight

20. “The motive that inspires the
greatest trust is genuine caring ...”
20
Being a trustworthy leader
“Leadership is getting results in
a way that inspires trust.”
Source: Stephen M. R. Covey, The Speed of Trust
(Free Press, 2006), pages 40 and 78.

21. 21
Discussion
How will building trust contribute to
health and safety goals?

22. 22
Measuring progress
www.grahamlowe.ca

23. 23
Best practices?

24. 24
Quality Healthcare Workplace Awards
Platinum Award criteria:
Source: Ontario Hospital Association www.oha.com

25. How metrics drive improvement
Effective practices from Platinum Award winners:
• Corporate scorecards include healthy workplace
and staff satisfaction / engagement measures
• Board and Executive use metrics in planning and
decision-making
• HR, wellness, cost-reduction and care quality goals
linked within a strategic framework tied to MVV
• Set targets and measure progress on key HR goals
Source: Ontario Hospital Association -
http://www.oha.com/CurrentIssues/keyinitiatives/QualityHealthCareWorkplaceAwards/Pages/Default.aspx
25

26. 26
How effectively do
you use your
employee survey
results to engage
employees in
improving their
workplace?

27. Reinterpreting survey results
Example survey items…
• I am satisfied with the fairness and
respect I receive on the job…
• I am meaningfully involved in
decisions…
• My work related stress is
manageable
• The balance between my work and
personal commitments is right…
• I am truly appreciated for the
contributions I make…
Auditing
psychological
safety risks
27

28. 28
Discussion
 How do you measure workplace
health and safety performance?
Do these performance measures
lead to improvements?

29. 29
Actions you can take
www.grahamlowe.ca

30. What you can do
1. Engage others
2. Design for wellbeing
3. Integrate initiatives
4. Model behaviours
30
Costs???
$0
• Time
• Commitment
• Follow-through

31. Engage
Develop a shared workplace vision
• Relationships
• Job
• Team
• Supports
© 2012 The Graham Lowe Group 31

32. 32
Improvements are a shared responsibility
Vision
EVERYONE
IS A LEADER
Values Actions

33. 33
Shared responsibility
How can you involve your team in
making your workplace healthier?
1.
2.

34. 34
Design
VIBRANT WORKPLACE INGREDIENTS
1. Respect and fairness
2. 2-way communication
3. Autonomy and input
4. Adequate resources
5. Supportive supervisors
6. Challenging work
7. Recognition and rewards
8. Safe and healthy environment

35. 35
How do you design change?

36. Design: Tomorrow’s factory
BMW’s Project 2017
Designing a
production line for
and with 50+
workers at the
Dingolfing plant,
Germany.
36

37. 37
Discussion
 Do you have lessons to share
from participatory ergonomics?
 How are employees meaningfully
involved in changes in your
organization?

38. 38
Recruitment & retention
Integrate

39. 39
Discussion
 Identify ONE opportunity for
greater cooperation between OHS,
HR and Wellness in your
organization.

40. 40
Model
Living the
corporate values
builds trust

41. 41
Model: Focus on behaviour
• Translate values into behaviours
• Develop people skills
• Use metrics for accountability

42. 42
Be a change agent
www.grahamlowe.ca

43. 43
Effective change agents…
1. Know their sphere of influence
2. Are guided by values and vision
3. Involve their employees / co-workers
4. Communicate wellbeing-performance links

44. 44
Close the ‘knowing – doing gap’

45. 45
Your commitment…
Write down 2 actions you will take in the
next week to build a healthier organization:
1. _______________________________
2. _______________________________

46. 46
For information and resources go to:
www.creatinghealthyorganizations.ca
Or scan:
Follow me on Twitter: @HealthyOrgs
The Graham Lowe Group | www.grahamlowe.ca | glowe@grahamlowe.ca