How to Optimize Your Business’ Workplace Mental Health Investments

A Deloitte Canada report suggests the median annual return on investment for workplace mental health programs is $1.62 for every dollar invested. After three years, this number increases to $2.18.

These numbers are compelling; however, simply spending money on programs doesn’t guarantee this return. For example, providing employees with access to a mental health app that teaches them resiliency skills will have little impact if they don’t use it, and those who do don’t absorb the information or adopt the recommended habits.

Invest in mental health programs that are meaningful

To maximize impact and return, you must begin with the end in mind. Define what success or desired impact looks like by gathering input and feedback from your employees – the people who will use the resources you are considering.

Conduct focus groups, analyze HR and disability data, and investigate issues, work decisions and policies that drain employees.

[Read more about work demand, positive charges and negative drains]

For example, you may find that employees are taking more sick days because they are stressed about incivility and rudeness from peers. This might lead to a decision to invest in respect in the workplace training or provide resources that promote civility and educate employees about conflict resolution.

Gather all of the insights you need to confidently answer why, what and how before you invest in mental health program, courses and resources. This decision-making phase will help you  design or screen programs to ensure they align with the organization’s needs. Answering the questions below will also help you design the implementation process and how effectiveness will be evaluated.

1. Why is it beneficial to focus on X to achieve Y outcome? 

2. What is the best internal or external option available to facilitate this desired outcome? 

3. How will the program achieve the desired outcome? 

4. How will success be measured? 

5. How will the program be implemented? 

6. When will workers have access to it? 

Adages such as slow down to go fast or measure twice and cut once apply when designing workplace mental health initiatives to achieve measurable value. You don’t want to make any hasty decisions or take an unplanned approach only to find you are no further ahead, or worse, set back from your desired goals.

When you have answered what, why and how and you’ve made the decision to invest in an initiative or program, there are some steps you can take to maximize its value and impact.

• Create a realistic budget and be sure to include money for evaluation.

• Consider the time commitment required. In an organization of 1,000 employees, 15 minutes equates to 250 hours of available FTE capacity. Be sure you’ve assessed the benefit of taking time from core work, and let employees know you have accounted for the time it will take for them to use the resource or engage in the program. Too often, workplace mental health initiatives, especially those aimed at preventing mental illness, are not built into the work day, and employees must figure out when and if they can afford the time to engage.

• Consider the cost of doing nothing. What would the cultural, psychosical and financial impact be if you didn’t invest in this program or initiative and the issue persisted?

• ROI must be considered before launching a workplace mental health initiative. Define the intangible (non-monetary) and tangible (monetary) data points that can be measured and used for an ROI analysis before and after implementation.

• When you decide to move ahead, communicate expectations and the perceived benefit to employees early and often to increase their understanding and use.

• Connect the dots so they understand the WIIFM (whats in it for me) and how the resources you’re offering link to your organization’s values and business objectives.

• Be clear about the behaviours and habits you’re expecting from employees and identify the key performance behaviours (KPB) and key performance indicators (KPI) that you will assess. For example, if data indicates that leaders in a group are not trusted, one KPB would be providing direct reports with regular, meaningful, psychologically-safe channels to provide feedback and identifying behaviours the leaders should adopt to improve trust.

• When measuring employee feedback on a workplace mental health initiative, go beyond satisfaction and adopt a continuous improvement mindset. A month or two after participating in an initiative or using a resource, assess what employees have learned and the habits they are applying. Investigate whether they feel these habits are helping them.

• Adopt a Plan-Do-Check-Act approach to ensure continuous improvement. Make it easy for employees to engage and check in regularly to identify and reduce or eliminate barriers to success. 

Working with many organizations across North America, I have found there is often a lack of clarity around why, what and how to introduce mental health programs in the workplace. However, with the right forethought and planning, there are significant gains to be made by investing in workplace mental health. Employee well-being and engagement will improve, absenteeism and presenteeism will be reduced, productivity will increase and you will realize optimal return on your investment.

Get to know the authors – Dr. Bill Howatt