WPP setting high standards in workplace well-being

In the summer of 2018, WPP’s Health Practice launched a programme to support workplace well-being. Supported by the Board, the intent is to transform WPP’s UK headquarters into something called the Wellness Lab, where the company can create evidence-based experiences that encourage a happy, healthy and supportive workplace.
International head of digital at the Health Practice, Simon Stebbing, said: “What you have to remember is that clients buy people. It is not just about delivering numbers, it is about ensuring people have the support that they need, whether that is career support, life-coaching or mental-health support. What is unique in our industry is that there was this expectation that you are ‘always on’. We let our people work the way they need to and we are against presenteeism. Sitting in an office all day, every day, is not the best way to get the best creative work out of people. It is very antiquated. The key is having a better understanding of the needs of the individual. Wellness can mean different things to different people. Often people have challenges that are completely unrelated to work, but they still impact how you feel in the workplace and if you are able to do your best work.”
Ogilvy Commonhealth MD, Caroline Howe, said: “We have designed a wellness programme that is available to all people at all levels. It acknowledges that people are human and legitimises their need for support. I think agency culture is shifting beyond the agency bar. It is important for people to spend time together at work socially, but that can happen in many different ways. They want to know that the company has the right attitude, that it will be flexible when they need it. That really resonates with people.”
WPP’s Health Practice employs an in-house councillor, Nathan Burt, who worked for Publicis and Havas, before training as a councillor. He said: “It’s not about trying to fix some broken work culture, it is about addressing the sensory overload people face, or the challenges they face outside work, such as loss or trauma. Everybody has mental health, we need to step away from that idea that you might be the ‘one in four’ and focus on the way in which you let off steam from the stress you accumulate in life.”