Recent research by the Achievers Workforce Institute sought to determine what elements are necessary to create a company culture that prioritizes wellbeing for its employees.
Through academic study and a survey of 2,000 employees and 1,000 human resources professionals worldwide, the results pointed to three key “drivers” necessary for employees to have a sense of wellbeing in the workplace:
- Inclusion, acceptance and feeling valued
- Feeling part of the team and “being warmly welcomed”
- A supportive manager
Supporting these, however, is a non-negotiable ingredient that the study showed fostered all three “drivers” of wellbeing: recognition.
Employees who reported being meaningfully recognized each week were twice as likely to also experience a higher-level of physical and mental wellbeing. They were also twice as likely to be skilled at managing stress.
While many company leaders might say they are practiced at providing recognition for team members who participate in wellbeing initiatives, the study points to a wide gap between perception and reality among its top-tier leaders. C-suite executives believed they were recognizing employees well at a higher rate (36%), while only 14% of senior contributors and 12% of junior contributors agreed.
According to the study, teams “with a recognition platform outperform those without a formal program when it comes to wellbeing outcomes.” Employees who work in an environment that has a recognition platform in place reported feeling that the company supported employee wellbeing at almost twice the rate (32%) as those employees who worked at a company without a recognition platform (18%).
