May 26, 2010
What’s your incentive for choosing a healthy lifestyle?
NICE (The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence) is putting forward a new initiative to encourage healthier lifestyles – using financial incentives to change behaviour. Rewards are set to include groceries for quitting smoking, sports tickets for participating in healthy activities and shopping vouchers for staying drug-free. Already, several NHS Trusts have started their own schemes – for example Tayside in Scotland are offering weekly grocery vouchers of £12.50 to pregnant women if they haven’t smoked that week.
Opinions vary on whether this is a worthwhile initiative. In support, you might argue that people respond to incentives and anything that encourages people to adopt a healthier lifestyle is a good idea. In contrast, you consider this to be bribing people to do something that should already do, or even encouragement for people to start smoking a few cigarettes in order to qualify for the scheme. Critics argue that public money should not be spent in this way – pregnant women should give up smoking for the sake of their unborn children rather than for financial gain.
As with most initiatives, the evaluation process is going to be critical in determining whether it is successful and sustainable. The Tayside scheme was seen as a success by the NHS because of the 450 women that have taken part, half had given up smoking a month after enrolling and one-fifth (21%) had still quit after a year. This is twice the success rate of standard stop smoking services.
To answer the sceptics, the evaluation research will need to be broader than measuring drop-out rates for participants. The cost-benefits for large numbers of people becoming more active and giving up smoking will be reflected in personal health implications and the subsequent effects on NHS services. Long term savings can be made by reducing levels of obesity and smoking, for example parents who stop smoking will be healthier themselves, and will also reduce their children’s chances of developing asthma. Only when measuring these wider outcomes can the initiative properly be assessed on whether it is successful, sustainable and value for money.
Of course in an ideal world, everyone would make healthy lifestyle choices without the need for financial incentives. However, this is frequently not the case. So realistically, the use of incentives may need to be part of the longer-term solution by embedding healthier behaviours. If these in turn become the ‘norm’ we could quite quickly see sustained and broader improvements in the overall health of large numbers of people.
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Posted by Cary Cooper
May 21, 2010
A recent study of 6,000 UK civil servants in the European Heart Journal has again shown a direct link between long overtime hours and levels of heart disease. This relationship between long working hours and health risks is a well-documented area, and one in which I have been personally interested in for many years. The particularly interesting thing about this new research is the use of the word ‘overtime’.
Previous studies, including the ones that I have been involved in, have looked at how the length of working days is linked to a number of health risks, both physical and psychological in nature. These studies show how important work-life balance can be for reducing stress and hence improving health. However one sticking point is the differences that exist between countries.
The UK has some of the highest levels of heart disease in the world, and yet the average working hours in the UK are not nearly as high as some other countries – particularly developed countries in Eastern and Southern Asia. Countries such as Japan and Hong Kong regularly top working hours charts, but they also have some of the lowest levels of heart disease in the world.
Obviously there will be mediating factors that have an impact here. For example, it’s no secret that levels of smoking and drinking are lower in developed parts of Asia than they are in Europe and the USA, plus there are other lifestyle factors such as diet that will also have an effect. However, I would like to see more research into how overtime in particular, and not simply the length of working day, is related to heart disease.
I say this because expectation may play a part in this relationship. Although working hours in Japan and Hong Kong may seem excessive to many in the West, they are simply part of a long working hours culture that has existed for decades in that part of the world. Therefore workers in Japan and Hong Kong may not be as stressed by the long hours, simply because they expect them and are used to them.
Contrast this with the UK, where working hours seem to be increasing year-on-year. Where once a more laid-back culture existed, nowadays people are expected to work for longer, and this often includes working overtime. The UK lifestyle has dramatically changed over the last few decades. Perhaps UK workers feel aggrieved when they have to work overtime, and as a result become more stressed about it?
Now, I’m not saying that we should all just ‘expect’ long hours at work and live with it! But I think there is an interesting point here. Employers need to manage expectations about what the job entails and those responsible for job design need to take this into account. It is also important that we actively manage our own expectations – taking responsibility for finding out what a particular job or career entails and if it’s right for you could save a lot of (possibly literal!) heartache further down the line.
Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8674372.stm
1 Comment | health, Stress, Well-being | Tagged: career, civil servants, culture, diet, drinking, European Heart Journal, expectation, health risks, heart disease, Hong Kong, Japan, job design, manage expectations, overtime, research, smoking, Stress, UK, USA, working hours | Permalink
Posted by Cary Cooper
May 19, 2010
I read a great article recently about the English writer C Northcote Parkinson; the man who coined the phrase “work expands to fill the time available”. The article was about another principle of his called the Law of Triviality – that the time spent on any item will be in inverse proportion to its cost and importance.
The article refers to Parkinson’s illustration of this idea in which an organisation’s top management team meet to discuss two new projects: an atomic reactor and a new bike shed. “The reactor is complex and bewilderingly expensive, and non-experts risk embarrassment if they speak up, so it gets approved in two and a half minutes. But everyone knows about bikes and bike sheds, and everyone has an opinion. The bike shed will be debated for an hour and a quarter, then deferred for decision to the next meeting, pending the gathering of more information.”
Parkinson’s key point here is not only that smaller, more trivial things are less intimidating to deal with. What this really demonstrates is that when people are managing the impression they give of themselves, rather than focusing on the shared goal of the group, their self interest unwittingly conspires to keep them focused on the trivial. Each person wants to demonstrate that they are contributing and adding value. But when faced with a complex matter of which they are ignorant, to contribute is to risk humiliation, so they are likely to keep quiet!
Consider your recent meetings - is this something you’ve experienced? Or even something that, on reflection, you realise you’ve been guilty of yourself? I’ve got a feeling it might be true for quite a lot of us!
You can read the article here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/may/15/change-your-life-trivia
Leave a Comment » | Management, Uncategorized | Tagged: business meetings, C Northcote Parkinson, importance, intimidating, Law of Triviality, Management, projects, self interest, trivial, value | Permalink
Posted by Cary Cooper
May 14, 2010
We have had a momentous change in government over the last 48 hours, with the Conservatives and Lib-Dems forming a consensus that they can lead together. The body language between David Cameron and Nick Clegg could not have been more positive, as both leaders confirmed this is going to be a five year coalition government, with collective Cabinet responsibility. We’ll see whether this is how things turn out, but after decades of combative politics we now have a chance of experiencing collaborative government and new behaviour that inevitably goes with it.
Yes, this was partly driven by the result of the election – but also by political leaders realising that the economic situation we find ourselves in requires consensus and movement towards common objectives for the greater good. It is a tribute to both leaders that they have seen this and that the rhetoric of ‘it’s in the national interest’ has been actualised. The Conservatives could have agreed to form a minority government in an effort to win another election in a year or 18 months; but they did not. They took the brave and courageous decision to work in partnership for the good of the country, even though it is likely to cause them political problems with some of their backbenchers down the line.
Now, what can business learn from this? Why can’t BA, the rail industry, the Royal Mail, and many other management teams, as well as trade unions, behave in a similar way? Rather than engaging in the “same ol’’ industrial relations battles of a bygone era, organisations need to focus on working towards common goals that will benefit both employers and employees. Does the country need, at this time of economic crisis, a return to 1970s class warfare and the ‘them and us’ mentality?! If political leaders with fundamentally different values can come to some kind of collaborative arrangement for the common good, business (and the public sector) can do the same! Ironically this kind of behaviour started in the private sector, but I think it sometimes gets forgotten – we called it ‘co-opetition’. Nick and Dave have given us a timely reminder that, now more than ever, businesses need to work together for mutual benefit and for the good of their staff.
1 Comment | economy, election, Leadership, Management, prime minister, Private Sector, Public Sector | Tagged: 1970s, BA, backbenchers, business, Cabinet, class warfare, co-opetition, collaborative, combative, Conservatives, David Cameron, economic, election, government, Lib-Dems, management teams, national interest, Nick Clegg, partnership, political leaders, politics, Public Sector, rail, Royal Mail | Permalink
Posted by Cary Cooper
May 10, 2010
This is a very stressful time for both David Cameron and Nick Clegg, as they attempt to juggle the multiple demands on them both to come to some understanding about how they are going to work together to govern. Over the last month, they have not had much sleep, have been travelling and away from their families constantly – now they are expected to come up with a coherent plan for government!
Admittedly, they are not alone in this process – they both have advisors and support from senior civil servants. But ultimately they have to make the tough decisions, with the added stress of disappointing a number of their respective followers and party colleagues no matter which decision they reach. It has to be stressful trying to juggle the concerns of the ordinary citizens, the economy, the markets, their party activists, the media and the wider financial community. This is not an easy balancing act for either, and we should all understand the intolerable pressures they are under. If the first few days are a sign of things to come it shouldn’t come as a surprise when, two years from now, we look at a PM or senior politician and say “hasn’t he aged”!
These high expectations are a reality for most people in senior roles in society. These people are expected to perfom as supermen/women – who we assume (given that they are paid handsomely!) should be able to deliver all that we and the wider community expect of them. We should all remember that they are only human, they also have families and important relationships outside of work. They have no more hours in the day than the rest of us, and sometimes events and situations will intervene and prevent them from achieving their goals.
The lively debates of the election have engendered strong emotional reactions to all three leaders, but a little bit of tolerance would not go astray right now. Leaders will not always deliver all that we want – it’s impossible to please everyone – but if they are committed, successful on the things that matter and give it their all, we should all lend them our support.
Leave a Comment » | economy, election, Leadership, Personal Resilience, pressure, prime minister, Stress, Uncategorized | Tagged: achieving goals, balancing act, citizens, civil servants, Community, David Cameron, debates, decisions, demands, economy, elections, emotional, families, financial community, govern, government, high expectations, leaders, markets, media, Nick Clegg, party activists, PM, politician, pressure, senior roles, sleep, society, successful, support, tolerance | Permalink
Posted by Cary Cooper
May 6, 2010
So election day finally came! The talking is done – the nation processed it all and each individual has cast his or her vote (or not!).
How must the party leaders have been feeling on the day? It must have been like going back to school at exam time for them – did they put enough work in over the last month? Will they get the result they’ve been striving for and move on to the next stage in their careers? But just like at the end of a school test – ‘time’s up’ and there’s nothing any of them can do to change the result now.
Like many students who ‘cram’ all night before an exam because they’re determined to succeed, all of the candidates have been putting in the hours leading up to election day. While work-life balance is always important I think this kind of intensity is ok in special circumstances – it’s a once in a lifetime moment for all of them and they have to make every second count. The key, though, is respite – the research shows that the best results come from short bursts of intense effort followed by a period of rest and recovery.
Of course, at least one of them will be able to get as much respite as they want or need after today. By stark contrast another will become Prime Minister and may find rest and relaxation very hard to come by in the coming years!
David Cameron, for example, has almost certainly had no more than a couple of hours sleep over the last two nights – and certainly won’t be getting any more tonight. Maybe we should consider having a 24 hour cooling off period after results are announced so all candidates can recover and process the results before the post-mortems and trying to form a government begin in earnest? It’s been an intense election this time round – but the next stage is governing the country and we need the winner(s) to be on good form for that!!
1 Comment | health, Personal Resilience, pressure, Stress, Uncategorized, Well-being | Tagged: candidates, cooling off period, David Cameron, election, exam, government, nation, once in a lifetime, party leaders, Prime Minister, respite, school, sleep, students, winner | Permalink
Posted by Cary Cooper
May 4, 2010
The ‘Statement of Fitness for Work’, or the ‘fit note’ as it is affectionately known, came into effect on 6 April, as introduced in my previous blog dated 18 February. One month on, what impact has it had so far?
Few people would argue that sickness absence costs employers financially. It also costs other employees, who may face an increased workload as they cover for absent colleagues. When the same person is off work for several weeks or months, then the costs to employers and employees are exacerbated. In addition to the primary illness, there can be other secondary effects for the individual concerned. For example, not working may lead to lower self esteem – which will have a negative impact on overall psychological well-being.
To help address longer-term sickness absence, the ‘fit note’ was introduced to support people to return to work as quickly as possible. Have you encountered any situations where the ‘fit note’ has helped or hindered employers or employees? For example, has the ‘fit note’ helped someone you know with a fractured wrist return to work whilst in plaster, to perform amended duties, when they might otherwise have been signed off from work if the old ‘sick note’ system was still in place? Similarly, has anyone you know been offered more flexible working hours or phased their return to work following illness – and benefitted from doing so? Or, do you think that someone you know has already misused the system and been able to ‘cherry pick’ the duties and responsibilities that suit them, leaving other colleagues to cover the more arduous tasks? Finally, are you a GP who has had to write these notes and, if so, how is the new system affecting you?
Real-case examples will be vital to evaluating the success of the system for everyone involved, and I look forward to hearing your experiences.
For more information about the ‘fit note’ you can read the following:
http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/2584.aspx
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Nl1/Newsroom/DG_184645
5 Comments | Absenteeism, change management, employee engagement, health, Uncategorized, Well-being | Tagged: duties, employee, employer, fit note, GP, physical health, psychological well-being, responsibilities, return to work, Sickness Absence, Statement of Fitness to Work | Permalink
Posted by Cary Cooper
What’s your incentive for choosing a healthy lifestyle?
