Wellbeing Designers: Recent Episodes
Reka Deak
In the past years, especially since covid employee wellbeing got on the top of the agenda for companies worldwide. There is so much information out there including podcasts with different wellbeing experts and about various wellbeing methods. However, there is very little insight shared about people, leaders who are in charge of wellbeing in organisations and trying to navigate amongst the growing amount of wellbeing offerings while connecting efforts to business impact and most importantly create real value for employees. This podcast is about these people. I call them Wellbeing Designers:)
๐๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐ก๐ช๐ ๐ค๐ ๐ ๐๐ช๐ข๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐? ... ๐ฌ๐'๐ซ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฃ ๐จ๐ค๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ฏ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐จ ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐๐ค๐ง๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ง๐ง๐๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐, ๐จ๐ค ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฌ๐ ๐๐๐๐ก ๐ซ๐๐ก๐ช๐๐๐ก๐, ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ข๐ค๐ง๐ ๐๐ค๐ช๐ง๐จ ๐ฌ๐ ๐ฌ๐ค๐ง๐ ...
... Is it really true that the client expects me to be available 24 7 or is it my implicit expectation? Or is it the partner's expectation that the client will not accept that I'm off a certain time?"
After a long summer break, weโre excited to share the latest episode of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast!
๐ง Episode 18, Season 3 features Dr. Miriam Baumgรคrtner, former Head of Wellbeing and Sustainable People Performance at PWC Switzerland (note: which is an internal role, focusing on employees of the consulting company).
Key highlights:
๐ Insights into how PwC's global "Be Well, Work Well" program has been supporting employee wellbeing.
โ Expectation Management and Communication: clients need to understand that high-quality work doesnโt require being constantly available.
๐ Shifting away from the idea that long hours equal value, promoting a healthier approach to performance.
๐ผ The need for companies to see wellbeing as a business priority, embedding it into daily operations.
๐ Measuring impact is complex, but feedback and ongoing dialogue are key to driving cultural change.
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
Ready to sign up? Click here: https://www.wellbeing.design/wellbeingleadershipmastery
The Wellbeing Leadership Mastery course is crafted to empower HR and business leaders who are ready to champion the creation of sustainable, human-centric organizations.
This five-month program is divided into five comprehensive modules, each designed to provide you with the skills and knowledge to develop thorough wellbeing strategies, implement effective initiatives, and measure their impact within your organization. The course also includes a mini personal wellbeing journey to help you embody the practices you promote, ensuring you lead authentically and with integrity.
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
"I was going from one patient to the next in 15 minutes, and it was frustrating because it wasn't enough time to make a difference with my patients. ... I need to be where they are. They're spending almost 2000 hours a year at work. And I think I can have a bigger impact if I'm at the workplace. So that started my journey to Johns Hopkins Medicine."
๐ Excited to share the newest episode of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast featuring the insights of Dr. Richard Safeer, Chief Medical Director of Employee Health and Well-being at Johns Hopkins Medicine, hosted by Reka Deak, founder of Wellbeing Designers
Dr. Safeer shares his journey from being a family doctor to focusing on corporate health, driven by his desire to impact more peopleโs lives as they spend most of their time at work.
5 highlights from our conversation:
๐ก Integrating Health into Company Culture: We discuss how to embed health and wellness into the core of corporate culture, making it an integral part of daily operations and organizational mission. Work is where people spend most of their time in their life.
๐ฟ Leadership's Role in Promoting Wellness: Effective leadership is crucial in advancing wellness programs. We get some insights on how leaders can exemplify healthy behaviors and support their teams' well-being.
๐ค Emotions Travel: Rich highlights how the emotional states of individuals can influence the entire workplace environment, underlining the importance of a supportive and positive work culture.
๐ The Soda Project: A symbolic innovative initiative aiming to reduce sugary drink consumption among employees by providing healthier alternatives, reflecting a practical approach to promoting health at work. At the end it is all about an organisational transformation!
๐ The Six Building Blocks of a Healthy Workplace Culture: Dr. Safeer outlines the essential components for fostering a culture of health in the workplace:
- Peer Support
- Leadership Engagement
- Norms
- Social Climate
- Culture Connection Points
- Shared Values
What are your highlights? We would love to hear from you! Please leave them in comments!
Share this episode with someone who would love this today :)
Dr. Richard Safeer, I am grateful for your insights and engagement in this conversation! Thank you! Looking forward to more collaboration in the future
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
How many people at your company would answer YES to this question: "D๐ค ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช ๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐ค๐ข๐๐ค๐ง๐ฉ๐๐๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐จ๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐ข๐๐ฃ๐๐๐๐ง ๐๐๐ค๐ช๐ฉ ๐ข๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ก ๐๐๐๐ก๐ฉ๐?"
At a recent survey Deutsche Bank 79 % ๐ค๐ employees said yes, ๐ ๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐ค๐ข๐๐ค๐ง๐ฉ๐๐๐ก๐.
Happy International Workers Day, 1 May to you with the newest show, Episode 16 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast featuring the work of Nasrin Oskui, the Global Well-being Lead, Director at Deutsche Bank.
Nasrin has been in this role since October 2021 and doing some ground breaking work at the company with about 90k employees worldwide.
5 key takeaways of our conversation:
- Doing Wellbeing with people, not to people! Fostering collaboration and psychological safety is key.
- Wellbeing is not only about giving, it is about empowering. So people can take what they need. They take control of their wellbeing.
- Wellbeing at work is about "Healthy ways of working"
- Micro breaks during the day - easier said than done, even if we know all the science behind. How can employers support their people on this journey?
- Meeting culture is crucial to wellbeing: Dare to decline meetings!
What are your highlights? We would love to hear from you! Please leave them in comment!
Share this episode with someone who would love this today:)
Nasrin Oskui, I am grateful for your engagement in this conversation! Thank you! Looking forward to more collaboration in the future
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
๐ก"Reka, you have a podcast! Why don't we continue our conversation there?" - this is what they asked when we finished our panel discussion together with Shlomit Gruman- Navot Dallas FitzPatrick Adina Avram after the Horizon Summit The HR Congress in Amsterdam last November where we only had 30 mins to delve into the theme "Enhancing People Wellbeing Through Creating Inclusive Workplaces as Cornerstone of Psychological Safety."
โก๏ธAnd so many questions came from the audience! Now we answer all of them exclusively for you:)
๐ Season 3 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast kicking off with this special episode with 3 guests on the show! Wow! Wellbeing though the lenses of a CHRO at OLX and the DEI Director of Teleperformance and Head of DEI Trivium Packaging.
๐๏ธ If you want to know more about the work of these amazing HR leaders and their insights on the questions below, tune into Episode 15 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast!
โWhat responsibility do you see the companies have for the wellbeing of the employee vs the responsibility of the employee?
โHow DE&I can promote wellness at the workplace?
โMany companies encourage psychological safety and wellbeing but speaking up or asking hard questions is still often career limiting. How do you deal with this?
โHow would you recommend to deal with people who do not see wellbeing being an issue (despite the data) or employees feeling DEI is forced on them?
โHow do we secure the wellbeing of the HR professionals themselves in the challenges they face of balancing the well-being initiatives vs the business pressure?
https://www.linkedin.com/in/shlomit-gruman-navot-7236873/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/dallasfitzpatrick/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/adinaavram/
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
"Wellness is about going to the gym after you finish work. Wellbeing is about the things that you can do within the normal work day."
Episode 14 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast is out! Tune into the fascinating conversation between Dr. Steven MacGregor and Reka Deak.
Steven has been on a wellbeing journey for over 20 years, from his time as a visiting researcher at Stanford through pioneering wellbeing teaching at some of the world's best business schools to help tens of thousands of leaders change their approach to a busy business life.
The new version of his third book, The Daily Reset was just launched now in January 2024. He is also the host of the Chief Wellbeing Officer podcast and he published a book with the same title. Today Steven is an international speaker, a professor at the Glasgow School of Art and Advisor at McKinsey & Company.
Highlights of the conversation:
- How a PhD in engineering and design management has been inspiring his work in the wellbeing space since the very early days
- Why the role modelling of leaders is so critical to make wellbeing successful in an organisational context
- Clearly defining and distinguishing wellbeing vs wellness
- Why he thinks that Wellbeing still has that opportunity, more than ever, to show its real worth and to show its business case
- How the future wellbeing leader is challenged: having humility, empathy while looking at the science and the numbers
Listen on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3G6XFhZ
Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3jh6Bsm
Or via our website: https://lnkd.in/epTRdTW5
What resonated with you? Share your highlights in the comments below! ๐
Don't forget to pass on the episode to someone who needs it today! ๐
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
โ๏ธ"Focusing on not trying to fix people, rather creating the space where they can self serve and fix, because there is a deal of dual accountability." - The big day has come! Episode nr. 13 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast has been out since yesterday! Our guest is one of LinkedIn's Top Voices in the topic of wellbeing: Ryan Hopkins on a mission to ENGAGE 1 BILLION people in the betterment of wellbeing. Hopefully I can contribute to this number though our podcast ๐
When we recorded the podcast Ryan was still at Deloitte UK, leading projects focusing on Wellbeing for their clients worldwide. Today he switched and took on a role as Chief Impact Officer at JAAQ.
He has an impressive story about his own well-being journey that he shares in a TEDx talk (link in comments) and he just published his book 52 Weeks of Wellbeing (link in comments). Most importantly though he is an authentic and fun human being ๐ฏ
Highlights of our conversation:
๐ค We were contemplating a bit about the fact how much you can learn resilience vs how much you have to go through your own sometimes painful experiences in order to understand that.
๐ฐThe dilemma between attrition and engagement. Why lower attrition is not necessarily mean higher engagement and wellbeing.
โ๏ธ The upcoming trend of human sustainability and its implications.
โ Why we need a reality check when ideating about wellbeing solutions: "I just want to put healthy hot food on the, on the table for my family."
๐ซ Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3G6XFhZ
๐ซ Apple podcast: https://apple.co/3jh6Bsm
or via our website: https://lnkd.in/epTRdTW5
โ๏ธWhat are your highlights? We would love to hear from you! Please leave them in comments!
๐ Share this episode with someone who would love this today:)
Reach out to us if you have any questions or feedback:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanhopkinsuk/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
โ "Measurement and impact is really important. We can't be spending
millions and billions of dollars on developing wellbeing strategies that are just not having an impact."
๐ Episode 12 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast is out today! My guest is Chris Cummings Group CEO of the Wellbeing at Work World organising the Wellbeing at Work Summits worldwide since 2014!
Chris and connected back in 2019 fist time. Many things happened in the meantime including covid so finally their event arrived in Zurich in May this year!
Chris is a wellbeing leader who creates international forums for organisations and leaders to exchange and co-create in the organisational wellbeing space. My highlights of our conversation:
โก๏ธThe evolution of wellbeing in organisations from 2014 until today: starting with a siloed approach of expecting meditation apps and yoga classes to solve wellbeing in organisations towards a holistic approach, brining wellbeing into business processes
โจHis favourite Wellbeing at Work Summit over the past 10 years
๐The best action that he has seen so far how organisations can take care of their employees
๐And of course the measurement piece... one of my favourite topics and one of the hottest topics in organisational wellbeing these days!
Thank you Chris for your engagement in this conversation! See you in Zurich at the summit in 2024 the latest ๐
https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-cummings-b204a525/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
๐ Episode 11 of the Wellbeing Designers with Kacy Flaming, Head of Global Wellbeing at Takeda is out today!
๐๏ธ To make you even more curious to tune in and listen to our conversation, let's do a small quiz! Guess which of the following is NOT true! 1 - 2 - 3 ?
Kacy...
1 - ... started her career as an actress before climbing the corporate ladder in pharmaceuticals as a strategic director and recently wellbeing leader
2 - ... considers the ways of working as the main problem to tackle in organisational wellbeing and in society
3 - ... is convinced that up-skilling individuals with wellbeing skills is the way to go because it's a quick fix
๐ To find out the right answer, you need to tune in;)
My personal highlight of our conversation was:
โจ learning about the dimensions of wellbeing, an approach Takeda developed in collaboration with Thrive Global and Arianna Huffington
โ hearing her way of taking care of her own wellbeing: setting boundaries! This is my mantra as well. And it is so difficult - we agreed on this!
๐๐พ she is one of the first ones amongst the wellbeing leaders who I have been talking to, who proactively highlights gender health (including menopause, female health) at the workplace as one of the focus areas of their work
Reach out to us via LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kasingact
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
Episode 10 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast is out today! Our guest is the one and only Karen Guggenheim, founder of WOHASU ยฎ and the World Happiness Summit.
When we recorded this, we were not aware that it will be launched just after the #worldmentalhealthday. What a great coincidence!
๐ As previously announced we are expanding our guest circle beyond "heads of wellbeing" and introduce some systemic change makers. Karen is the perfect example of being such an inspirational leader. She created WOHASUยฎ a unique platform that elevates wellbeing and raises awareness about the science of happiness. Their goal is to educate individuals, businesses, and civic leaders on the significance of utilizing data-driven tools and policies to foster happiness and wellbeing.
Join me and Karen for this conversation if you are curious about...
๐How happiness, wellbeing and longevity (3 popular terms nowadays) are interconnected
๐How WOHASU has been evolved into a world-wide movement since it was launch in 2016 and became a driving force to create the Como Wellbeing Manifesto signed by members of the UK Parliament
๐What's Karen's advice for future wellbeing leaders
๐Insight how WOHASU helped to support and transform a business towards happiness and wellbeing
๐What is going to happen in London 19-10 March 2024 ๐
๐ One of my favourite take-aways is about ...
The rippling affect ... as we transform business environments into positive organizations, that not only impacts the business and the employees working there, but also their families who are associated with these employees. - This is super important aspect and makes the work of wellbeing leaders even more important!
https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenguggenheim/
Buy your ticket to the next World Happiness Summit 19-20 March 2024: https://bit.ly/3FcFFSg
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
"If we don't take care of the people taking care of our patients, our patients are going to suffer." - Episode 9 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast is out today! Our guest is Jonathan Fisher, MD FACC a cardiologist, wellbeing leader and author of the book, "Just One Heart" based in the US.
This is a very special episode for me in many ways. When I discovered Jonathan's work few years ago, I felt that his approach towards health finally manages to make peace in me and in the world between the traditional Western medicine and the more spiritual Eastern one.
Jonathan has been a cardiologist for more decades Novant Health. Nowadays he works 60% as a cardiologist and 40% he is a wellbeing leader.
Some of the thought provoking topics we are talking about:
-
What if we say that someone as a doctor can truly care about their patients only if they care about themselves? How is this possible in the current health care system?
-
How can a doctor after facing burnout go back to the same system as a new person and contribute to a systemic change?
-
Even if healthcare is considered as one of those "lucky" industries where people are most connected to the meaning and purpose of their work, these days healthcare workers are so exhausted that they are often disconnected from the results of their work. What to do about this?
-
And what about trauma? We talked about our common favourite physician, Gabor Mate and his work in this field.
-
How can a doctor embody a mindful approach in practice?
And... If you are interested in reading Jonathan's upcoming book, "Just One Heart - a cardiologist's guide to healing, health, and happiness, is a practical guide to inner workings of the mind heart connection, helping readers master their stress and develop a healthy and joyful heart, make sure you get on the waiting list: https://jonathan-fisher.presale.manuscripts.com/registration/select
Jonathan and I are very much looking forward to hearing about your feedback on this conversation!
๐ Links to the episode in comments below!
Sharing is caring! Share this episode with someone who would love this today:)
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
In this bonus episode Reka Deak, the host of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast changes her seat. She is interviewed by one of her good friends Isabel Steinhoff. Reka shares about her vision and mission with Wellbeing Designers, a bit about her story how she got here, about the community that started to form around Wellbeing Designers and the work that they are doing and planning to do with organisations.
Connect with them:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/isabelsteinhoff/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
www.wellbeing.design
www.wellbeing.design/podcast
Josh Bersin shares about his insights on organisational wellbeing in a context of other HR and business topics reflecting on his book Irresistible and the recent Irresistible experience organised by The Josh Bersin Company.
The book Irresistible: https://www.amazon.com/Irresistible-Secrets-Enduring-Employee-Focused-Organizations-ebook/dp/B0B1VQL9ML https://www.linkedin.com/in/bersin/
https://www.wellbeing.design/podcast https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
In Episode 7 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast we get to know the work ofย Lisette de Jonge and Julia Cornu, the two Global Health and Wellbeing Leaders at Ingka Group / IKEAย based in Sweden.
As a big fan of the Scandinavian way of living, working and BEING:) I was very keen on to bring them into this conversation and to share about their work with you and the world. In close collaboration with the local wellbeing leads in each country they are co-creating global wellbeing initiatives to deliver value for more than 170k employees worldwide .
My three highlights from our conversation:
๐ซ Measurement and return on investment are important but the overall health and wellbeing of coworkers is even more important. We need to acknowledge that wellbeing is a long-term topic. We cannot change the engagement within a month in the organization.
๐ซ Listening to people and their needs is crucial. However, we need to go deeper than the surface. If they request a chair massage, we need to ask why, what is underneath this idea and need?
๐ซ Health and Wellbeing need to be integrated into all key people processes, and ultimately, into all key business processes. So a close collaboration with various business areas is a must.
In Episode 6 of the Wellbeing Designers Podcast we get to know the work of Newton Cheng who is a husband, father, competitive power lifter and Director of Health + Wellbeing Google based in California.
Newton's vulnerability got my interest. He openly shares about his mental health struggles while working in the organisational wellbeing space of a famous organisation. I really enjoyed talking also about spiritual wellbeing with him as this is a topic that we sometimes rename, reframe and very few people dare to put it out there in a corporate environment.
My three highlights from our conversation:
- Talking about Charles Vogel and how communities can impact social and mental wellbeing
- How to approach spiritual wellbeing at work using secular, non-secular and research based approach in engaging people
- Measuring the impact of all the work done towards wellbeing in organisations is not easy, we need to be honest about this. Still, there are frameworks like the one from Christina Maslach that can be a good base to experiment.
And an extra learning: showing up as a credible influential business (not only wellbeing) leader is key to success for future wellbeing leaders!
โ What are YOUR take aways? Share them in the comments or reach out via PM.
We are curious about your story, your learnings and feedback.
๐ค Sharing is caring! If you like the podcast, share it with others who might be interested;)
Reach out to us:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/newtoncheng/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
Jake Sanders shares about his role as Global Wellbeing Initiatives Lead at Philip Morris International. He gives insight into their work and the learnings along the way.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-ap-sanders/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
Maurice Wery shares about his role as Global Wellbeing Manager at The Adecco Group. He gives insight into their work and the learnings along the way.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mauricewery/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
Nick Davison shares about his role as Head of Wellbeing at John Lewis Partnership. He gives insight into their work and the learnings along the way.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsdavison/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
Urs Karkoschka shares about her role as Head of Performance Innovation at Novartis. He gives insight into their work and the learnings along the way.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-urs-karkoschka-9b26239/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
Eva Hausmann shares about her role as Head of Personal Resilience at Swiss Re. She gives insight into their work and the learnings along the way.
Contact us via LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rekadeak/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/eva-haussmann/