Dear readers, it won’t surprise you that mental health and well-being continue to reside at the top of our workplace communication issues list.
In last week’s column, I focused on how you can actively take more control of three main areas of wellbeing: mind, body and soul. Today, let’s examine how businesses can offer support.
On Tuesday, the World Economic Forum hosted a live webinar focusing on cultivating mentally healthy workplaces. (Thank you, reader, Kristina Glasnovic, for bringing this to my attention.) The speakers discussed a variety of regional and cross-sector case studies and initiatives aimed at providing Covid-19 stress-related mental support and beyond.
I’d like to explore some of their suggestions at the same time I introduce you to the Irish company Primeline. Based in County Meath, Primeline employees more than 700 people from all 32 countries across the island. It’s the largest provider
Primeline is the largest independent Irish provider of logistics, sales and marketing services to home-grown and international brands and retailers across the Irish and UK
Last week
In tha last couple of year primeline has been on a journaey we started as a hard warehousing and ligitstince brisnse movinv boxed sfrom a – to be and moving brands et.. but in the last couple o f years there was desiere from the two onwerf ot the busines.. how do we take the company into a new level.. one of the first things was to invest in the slt.. but in ordert o bcreate a common language across primeline.. we had to introcue our new pvalues.. at the caonfere last year.. we held it in the castle naught hotel.. and we invited everyone along the primline group.. to come together..
We have have employees from all 32 counties and 700 direct employees and agency colleagues into our warehouses and our drives. All tobehr over 1000 impacted daiilye.
And we ‘re moving products all over the country – and in Scotland and England we have three and four hubs across the the uk – deliver.. #we launched our company values at the conference elast year.. #we have five company bvalues..
Excellence
Resepent courage #teamwork and results.
We went with words – because we know they mean different things to different people – because we wanted them to sit and fit – for our counter colleagues to driver colleagues – we have colleagues across every industrt
So we launched out values – and that was the first steop in our journey =- and then it’s been about growing that.. #about growing a consistent language across the business.
When it came to launch prime-life – it was aoubt brining our values to life..
While this have come from our founders – it hasn’t been an easy journey – sometimes the concept of culture and the culture change and values based culture – can sound fluffy and people mihg tsay why are you sticking up words on the wall and what’s going to happen with that?
A couple of ways to engage the founders and my fellow colleagus on the senior leader team – I talka bout the customer employee profit chain – in a nutshell if you find really great people andyou look after then they will look after you and there will be growth..
We were doing that to a degree – but we weren’t connecting our people to the people.. how were we getting them to bring their best self to work.
We neded to really have a platform to really engage into primeline – and that was launching primelife – as well. In addition to launching our company values, we also launched our people vision. Why do we come to work every day – to live and breath ethe people vision.
We want to create an evironbgmane where people want to come tow work every day
2. we wnt to create a place werehe people genionely know that people caere about each other
3. we want to have a pleace a to work weher our line managers create a work enviroenmtne where people can be their best.
It’s in the know and care place that primelife comes to life
When we have this converstaiont with the two owners and they get it..
Nikki asked me to look over primelife – I know how it feels to feel important in the workplace – it’s important to feel included and valued. There was already an employee assistance program – it’s a safe place where people cant talk about personal or professional issues that are impatin their lives. There are counselling sessions available or – hlepd you deal with the burdens of life. We don’t’ want our employees to struggle through their jobs.
Primelife promotesmental health – we send out weekly communications to our colleagues – to mental health, financial health, nutritional advice.. our of our employees have contact numbers and we addresses.. primelife is the umbrella term for the programme as awhole..
Employee assistance program is under that and the gp 24 hour care – is a program for our employees and their families – we have about 350 people who work in our warehouses.. and we might have a lot of foreign nationals and they might not have a lot of English.. what we try to do with these programs is give them a one-stop shop =where they can come to help and advice in this country.
They may need legal advice or counselling or financial advice.
Primeline is 30 years old – when we first launched this.. and we got back
It’s a phone numbers and a web address- in partnership with Laya healthcare –
We would have colleagues who would be with us for 30 years – it keeps them connected to primline and fosters that culture of care.
We care about you as an individual.
There were 10 calls to the Employee Assistance Program – in the first six months – and now we would have it 10 calls a day. Launched iabout -18 months ago.. we bring food for our employees into the site..
We employee 150 people I office roles and the rest are on the road or in retail. The 150 worked remotely and the rest continued to com e into the sites every day through Covid.
During covid we had to get creative and keep our colleagues connected even more – we had to keep them connected.. we had to keep wellness on the agenda.. some people enjoyed the xperinece and for others it was really isolating.. we set challenges and online recognitaion and delivered fruit boxes and kept it interactive..
We make suer we get engagement.
We’ver big plans for primelife and the wellness program and al ot of the plans had to go on hold because of the lockdown – for instance we were going to launch yoga and pilates on the –
So now we’re launching the recognition program – recognizing them on our values – every day recognition program – I can fillin the bar and we also have a digital version of that.. we would’ve had cards – but now it’s digital.
We are also launching an employee forum to have empllyees privid input to the primlife intiaitaves..
People want to be part of isoemthing – it’s no longer just a job – launched in2019 and before there were no formal values..
Last week
In tha last couple of year primeline has been on a journaey we started as a hard warehousing and ligitstince brisnse movinv boxed sfrom a – to be and moving brands et.. but in the last couple o f years there was desiere from the two onwerf ot the busines.. how do we take the company into a new level.. one of the first things was to invest in the slt.. but in ordert o bcreate a common language across primeline.. we had to introcue our new pvalues.. at the caonfere last year.. we held it in the castle naught hotel.. and we invited everyone along the primline group.. to come together..
We have have employees from all 32 counties and more than 700 direct employees and agency colleagues into our warehouses and our drives. All tobehr over 1000 impacted daiilye.
And we ‘re moving products all over the country – and in Scotland and England we have three and four hubs across the the uk – deliver.. #we launched our company values at the conference elast year.. #we have five company bvalues..
Excellence
Resepent courage #teamwork and results.
We went with words – because we know they mean different things to different people – because we wanted them to sit and fit – for our counter colleagues to driver colleagues – we have colleagues across every industrt
So we launched out values – and that was the first steop in our journey =- and then it’s been about growing that.. #about growing a consistent language across the business.
When it came to launch prime-life – it was aoubt brining our values to life..
While this have come from our founders – it hasn’t been an easy journey – sometimes the concept of culture and the culture change and values based culture – can sound fluffy and people mihg tsay why are you sticking up words on the wall and what’s going to happen with that?
A couple of ways to engage the founders and my fellow colleagus on the senior leader team – I talka bout the customer employee profit chain – in a nutshell if you find really great people andyou look after then they will look after you and there will be growth..
We were doing that to a degree – but we weren’t connecting our people to the people.. how were we getting them to bring their best self to work.
We neded to really have a platform to really engage into primeline – and that was launching primelife – as well. In addition to launching our company values, we also launched our people vision. Why do we come to work every day – to live and breath ethe people vision.
We want to create an evironbgmane where people want to come tow work every day
2. we wnt to create a place werehe people genionely know that people caere about each other
3. we want to have a pleace a to work weher our line managers create a work enviroenmtne where people can be their best.
It’s in the know and care place that primelife comes to life
When we have this converstaiont with the two owners and they get it..
Nikki asked me to look over primelife – I know how it feels to feel important in the workplace – it’s important to feel included and valued. There was already an employee assistance program – it’s a safe place where people cant talk about personal or professional issues that are impatin their lives. There are counselling sessions available or – hlepd you deal with the burdens of life. We don’t’ want our employees to struggle through their jobs.
Primelife promotesmental health – we send out weekly communications to our colleagues – to mental health, financial health, nutritional advice.. our of our employees have contact numbers and we addresses.. primelife is the umbrella term for the programme as awhole..
Employee assistance program is under that and the gp 24 hour care – is a program for our employees and their families – we have about 350 people who work in our warehouses.. and we might have a lot of foreign nationals and they might not have a lot of English.. what we try to do with these programs is give them a one-stop shop =where they can come to help and advice in this country.
They may need legal advice or counselling or financial advice.
Primeline is 30 years old – when we first launched this.. and we got back
It’s a phone numbers and a web address- in partnership with Laya healthcare –
We would have colleagues who would be with us for 30 years – it keeps them connected to primline and fosters that culture of care.
We care about you as an individual.
There were 10 calls to the Employee Assistance Program – in the first six months – and now we would have it 10 calls a day. Launched iabout -18 months ago.. we bring food for our employees into the site..
We employee 150 people I office roles and the rest are on the road or in retail. The 150 worked remotely and the rest continued to com e into the sites every day through Covid.
During covid we had to get creative and keep our colleagues connected even more – we had to keep them connected.. we had to keep wellness on the agenda.. some people enjoyed the xperinece and for others it was really isolating.. we set challenges and online recognitaion and delivered fruit boxes and kept it interactive..
We make suer we get engagement.
We’ver big plans for primelife and the wellness program and al ot of the plans had to go on hold because of the lockdown – for instance we were going to launch yoga and pilates on the –
So now we’re launching the recognition program – recognizing them on our values – every day recognition program – I can fillin the bar and we also have a digital version of that.. we would’ve had cards – but now it’s digital.
We are also launching an employee forum to have empllyees privid input to the primlife intiaitaves..
People want to be part of isoemthing – it’s no longer just a job – launched in2019 and before there were no formal values..
Write to Gina in care of SundayBusiness@independent.ie
With corporate clients in five continents, Gina London is a premier communications strategy, structure and delivery expert. She is also a media analyst, author, speaker and former CNN anchor. @TheGinaLondon
