Nurturing Workplace Well-Being: Beyond Individuals To Community

Effective strategies for navigating workplace tension and fostering candid dialogue

When there’s tension in the office, everyone feels the impact. Businesses and organizations can struggle with challenging employee dynamics or a combative workplace culture. If these issues aren’t addressed, workers disengage, reputations get tarnished, and high turnover becomes the norm.
 

In this climate, leaders understand the importance of addressing conflict early, before relationships become strained, reputations become tarnished, or employees become disengaged. Investment in prevention includes employees’ well-being.

Recent trends in workplace well-being have been physical well-being, mindfulness, and mental health/emotional well-being. Employers believe that employees who are in good health perform better and have created initiatives that have included sponsoring company sports teams, bringing in personal trainers, and offering programs about making healthy food choices. Opportunities to explore mindfulness in the workplace include on-site yoga and education about meditation and sleep hygiene. Most recently, employers turned their attention to employees’ mental and emotional health and have offered increased therapy benefits and access to wellness apps.

While these are positive investments in staff support, one downside is that these approaches are largely individualistic. The hope that someone will “show up” better doesn’t always translate into improved team dynamics, better productivity, and comfort in the workplace. What’s more, some of these programs were abridged or excised when companies moved to remote working arrangements.

Workplace problems remain, and through my role with JAMS Pathways, I am able to focus on assisting with the resolution of these types of issues with a variety of organizations.

A recent Business Insider article, “Gen Z is Bringing a Whole New Vibe to the Workplace: Anxiety,” provides a window into the current atmosphere. “In Gallup's 2022 workplace survey, 52% of workers in the US and Canada said they felt stressed at work daily—a record high.” The experience of Gen Zers stands out. “In a 2022 survey by the meditation app Calm, 58% of Gen Zers said they felt anxious frequently or all the time—a big jump from the one-third of Gen Xers and one-quarter of baby boomers who said the same.”

A fresh approach to employee wellness is key. It’s time to talk about community.

Why Is Community Important?

Whether we define community as “social cohesion; mutual support and affinity” or “a group of people who have the same interests or goals,” workplace community is critical to a company’s productivity and growth. Healthy communities allow for information sharing, team building, employee-driven support systems, and stronger relationships with clients and funders.

“Generational” information sharing communicates norms and encourages innovation.

Seasoned workers can teach newbies about unofficial expectations, work culture, and efficiency hacks that do not appear in the employee manual. For example:

• What are the expectations for how people share ideas at meetings?
• What is the most efficient way to organize your workweek?         
• Which supervisors are the best for different topics?

And with four generations in the workplace, we have an unprecedented opportunity to partner wisdom with innovation.

Informal Mentorship Helps Staff Succeed

In every workplace, there’s that one special office where colleagues joke, decompress, and renew. Over snacks and coffee, these conversations lead to important brainstorming sessions and informal mentoring relationships.

Employee support channels solve problems before they reach the manager’s desk. In close-knit offices, employees take care of each other. Janet mentioned her kid’s graduation was coming up. Michael offers to switch shifts. Kris is out sick with the flu. Maribel offers to cover his client meeting to keep the project on track. Obe shares he’s stressed about an upcoming presentation. Jon offers, “Want to run it by me during lunch?” A real, interdependent community means work gets done and standards are upheld without the need for managerial administrative support.

And for the company, employees sharing key information about clients and funders leads to nurtured, deeper relationships.

Outside relationships are key to an organization's sustainability. Strong client relations build reputations. Funders and investors are an existential necessity and drive direction. When employees have formal and informal avenues to communicate client preferences and funder expectations, the entire organization benefits from the continuity of care.

So now that we know why community is so important for employee well-being, how do we build it?

1. Hybrid workplaces

• Two overlapping days in an office can help people build relationships and expose new hires to institutional norms and expectations.
• When colleagues know each other’s personalities, approaches to communication, and senses of humor, they have a guideline to assess comments. Was Ted’s comment dry humor or a complaint? Knowing the difference can save a lot of stress.         

2. Formal mentorship programs that encourage in-person connection     

3. Resolution options like facilitated dialogues

• Employees need low-stakes opportunities to talk through differences and clear the air
• Facilitated dialogues help colleagues, teams, and boards have tough conversations, navigate difficult issues, and chart a path forward.         

4. Team retreats

• Retreats offer time to build friendships and a forum to level up employee skill sets.
• Periods of isolated institutional introspection allow staff to develop expectations for the organization’s present and future and have tough conversations about visioning and values cohesion.         

Hybrid workplaces, mentoring programs, resolution options, and retreats help colleagues form “social cohesion; mutual support and affinity” and come together as “a group of people who have the same interests or goals.” Remote workplaces have brought people together and opened up opportunities for everyone to thrive. Nonetheless, it’s difficult to replace the opportunities for connection that come from passing colleagues talking about your favorite movie or asking someone to join you for a coffee run.

In a time of increased reliance on artificial intelligence and remote workplaces, investment in physical infrastructure and in-person policies may seem like spending money on antiquated systems. To that, I say, “Talent needs to be nurtured.” Trust is developed. Loyalty is earned. In-person opportunities to build community contribute to all of these.

We’ve come a long way in our thinking about employee well-being. As information ripens into wisdom, we should take the opportunity to couple the lessons from the past with the knowledge of today. Physical health, mindfulness, and mental health investments are important to support our employees as individuals. But we shouldn’t stop there. Let’s also work together to foster workplace community.

Author Bio

Genesis Fisher is a Lead Facilitator and Trainer with JAMS Pathways. An experienced, certified mediator, Genesis is adept at facilitating positive change. Her training and workshops have helped over 2,000 people in six countries communicate better in the workplace. A sought-after teacher, writer, and speaker, she serves on the Advisory Committee for the Center for Creative Conflict Resolution, which provides conflict resolution services for over 70 New York City agencies.