CORPORATE LEADERS WEIGH IN ON WORKPLACE WELLNESS

Altru Health System

Marlene

Miller Director of People Resources Grand Forks, N.D.

How does Altru create positive work environments where worker needs are met?

Altru is committed to providing the best care to our patients and supporting our team members’ overall wellness. We care for one another and have launched a new employee wellness program through our partnership with Blue Zones Project. This is the first of its kind in North Dakota and focused on the Power 9 Principles. Over the next three years we will transform our work environment, making healthy choices easier and more accessible. The Power

Marlene Miller

9 is nine healthy lifestyle habits shared by people who’ve lived the longest across the globe. We are focused on helping team members downshift, put family first, have a sense of belonging, move naturally, eat healthy, socialize and much more!

What does Altru offer to ensure all employees feel valued and appreciated?

Feeling valued and appreciated comes from a personal place for people and we focus on individualizing our approach and offering meaningful reward and recognition programs. For example, in the 24/7 always “on” world we live in today, there is a new hunger for meaning for discovering what matters. Purpose is the antidote to the busy-ness and emptiness of so many people’s lives today. Altru offers purpose workshops and introduces this concept to new employees during orientation. Regular awards include the Daisy Award for our nurses and Provider of the Quarter for our physicians and advanced practice providers. We also encourage our teams to nominate anyone who brings a positive attitude to work each day.

What initiatives does Altru have to alleviate or remove stressors in the workplace?

New this year is our Lifestyle Spending Account benefit, which provides employees funds to support their wellness. So far employees have used the money to purchase fitness memberships, yoga classes, cooking classes, walking desks, music subscriptions and much more. This benefit is available to all full-time and part-time team members. Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee is identifying ways to increase a sense of belonging at work. We know when our employees feel they belong, the quality of care we provide increases. We are also better able to identify and address concerns better when employees feel safe to speak up at work. We have 24/7 employee assistance program support for anyone needing immediate or long-term support. And our leadership model emphasizes meaningful rounding and daily huddles with our employees to identify stressors early and address barriers.

How is work-life balance at Altru supported, even for those working remotely?

Our organization hosts many events for in-person, hybrid and remote team members. For example, we are offering cooking demonstrations and purpose workshops virtually. We are in the process of having all leaders complete a leader wellbeing workshop, which is focused on self-awareness and how we build, support and lead toward a culture of wellbeing. Individual goals are established to support balance which is unique to each person. Additionally, annual goals are established by each leader cohort focused on building our culture.

How does Altru support employees and colleagues who require care for a mental health condition or substance use disorder?

Code Lavender is a peer support response allowing our employees to rest, reflect, replenish and refocus. Our multi-disciplinary Code Lavender team is ready to respond around the clock in times of trauma, stress, duress or any challenging or triggering experience by offering a listening ear, kit of resources, and referral to other professionals such as EAP or Employee Health. Our goal is to support employees in times of need while connecting them to other well-established resources available to our Altru team.

Our Employee Assistance Program helps our team members take control of their personal and professional wellbeing. Our program has resources to help team members focus on financial, legal, physical, and mental health. We are also able to provide sessions with a mental health professional at no cost to the team member. Virtual sessions have become more popular as employees appreciate the convenience and confidentiality associated with this option. Our time away from work policy provides our team members with different options, including paid time off for appointments, along with work schedule flexibility.

One of our core messages is “here, we care for one another,” and this message applies to our patients as well as our Altru team. We have developed a framework we call “One Altru,” designed to convey our values and programming while also demonstrating the ways in which we invest in the wellbeing of our team.

Digikey

Shane Zutz

Vice President, Human Resources

Thief River Falls, Minn.

How does DigiKey create positive work environments where worker needs are met?

A positive work environment policy is created when leadership is made aware of and actively addresses team member’s needs. Feedback is encouraged on a regular basis so team members feel heard and seen.

We have a dedicated community relations and events team that provides treats to recognize birthdays, puts on an annual employee appreciation picnic, and organizes an annual holiday celebration with individual gifts.

What does DigiKey offer to ensure all employees feel valued and appreciated?

We have implemented several services, programs and amenities that we hope make our team members feel the value we see in them. We have an onsite clinic that employees can access during their workday, and we offer wellness programs, an annual Safety and Wellness Week, health and wellness benefits and programming including health insurance, dental insurance, EAP and Doctor on Demand.

DigiKey also offers profit sharing, financial planning classes to reduce personal debt, a 401(k) retirement plan, an employee community garden, a cognitive behavioral therapy program, a DigiKey stretch program and desk ergonomics program. We are also proud to offer Omada, a 16week program providing a coach to work on healthy weight, healthy eating habits, diabetes and heart disease prevention, and a smoking cessation program.

What initiatives does DigiKey have to alleviate or remove stressors in the workplace?

We recognize it’s impossible to completely remove stressors in the workplace, but we work diligently to alleviate stress that occurs in our team members’ lives, both in the workplace and outside the workplace. We currently have a crisis plan in place for leaders when an employee presents with suicidal ideation, and we are currently establishing a mental health and wellness training for leaders. Our company partners with local mental health agencies to provide on-site sessions on crisis and grief as needed. We also provide quiet rooms and a fitness center to recharge during breaks.

We have onboarding for leaders, called Welcome to Leadership, which explains how to interact with employees with general or mental wellness concerns. DigiKey has a leading impact on mental health and wellness on employees, understanding the responsibility to ensure fair treatment of all employees and creating a culture of belonging and engagement.

The company is very supportive of our employees and meets individual accommodation needs. We respond to employee concerns and complete thorough investigations as appropriate. We seek win-win solutions as much as possible and follow through with needed actions as a result.

How is work-life balance at the company supported, even for those working remotely?

DigiKey has team members around the world who work fully in-person, hybrid and fully remote. We are conscious of the variances in work-life balance that occur in each situation, and we encourage and support employees taking the time off they need to spend time with their families for vacations, sporting events or simply time together.

How does DigiKey support employees and colleagues who require care for a mental health condition or substance use disorder?

We offer a reasonable suspicion policy which allows employees to remain employed and connects them with chemical dependency assessments and services. We have leave of absence accommodations for employees with substance abuse and/or mental health concerns. DigiKey provides Doctor on Demand and Learn to Live programs where employees can access 24/7 in the privacy of their own homes. We can connect employees with local, state, and national resources for 24/7 assistance. The company displays crisis information posters throughout the buildings with contact information for support lines, and we offer a competitive health plan covering mental health and substance use disorders.

Eapc Architects Engineers

Leap Chear Partner, Senior Architect, Operations Manager Sioux Falls, S.D.

How does the company create positive work environments where worker needs are met?

A positive work environment is more than just a space to do work. It’s about creating an all-inclusive, fun culture that all contribute to. We strive to provide the necessary tools for our employees to do their jobs well. We consider our office environment as a critical tool to foster creativity and remove unnecessary obstacles. We endeavor to provide a “mother’s room” in all offices when applicable. We staunchly believe in supporting the health and well-being of our staff and do not stifle creativity; a flexible work area gives balance throughout the day to combat passive activities.

What does the company offer to ensure all employees feel valued and appreciated?

Internally, we regularly celebrate our people from their first day to the day they decide a career change is needed. A simple “thank you” and “well done” goes a long way. Externally, our multimedia marketing team lets the world know when we recognize above and beyond initiative, mentorship and growth development of our people. We take time to celebrate personal and professional accomplishments when our people obtain professional licensure or accreditation. After all, we are a professional company. It’s in our name, EAPC – Engineers Architects Professional Corporation.

What initiatives does EAPC have to alleviate or remove stressors in the workplace?

Conversations around the water cooler may seem old school, but it’s an avenue to get a glimpse into each other’s world and get the benefit of keeping hydrated. A spirit of camaraderie is encouraged through rousing games, whether it be table tennis, shuffleboard, billiards or corn hole, depending on which office you visit. There’s something satisfying (and stress relieving) about putting focus on others. We foster a culture of “give back” to the community we live, work and play in. On a quarterly cadence, we roll up our sleeves and get our hands dirty. We are here to serve.

How is work-life balance at EAPC supported, even for those working remotely?

There is a sense of freedom with working remotely but at times can cause disconnectedness and feelings of isolation and loneliness. Our HR team and direct supervisors take this under consideration when discussing flexible work arrangements with staff to ensure that regular touch points are taking place. We love and appreciate the good work our people do, but when life happens, “life” becomes top priority and our company policy fully supports it. In addition, our people generously donate unused PTO and vacation time to their fellow coworkers.

How does the company support employees and colleagues who require care for a mental health condition or substance use disorder?

First and of utmost importance is to protect our staff members’ personal wellbeing and privacy. Our HR team guides us through and holds us accountable to ensure that our staff’s well-being and privacy is treated with respect and confidentiality. It’s also in our practice. We work with health care professionals and get to immerse ourselves in their world. It’s an honor to design healing spaces to treat hurting people.