Leaders are always under a lot of pressure. When better business results are needed, leaders must make it happen. When there is a crisis, such as a pandemic, leaders are expected to step up and get the organization through it.
No matter the situation, leaders are expected to drive business results while also managing and coaching their employees and providing them with a good work experience.
But who takes care of the leaders? How do organizations ensure they have healthy leaders with the capacity to not only execute all their responsibilities but care about their employees, help build their resilience and enable them to evolve in an environment of continuous change?
A new eBook, The Leadership and Well-Being Connection, stresses that leaders need to be well to do well and organizations must do more to develop healthy leaders so they, in turn, can care for their employees.
“A holistic approach to well-being, touching all aspects of life, including their physical, emotional, intellectual, social, vocational and spiritual wellness, is the key to healthy leadership,” said Bob Rosen, CEO of The Healthy Leader, which develops innovative leader development programs and published the eBook.
“In the middle of organizations, leaders must understand people’s personal desires for healthand well-being,” Rosen said. “That means helping them live healthy lives and creating psychologically safe and healthy work environments. It is up to the leaders to get to know their people, their diverse life experiences and their feelings and aspirations. In the post-pandemic world, knowing your people is more important than ever.”
Brandon Hall Group research supports the fact that managers who care about their people drive business results. In organizations where leaders care highly about employees’ careers and experience, employees are:
- 4 times more likely to have a strong sense of well-being
- 4 times more likely to say they feel heard by the organization
- 3 times more likely to be highly engaged
- 3 times more likely to feel valued
- 2 times more likely to have a strong sense of belonging to the organization
Source: 2021 Brandon Hall Group Study, Career Development: Are You Considering What Employees Want?
Unfortunately, only about one-third of organizations say their managers are integrally involved in partnering with their employees for their well-being and career growth. Our research study, Career Development: Are You Considering What Employees Want?, shows that:
- 34% of organizations have managers who consistently help employees grow in their current roles.
- 31% of organizations have managers who consistently take the time to understand employees’ personal and professional aspirations.
A majority of employers (56%) say it is important to develop inclusive leaders who care about all aspects of employee well-being, according to our 2021 leadership development research. But they are challenged to do so. About seven in 10 organizations say leaders have little or no time in the day to learn and improve themselves or to make themselves a priority.
Rosen asserts that it is imperative that organizations place a higher priority on health and well-being for leaders and all employees.
“Simply put, you hire the right people with the right skills and invest in their health and well-being,” the eBookrecommends. “This leads to a stronger employee experience and greater engagement, which translates into better efficiency and effectiveness, leading to higher business productivity. By placing well-being in the middle of the chain, we create a strong multiplier effect over time because employees are more resilient and adaptive to shifting demands and imperatives.”
The key to success post-pandemic, Rosen says, where “no normal” is the new normal, is developing healthy leaders and addressing well-being across the enterprise. That leads to a strong culture that drives business outcomes.
“Organizations that get leadership, well-being and culture right will prosper,” Rosen said. “Those that do not will fall further behind their competitors for talent and revenue.”
-Claude Werder, Senior VP and Principal HCM Analyst, Brandon Hall Group
