With nearly half of the British workforce working from home during the lockdown, most of us have become acclimatised to this, with remote working even becoming a desirable option as we move forward through the pandemic.
Over 90 percent of the workforce admit they’d like to continue working from home for at least some time after the restrictions are eventually lifted. Reasons for this vary, but most commonly it’s because it wields more flexibility for the worker, giving back time lost otherwise spent commuting and allowing the work-life relationship to advantage people more than ever before.
The evolution from the traditional workplace
But while most employees in the UK might prefer to work from home, there’s still some level of adjustment that needs to be made to adapt to the new working style. Employees have gone from buzzy offices, where they interact with each other across the desk or in meetings and go for lunch together, to now working in their home where it’s often quieter and the level of interaction isn’t as high. This can all take a toll on an individual’s mental health and wellbeing, causing them to feel isolated and unmotivated.
This has certainly been a concern during the lockdown as the levels of loneliness in the UK have actually risen from between 6 percent – 18 percent to 25 percent. And when the associated low mood creeps in, employees can find it difficult to continue working to their expected standard.
As such, there is increasing onus on business and HR leaders to equip their employees with the tools to help them adjust to a work from home lifestyle and introduce initiatives that will support their wellbeing needs. We’re already seeing many businesses adopting new practices to enable this, such as organising virtual exercise or meditation classes or socially distanced meetups. Research from Onecom suggests that for those leaders intending for remote working to become permanent, 77 percent still recognise the importance of providing a meetup space for employees to come together.
Using technology as a catalyst for change
I’m sure at the start of lockdown, there were many business-owners and HR leaders who were concerned that working from home would see employees take their foot off the pedal to a certain degree, but the reality has shown they actually feel the pressure to work harder and for longer in a bid to prove they aren’t taking advantage of the situation. This comes with its own problems though. As a CEO, I knew that striking the balance of productivity and encouraging my team to take regular breaks was key. This is why I always encourage my team to step away from their screens and go for walks or take the time out to enjoy their hobbies. And, as the founder of a global health engagement company, my team was already using our Employee Wellbeing platform which empowers them to maintain healthy lifestyle behaviours and take control of their wellbeing.
I have seen first-hand how implementing a wellness technology like ours can significantly reduce work-related stress, make our team feel more connected and boost productivity, in fact, we support hundreds of businesses around the world and many of them have seen their employees become 2.1 times more active and 2.5 times more engaged. Individuals are able to set personal lifestyle goals and access expert content to guide them, while teams are able to take part in incentivised challenges together, all helping to build a positive and connected workforce.
These types of technologies can quickly respond to the needs of employees, creating social cohesion and camaraderie no matter where people are based, while employers gain actionable insights enabling quick, informed decisions around their wider workforce wellbeing strategy.
If businesses fail to introduce a wellness strategy, they could unknowingly breed a negative workplace culture where motivation is in swift decline. That said, If there’s one thing we can be sure of, it’s that working from home is here for the foreseeable future. How this will affect company culture and the workforce in the long-term remains to be seen, but investing in employee health and wellbeing now will inevitably pay dividends.
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By Martin Blinder
Martin Blinder is CEO and Founder of health engagement company Tictrac.
Tictrac enables businesses to empower their staff to take greater control of their health and wellbeing, while through its Enterprise platform, it enables insurance and healthcare providers to engage their customers in their health and to tailor relevant products and services to them.
