Professor Sir Cary Cooper, the highly respected expert on workplace wellbeing, will be talking about how we should be looking at managing stress and workplace wellbeing in the post-Covid world at an online Masterclass being hosted by the International Stress Management Association (ISMAUK) on Thursday 30th March.
Professor Cooper, 50th Anniversary Professor of Organisational Psychology & Health at the Alliance Manchester Business School, will emphasize the need for action as levels of work related stress continue to increase – the current rate of self-reported work-related stress, depression or anxiety is higher than the 2018/19 pre-coronavirus levels1.
Although longer-term trends suggest that employee wellbeing is gradually rising up the corporate agenda, with nearly one in ten respondents expecting their organisation’s health and wellbeing budget to increase significantly over the next 12 months2, workplace stress remains a silent and often-neglected factor that impacts adversely on employee health and productivity. This state of affairs also reduces company performance and success rates.
Amongst the issues Professor Cooper will discuss are – how we can build on progress made to date and what our focus should be in 2023; the accountability of boards for implementing measures to reduce stress (such as ensuring a non-executive director is responsible for employee health and wellbeing, holding the organisation accountable for stress-related and mental ill health); implementing bespoke strategies such as mental health first aid; and the role trained professionals, such as HR managers, counsellors and coaches, should play in getting organisations to develop effective interventions.
Professor Cooper commented, “Workplace stress is preventable. If we really want to prevent workplace stress and treat wellbeing as a desirable goal for organisations, there are straightforward steps we can take that will make a measurable difference: organisations should understand the purpose of wellbeing and why it must be valued, seeing it as part of the wider company culture; they should ensure there is a strategy to extend their approach to wellbeing; and they should avoid being over-ambitious, proceeding carefully while taking advantage of professional advice.”
Carole Spiers, Chair of ISMAUK, added, “We are delighted to have Professor Cooper as our speaker for this Masterclass devoted to plotting the future of stress management and workplace wellbeing. These are key areas for ISMAUK as the lead professional body for workplace and personal stress management, wellbeing and performance: Professor Cooper’s arguments align with our theme for 2023, Beyond Stress Management: From Stigma to Solutions. It is vital that employers adopt proactive measures aimed at tackling stress and develop strategies geared to increasing workplace wellbeing. By going the extra mile, we can create healthier, safer and more productive workplace environments.”
See more information and book tickets for the masterclass here. Non ISMA members can use promotional code MC25OFF for a 25% discount.
