This content is part of the Wellbeing Zone
The wellbeing subgroup was launched in August 2013 to build on the paper “Why wellbeing matters: Sustaining Employee Engagement & Wellbeing”. Chaired by Wendy Cartwright, former HRD for the Olympic Delivery Authority, the group sought to build upon the great work already taking place and provide a “wellbeing, nailing the evidence” whitepaper. Please access the whitepaper here.
The evidence in this whitepaper report has been drawn from three distinct perspectives: academic research, research by consultancies and organisational case studies. There are small case study vignettes in the main body of the report, but more detailed case studies for each of these are available on this website. One of these case studies were from Mars. The vignette can be found below as well as in the white paper.
Mars is a family owned organisation with 70,000 associates (employees) in 73 countries. The company believes that supporting its associates in managing their health and wellbeing is mutually beneficial to Mars, their associates and their families. The overall wellbeing strategy in the UK includes a focus on diet and nutrition, physical activity, stress management and smoking cessation.
One particular campaign included resilience workshops, the opportunity to have blood pressure, cholesterol, BMI and glucose checks. 238 associates in 34 teams of 7 also took part in a 16-week pedometer challenge. 89% said the campaign positively supported their energy levels and resilience, 68% said the challenge had helped them make long term changes to help their wellbeing. There was a decrease in absence due to mental health related issues and a decrease in stress related problems. Additionally, employees reported an increase in the quality of their sleep and daily productivity.
Why is health and wellbeing important at Mars?
At Mars, we believe associates are at the heart of our business and drive our performance. Supporting associates in managing their health & wellbeing is a mutual benefit to Mars, our associates and their families. Understanding wellbeing and the impact on performance is key in delivering our business objectives and our ability to compete in a competitive market both today and tomorrow.
Mars believe that wellbeing underpins engagement and productivity. Gallup have been exploring the demands of a ‘life well lived’ to understand what differentiates lives that are spent thriving from those that are spent struggling or suffering.
The five elements are:
Career Wellbeing – liking what you do each day
Social Wellbeing – strong relationships and love in your life
Financial Wellbeing – effective management of economic life
Physical Wellbeing – good health and energy
Community Wellbeing – involvement with the area where you live
As part of Mars involvement with the Engage for Success wellbeing subgroup, the full case study details are here.
