The Impact of Wellbeing on Employee Engagement

April 5, 2016

@ee_alliancewww.the-eea.com

Engagement & Wellbeing

James DaltonGroup Head of Engagement & Health

FirstGroup plcTuesday 5 April 2016

FirstGroup plc – who are we?

• 110,000 staff across the business – mainly remote working front line employees

• Student - 50,000 buses and 6 million students every day

• Greyhound – 18 million passengers travel 5.5 billion miles each year

• Transit – largest private sector provider

• UK Bus – 7,400 buses transporting 2.3 million passengers daily

• UK Rail – 310 million passengers every year

• 2.5 billion people rely on us to get to work, to education, to visit family and friends every year

Wellbeing – why bother?

How does wellbeing impact employee engagement and why is that important?

Why do we need healthy employees?

What is all this brain neuroscience stuff about?

Questions for today

What is an engaged employee?

Gives great serviceHas purpose and satisfaction

Feels cared for by their employer (wellbeing)Works safely

Has pride in their organisationBelieves in the vision and values of the companyWould say their company is a great place to work

Goes the extra mileIs involved and enthusiastic

Feels motivated, enabled and inspired by their manager

What are the proven business benefits of improved employee engagement?

Excellent & improving customer serviceReduced absence & turnover

Working safelyWorking efficiently

Working productively Innovation and new ideas

Better decision makingTeamwork

Cost reductionGreater profitability

Engaging managers who motivate, enable and inspire their people

But how?

Engagement Enablers

Employee Engagement

You know where has the business has come from, is now and is going. You know where and how you fit in

You have an engaging

manager who knows you,

coaches and develops you.

You aretreated as an

individual

You have a voice and are listened to

You believe the company

will do what it

says it is going to do and

trust the company

But, we asked, where does that ‘engaged’ feeling come from?So we went on a journey into

neuroscience!

How have our brains evolved since…?

We are still hard wired for survival

Brains have changed little over timePFC – ‘reflect and consider’ larger

Avoid threat and danger 5 x neural network to look for danger

Every 5 seconds we automatically look for dangerFight or flight reflex

Friend or foe instinctPrediction & certainty – we crave it!

Sociability, relationships and team work

These are all pre-programmed natural responses and drive how we react and feel

moment to moment

2016

12

SCARF

StatusCertainty

AutonomyRelationships

Fairness

Multiplier effect

People feel….

• Weakened immune system

• Mental health implications

• Stress• Cortisol / adrenalin• Self focussed• Lack of control• Distracted• Anxious• Think less clearly• Reduced memory• Poorer performance• Disengaged

People feel….

• Strong and resilient• Boosts serotonin &

endorphin levels• Cared for & valued• Positive• Get results• More focused• Willing to collaborate• Innovative• Creative• Willing to get involved• Care for others• Willing to learn• Engaged

Away

Threat

Toward

Reward

David Rock

Wellbeing threads through

Which one do you gravitate towards?

StatusSelf perception, self worth, self confidence, understanding of place in society or work, do I feel

cared for? What is my story?

CertaintyWe are wired to predict, the brain craves certainty, if not we speculate and enter threat

response

AutonomyDo I have control over my life, am I micromanaged, am I involved? Do I have a great manager?

RelationshipsAm I in the team or out of the team? Are you friend or foe? Need to connect with others, survival as

a group, team building, sociability.

FairnessWhat is fair? Fairness is deeply rooted within us

By delivering on the enablers we are moving our employees toward reward

Engagement Enablers & SCARF

Employee Engagement

STATUS CERTAINTY AUTONOMYFAIRNESS

STATUS, AUTONOMY, RELATEDNESS

FAIRNESS

STATUS, CERTAINTY AUTONOMY, RELATEDNESS

One and the same…….

x

Answers – over to you…

Wellbeing – why bother?

How does wellbeing impact employee engagement and why is that important?

Why do we need healthy employees?

And any other questions………

Answers – over to you…