Sumana Jeddy, MPH is a workplace wellbeing and organizational health professional who combines research, data, and practical experience to understand how work is changing, and how organizations can optimize wellbeing and performance. In her current role with the City of Calgary, she applies evidence-based and data-driven approaches to workplace wellbeing. She is also the founder of a bespoke workplace wellbeing firm, where she has worked with public, private, nonprofit, and academic organizations across Canada, the U.S., and Saudi Arabia. Sumana is a published researcher with 20+ peer-reviewed manuscripts and has been featured in The Globe and Mail.
We are delighted that Sumana and her colleague Emmanuel Paty will be presenting our afternoon masterclass at tomorrow’s Calgary Summit: “Shifting From “Work Life Balance” to Human Capacity for Workforce Sustainability”. They will explore:
- How are research and trends shifting from “work life balance” towards a focus on human capacity?
- What does this shift mean for Canadian employers in terms of long-term workforce outcomes and performance?
- How can HR leaders and Workplace Wellbeing SMEs shape conditions for sustainable work and healthy, engaged employees?
- What is the path forward for strengthening work design and culture in ways that address systemic barriers and embed practices for sustained engagement and contribution?
We caught up with Sumana to find out how she’s feeling in the run up to the summit:
Hi Sumana, we are thrilled that you are joining us at the Wellbeing at Work Summit in Calgary this October. Our first and most important question is, how are you doing today?
Feeing grateful, energized and very much looking forward to what is ahead.
As a leader based in the region, what are the main challenges you are facing when it comes to employee wellbeing and mental health?
Things are moving too fast. One of the biggest challenges is the gap between pace of change and our capacity to adapt and adopt it. Organizations are moving quicky, and the question is whether our people have the capacity to move with them.
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?
I am relatively new to The City, so I would not want to speak to the internal strategy. Externally, though I am seeing a shift in the conversation around wellbeing at work. Organizations and leaders are not just responding to burnout but thinking more about how work is designed. Attention is on workload, workflow, connection, belonging, particularly as AI accelerates pace of change as I mentioned in Q2. There is a demand for practical team/leader frameworks and human-to-human relational skills such as communication, trust, empathy and collaboration.
Why is employee wellbeing so important to you personally?
It came from own experience of seeing the gap between what we know about healthy workplaces and what happens in organizations. I became fascinated with how much evidence-based science exists on work, health and performance, and yet so much of it stays in research than being translated into practise. The passion was/is to close the gap because ultimately the way we work has a very real impact on people’s health, quality of life and ability to perform over time.
What impact is AI having in your organization and how are you managing that?
Again, I am relatively new to The City so I would not want to speak to the approach. However, more broadly, I think there is an opportunity to frame AI as an ‘enhancement’ rather than a ‘replacement’ of skills. Regarding managing it.. all I can say, be thoughtful, address fear/uncertainty and help your people build confidence.
Other than AI, are there any challenges that you are seeing for the first time and how are you addressing them?
I am relatively new to The City, so I would not want to speak to the internal challenges. Broadly, there is still stigma on mental health in many industries. I think we are also moving away episodic training towards embedding wellbeing the ‘flow of work’. We are not there yet.
What areas do you think employers should be focused on over the next 12 months?
I think employers need to focus on more than just how much work is getting done and how quickly. We need to be looking at the work itself, including the workflows, how work is designed, who is involved, and the skills needed to do it well. As expectations, technology, and ways of working continue to change, organizations that adapt how work gets done, not just how much gets done, will be in a much stronger position.
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?
Investment is becoming more intentional, but it is also getting complicated. There is more of everything! We have accumulated a lot of language, programs, surveys, platforms, and initiatives since the pandemic. I wonder if we are getting better at wellbeing or are we just getting better at talking about it. (We need to be careful about ‘culture bloat’). I think the then next 12 months will be interesting because employees are getting better are seeing the difference between ‘genuinely useful’ and ‘checkbox.’
How has your organization been leading the way?
*answer provided by Lori Disler (Leader, Workplace Wellbeing)
Our organization has shifted towards a strategic approach to wellbeing where it is embedded into our Corporate Strategy and People Plan for The City. Wellbeing as the foundation of these strategies builds the foundation of leadership commitment and accountability to create safe, health and supportive workplaces. We are looking at the outside, in to ultimately provide better service to Calgarians through healthy employees, healthy teams and a healthy organization.
Our organization is a leader in how we have advanced psychological health and safety. We have adopted the National Standards and the 14 factors of psychological health and safety to guide the direction for The City. We have created a Psychological Safety Strategy and Framework that has been implemented corporate wide. In addition to the psychological safety experience for employees, we are focusing on protective conditions of work, preventing psychosocial risks and mitigation approaches to both change the work design and support the employee.
Sumana will be speaking in Calgary this October as part of our Wellbeing at Work Summit Canada which take place in both Toronto and Calgary. Click the links below to find out more and book your tickets:
Toronto Summit October 20: Find out more and Book Your Toronto Tickets Here
Calgary Summit October 22: Find out more and Book Your Calgary Tickets Here
