Greg serves as the Executive Director of NAMI Texas. He joined NAMI Texas in 2012 and has previously served in government affairs roles. In his current role, he is responsible for providing direction and leadership toward the achievement of NAMI Texas’ mission. He is a Licensed Masters-Level Social Worker and a family member of a person with serious mental illness.
We are delighted that Greg will be speaking in Austin as part of our US summit. We caught up with him to see how he’s feeling in the runup to the event.
Hi Greg, we are thrilled that you will be speaking at the Wellbeing at Work US Summit in March. Our first and most important question is, how are you doing today?
I’m excited to join! I am feeling well and energized. But I’m also feeling a lot of stress and pressure resulting from personal and professional responsibilities. Workplaces can do a lot to support employee wellness.
As a leader based in the region, what are the main challenges you are facing when it comes to employee wellbeing and mental health?
Unsupported mental health can lead to challenges like poor performance, decreased collaboration and creativity, low moral and motivation, and increased drug and alcohol misuse. $200 billion is lost in earnings each year in the U.S. through health care usage and decreased work productivity. We have to do better.
What strategies have you seen developing over the past 6 months, both internally and externally, that are moving the dial on wellbeing in the workplace?
Create a fair and equitable codes of conduct to include people with mental health conditions, promoting work life balance, and fostering a supportive company culture are all very important.
Why is employee wellbeing so important to you personally?
I have seen and experienced the lack of it. We spend so much of our lives at work. If it’s not a healthy place, it’s unsustainable.
What impact is AI having in your organization and how are you managing that?
Certain AI functions are helping us with productivity in the nonprofit sector. But I worry about depersonalization of core functions. We are in the people care business – it has to feel human.
Other than AI, are there any challenges that you are seeing for the first time and how are you addressing them?
We are a work from home workplace, which I think is an important benefit. But I do think people feel isolated. We should be doing more friendly check-ins with each other – replacing the ‘water cooler’ that existed in pre-WFH.
What areas do you think employers should be focused on over the next 12 months?
Three core areas: prevent burnout, provide education and awareness, and learning non-stigmatizing language. Come to my session and we’ll get into the details. Smalls steps can do a long way.
Do you feel that investment in employee wellbeing in the region is increasing or decreasing and is that a direct reflection on HR leaders’ increasing ability to demonstrate effective returns of their strategies to leadership?
It’s hard to say. Companies do reach out to us for guidance, but not nearly at the level that I would expect or hope. I want to underscore here that NAMI has a whole initiative called NAMI Stigma Free Workplace in which we give presentations to companies about workplace wellness.
How has your organization been leading the way?
Yes! Let’s talk about workplace wellness. It is a major priority for NAMI Texas.
Greg will be speaking in Austin at the Wellbeing at Work Summit US which takes place in New York, Austin Texas and virtually. Further details on the Summit can be found here.
