The document outlines strategies for creating a healthier organization, emphasizing goals such as acquiring improvement tools, assessing progress, and identifying actionable steps. Key aspects include fostering strong links between organizational performance, social responsibility, and employee wellbeing, along with building a vibrant workplace culture. It encourages a holistic approach to health promotion that involves both management and employees in driving sustainable improvement.

1. What You Can Do To Create A Healthier
Organization
Presentation by Graham Lowe, Ph.D.
Partners in Prevention 2010
Toronto, 4 May 2010
Project Title 1
Goals
1. Acquire new improvement tools.
2. Learn about the building blocks.
3. Assess your progress.
4. Identify actions you can take.
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 2
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2. Connecting the dots
e
High perform ur
lt
ance cu
Workfor ty
ce divers fe
ity Sa
ganization
Learning or
TIES
Health promotion
BILI
C APA
ure
Engageme
Leaders
hip deve
lopment Cult
nt
nt St r
geme a te
t mana gic
Talen HR
g
inin
Tra Career development
ice
er of cho Recruitment & retention
Employ
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 3
Look at your organization
through a healthy organization
lens…
Holistic
Integrative
Long-term
Strategic
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 4
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3. Describing a healthy organization
Fit
Agile
Links
Capable people and
Resilient performance
Thriving
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 5
The key to a healthy organization
Forging strong links between…
Organizational performance
Social responsibility
Employee wellbeing
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 6
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4. Building blocks of a healthy organization
Inspired employees
Vibrant workplaces
Inclusive leadership
Positive culture
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 7
The healthy organization value chain
Sustainable
Success
Inspired
How value is employees
created for
stakeholders
Vibrant workplaces
Effective people practices
Culture and leadership
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 8
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5. How healthy is your organization?
Do a quick check-up…
Complete the Healthy Organization
Assessment©
 Score each section and get a total
score
 Look for strengths and opportunities
to improve
Your co-workers can complete this at:
www.creatinghealthyorganizations.ca
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 9
You need to get at root causes
- Turnover, absenteeism,
presenteeism, injuries,
benefit costs, dissatisfaction
Jobs, work
environments, HR
supports,
leadership, culture
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 10
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6. Example: reducing work stress
Employee control Job demands
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 11
Moving beyond wellness programs
Workplace Health Healthy Organization
DIMENSION: Promotion
Target Individual Organizational
Change model Health promotion Organization development
Scope and focus Program-based Systemic and holistic
Timeframe Short and medium term Long term
Individual benefits Reduced health risks Quality of life and capabilities
Organizational benefits Lower employee costs Higher performance
Links to strategy Part of HR plan How the business operates
Responsibility Formal roles Shared responsibility
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 12
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7. Vibrant workplace ingredients
Key drivers of wellbeing and performance:
1. Respectful relationships based on trust
2. 2-way communication
3. Contributions valued and recognition
4. Supportive supervisors & coworkers
5. Job autonomy
6. Role clarity and demands
7. Decision input
8. Challenging, interesting work
9. Growth and development opportunities
10.Adequate resources
11.Fair rewards and processes
12.Safe and health-promoting environment
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 13
Effective people practices
Retention &
Recruitment
Learning &
Engagement
Development
Social People Performance
Strategic
Responsibility Strategy Management
Priorities
RESULTS
Health
OHS
Promotion
Pay &
Benefits
Culture
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 14
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8. Progress is a shared responsibility
Vision
INCLUSIVE
LEADERSHIP
Values Actions
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 15
Another look at health promotion
World Health Organization defines health promotion as:
“…the process of enabling individuals and
communities to increase control over the
determinants of health and thereby improve their
health.”
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 16
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9. Use a healthy change process
• Model the goals
• Guided by values Promotes buy-in
and ownership
• Involve employees
• Learn as you go
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 17
Finding your trajectory
Design an improvement trajectory for your
organization
Use the Healthy Organization Assessment© to
plan next steps
What single change would have the biggest
impact with the least effort?
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 18
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10. What managers can do
Talk about values
Apply people skills
Involve employees in solutions
Connect CSR and HR
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 19
What employees can do
Tie improvements to performance
Craft a team vision
Build bridges
Be a change agent
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 20
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11. Final points
1. Understand how you can make a difference
2. Strengthen the building blocks
3. Build on successes
4. Collaborate and learn
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 21
Questions& Comments
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 22
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12. For information and resources :
www.creatinghealthyorganizations.ca
The Graham Lowe Group | www.grahamlowe.ca | glowe@grahamlowe.ca | 250.448.5636
© 2010 The Graham Lowe Group 23
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