Creating a high-performance workplace

During this Think Tank session, participants discussed several aspects of creating and maintaining a high-performance workplace. As a starting point, the groups defined the difference between performance and productivity. Overall, participants agreed that performance and productivity are both measurable components within the corporate environment. However, while one (productivity) measures output and quantity, the other (performance) measures the process and the end product, or quality.

Both performance and productivity can be measured at the corporate and individual level, and both are influenced by multiple variables, such as company culture, pride in the brand, the specific output or product being produced, and the workplace culture. The two concepts are inextricably connected and feed each other, with optimal performance generating a better end product or higher output, and contributing to a company’s ability to compete at a global level.

Once the parameters of productivity and performance have been defined, as an industry we need to consider how these concepts can be consistently measured.

Think Tank participants identified the following factors as important when measuring productivity and performance:

·         Focus on unique goals of the corporation, the department and the individual. Employ a 360-degree review process on an annual basis, and incorporate both qualitative and quantitative measures.

·         Measure concrete outcomes, such as sales, production, ability to meet deadlines and budget targets, and client satisfaction rating.

·         Keep in mind that how productivity and performance are measured will vary between public, private, and government sectors

·         Consider ways to measure performance for knowledge-based workers whose productivity can be otherwise difficult to measure. Consider evaluating things like number of new ideas generated, programs or ideas implemented, manuscripts published, presentations delivered, partnerships formed, or technical assistance provided.

·         For academic environments, consider measurements such as student ratings of teachers, or for research institutions evaluate grant funding acquired or manuscripts published.

Regardless of what elements are measured and how they’re measured, the outcomes of a specific individual need to connect to their workgroup, which needs to connect to the business unit and up through the organization. To understand how health influences productivity and performance, employers need to identify a correlation between employee health status or change in employee health status and performance and productivity outcomes.

Which came first: the chicken or the egg? Think Tank participants pondered a similar question when asked to discuss which is more important: performance or productivity. The response was a resounding, “It depends.”

At a high level, participants agreed that performance and productivity are equally important, and that the degree to which they are weighted depends on the goals of the individual organization. For example, are worker’s compensation claims and medical costs out of control, or is customer service or product quality suffering because of malaise?

With that said, more work has been done across the health management industry to document the impact of poor health on productivity, whereas little is known about the impact of health improvement on performance. There is also a tendency among employers to focus on the pain points (a.k.a., loss of performance) and the factors that contribute to this situation, rather than to focus on what’s driving positive trends in the organization that are creating a higher performing workforce.

If measuring performance and productivity varies from industry to industry and company to company, can we safely say where health falls in the hierarchy of factors that influence performance and productivity? And what are the other key factors to be considered? 

Based on the Think Tank discussion groups, some of the key factors that influence productivity and performance are:
 

·         Strategy

·         Leadership

·         Continuous improvement

·         Physical work environment and supportive culture

·         Corporate vision

·         Compensation

·         Employee recognition

·         Sense of individual purpose

·         Training and professional development

·         Supportive culture

·         Stress level

·         Job stability and predictability

·         Personal happiness

·         Freedom to make decisions on the job

·         Accountability

·         Alignment of values of company and the values of the employees

·         Appropriate resources and tools to do one's job

·         Employee feeling valued

·         Comprehensive and consistent communication

·         Treating employees with respect

Health exists as an overarching factor that helps sustain long-term performance. Health is about wellbeing, not just the absence of disease, and for this reason, Think Tank participants felt that health is high on the list of factors that influence performance and productivity.

These topics and others bear continued discussion and scrutiny by the HERO Think Tank membership. As thought leaders in health management and business come together to consider these important issues, a clear agenda for further research and identification of best practices emerges. Then, our task will be to do the research and broadly share uncovered best practices to help make America healthy.

We invite all members of the HERO Think Tank to attend our next scheduled meeting, Monday, September 23, from 2:00 to 5:30 p.m., at the Disneyworld Hilton Hotel in Orlando, Florida, as we convene to consider these and other important issues of the day in health management.