COVID-19 has drastically shifted the way employers interact with their employees. And as leaders at your company, you’ve likely changed your expectations and objectives for your team.
It’s safe to say that some of those changes will be permanent, while others may return to the way it was pre-pandemic. What’s clear is that it will be up to you to determine what is the right “back to the office” for your workforce.
So, what options do you have when it comes to building a healthy workplace culture in the post-pandemic world?
How Remote & Hybrid Work Are Leading the Way
Ilya Brotzky is better known as the CEO of VanHack. And since 2015, he’s been running a remote company, growing the team from just two people to over 40 employees across 11 countries worldwide.
Having a globally distributed remote team has been a large advantage for VanHack. These advantages include:
- Keeping their costs low due to not having an office
- Moving faster when it comes to hiring great talent because they have a global talent pool to select from
- Being able to cover more regions globally and expand into countries on the other side of the world
Working remotely has also helped VanHack hire a much more diverse workforce than if they just stuck to their local market. They’ve created a team made up of almost 50% women, with 12 nationalities representing 12 languages and 11 countries.
Another large benefit is the ability to give their employees a better work life balance. They’ve recently implemented an unlimited vacation day policy and don’t track the hours anyone on the team is working. The results and impact is what matters most and this is much more clear when working in a remote environment.
Many of their team members have young children and families, so they can now take care of them during the day if needed. It’s been a great way to retain top talent also.
Why Workplace Wellness Is More Important Than Ever Today
Nicholas Chapman of Totum Wellness has seen considerable increase in his remote ergonomics offerings as employers scramble to ensure their employees are taken care of.
Since the COVID-19 lockdown, he’s reported an increasing amount of service inquiries from employees at Facebook, Lyft, Staples, and medium-sized tech firms seeking ergonomic services to address the aches and pains they’re experiencing from their “home office.”
Here’s what we know: over 50% of office workers experience work-related musculoskeletal symptoms, and COVID-19 has likely increased this number significantly. Wellness services help your organization and staff find their motivation to address psychological, physical, and environmental factors and provide the tools necessary to see results.
It should also be noted that many large organizations are recognizing the untapped potential of integrated wellness services. After Amazon’s integration of wellness services in 2019 Jeff Bezos’ wrote in the 2020 Letter to Shareowners that “From 2019 to 2020, overall MSDs decreased by 32%, and MSDs resulting in time away from work decreased by more than half.”
Another study revealed that office ergonomic program interventions reduced average claims costs by 1000%.
As many employees move to a hybrid home/office working structure, these injuries are still present and will surface in many ways including employee turnover, absenteeism, lost productivity, insurance claims, added claims costs, and survey results. Make note of these variables as they must be considered when determining the efficacy of or need for wellness services.
6 months into the pandemic, with many practitioners (chiropractors, RMT’s) and medical professionals offices’ closed such as their dentist, employees couldn’t use their employer benefits. Employers were still paying monthly group benefits premiums. Some benefits brokers negotiated discounts for their clients, others did nothing. Health spending accounts and flexible benefits were already on the rise but had a massive uptick in the COVID-19 pandemic as these dollars are only spent if employees actually use the plan.
Overall, flexibility and an increased focus on what employees value has led to some company cultures thriving during the pandemic while others who failed to adapt have had an extremely difficult time retaining and attracting quality employees. Technology start-ups often are inherently flexible and working from home was already a large part of the culture.
It’s so important to have the right professionals in your corner, whether it’s recruitment, wellness or insurance. This allows you to focus on your employers and not need to be a jack of all trades.
About VanHack
VanHack brings the world’s top tech talent to you. Over 500 companies, such as Rogers, Article, Coinsquare, and SkipTheDishes rely on VanHack to fill their senior developers positions from our community of over 200,000+ tech professionals who are ready to relocate.
Our platform quickly sources, screens and matches the right talent to your job in minutes. And after a hire is made, our team is there to support the relocation process.
About Totum Wellness and Ergonomics
Totum Wellness and Ergonomics was created to give employers and staff the tools necessary to empower them to take control of their health and wellness. Through group and individual services for HR, staff, and executives—Totum provides the information you need to make an informed decision regarding your wellness and guidance on where to start.
The Totum team has decades of experience in occupational rehabilitation, ergonomics, nutrition, and wellness. Totum has the skills and resources necessary to manage and promote a healthy and productive workforce, from home or in the office, so you don’t have to.
About SaaS Wealth Insurance
SaaS Wealth Insurance takes you where you want to go. At SaaS Insurance, our mission is to empower every client to feel financially secure by leveraging innovative technology and industry expertise to bring their goals into focus.
As independent professionals, we work with all Canadian insurance companies, representing your interests so you don’t have to deal directly with the insurance company and instead can focus on your employees.
Leverage the Professional Services Your Business Needs to Thrive
It’s no secret the way we work has changed. So, it’s more important than ever that you give your business the support it needs to succeed in the hybrid workplace.
Whether you embrace remote work, the global talent pool, employee wellness, or the right financial outcomes and advice for your business—there’s no shortage of options available to you.
Are you interested in learning more about the financial services we offer? Get in touch with our team today to get started.
