We are delighted that Peter will be speaking in Sydney this November as part of our Wellbeing at Work Summit Australia. We caught up with him to find out how he’s feeling in the run up to the summit.
Hi Peter, we are thrilled you will be speaking at our Wellbeing at Work Summit Australia in November. Our first and most important question is, how are you doing today?
To be honest, a little stressed due to the escalating middle east situation, from both a personal point of view, and from an organisational point of view we have a lot of people and operations.
As a leader based in the region, what are the main challenges you are facing when it comes to employee wellbeing?
The same issues we’ve been dealing with for several years, across all regions, have not changed – stress, workload and work-life balance. Then add ‘cost of living’ and inflation, which is non-work relate stressor faced by people across many countries.
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?
We’ve been consolidating and streamlining our wellbeing and mental health offerings, to have them wrapped up in a single program using a single provider. That way it’s more ‘joined up’ and simple from the employee perspective.
Why is employee wellbeing so important to you personally?
If I take the word ‘employee’ out of the question, then the answer becomes both far more global and personal. We all want to see people at their best, healthy and thriving in all aspects of life and wellbeing. People with good wellbeing are going to be a better version of themselves – and that’s the kind of people we all want to work beside and have in our workplace. And then of course there’s the improved productivity, engagement and value that comes from having high levels of employee wellbeing.
What are you most looking forward to about the Summit in November?
I love learning about what others are doing in the wellbeing and mental health space; what’s worked, what hasn’t, and why. No one has all the answers, but as a collective we have a solid base.
Tell us, what is your vision for the future workplace, in terms of engagement, health and wellbeing?
All our colleagues having an awareness and understanding of mental health and wellbeing, and the way it can impact performance and productivity. We seamlessly support and accommodate a colleague who might have a physical injury, illness or disease, and I’d love to see a culture where we do the same for mental health and wellbeing issues without any stigma, shame or embarrassment.
What areas do you think employers should be focused on over the next 12 months?
Broadly, how overcome stigma, disbelief, misconception. I still hear people (people leaders, and even HR) talk about mental health an excuse, or being milked to gain advantage. Another area of importance is metrics – what gets measured gets managed, and we cannot manage wellbeing or know what’s working and what’s not, if we don’t have solid metrics.
How has your organisation been leading the way?
I’d be hesitant to say we are leading the way. But one of the things I am really proud of is our support for hybrid and flexible working. We take the approach that everyone should be able to work flexibly as a starting point. Of course, we know some frontline roles cannot be done from home, and there might be regulatory issues in our banking industry. But for most office-based staff, we start from the position of being able to work hybrid and flexibly, and that’s our global position, not just for a few ‘lucky countries’. That has positive impacts on wellbeing, and on enhancing our DEI program and offering.
Peter will be speaking in Sydney at the Wellbeing at Work Summit Australia which takes place live and in-person in Sydney and Melbourne. Further details on the Summit can be found here.
