November 2, 2023 – The McKinsey Health Institute (MHI) today published a new report quantifying the link between positive work experiences and employee health and productivity.
The results of this 30-country survey of more than 30,000 employees shows that employers have more power to drive positive health impacts than they know. Reframing employee holistic health: Moving beyond burnout to holistic health finds that employees who had positive work experiences reported better holistic health (including physical, mental, social, and spiritual health), are more innovative at work, and have improved job performance.
Supporting good employee health is about more than mitigating symptoms of burnout. Research shows that enablers – aspects of work that provide positive energy such as meaningful work or psychological safety – are most predictive of positive health and work-related outcomes. Conversely, workplace demands – challenges in the workplace such as toxic behavior or unsustainable workload – are primarily responsible for driving burnout. With 51% of employees reporting low holistic health, high burnout, or both, employers have a huge opportunity to implement interventions at the organization, team, job, and individual level that address demands and enablers.
“When we look at what employers are already doing to support employee health, we see many focused on providing resources to employees already struggling with their health,” said Barbara Jeffery, MHI Co-Leader of Employee Health. “But employers should be focused on moving toward optimal health. It’s good for the well-being of their people, and it can be a source of sustainable competitive advantage for the organization.”
“Addressing employee burnout has been a top priority for many employers in recent years, especially since the pandemic,” said Jacqueline Brassey, MHI Co-Leader of Employee Health. “But attention is shifting from just focusing on burnout to focusing on well-being and thriving. Even employees reporting good holistic health can also show symptoms of burnout at the same time. Employers have a huge opportunity – and responsibility – to understand and address the different factors driving these outcomes in their workforce.”
Read the report here.
Learn about our Employee Health Platform here.
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About the McKinsey Health Institute
The McKinsey Health Institute (MHI) is an enduring, non-profit-generating entity within the firm. MHI believes, over the next decade, humanity could add as much as 45 billion extra years of higher-quality life, which is roughly six years per person on average — and substantially more in some countries and populations. MHI’s mission is to catalyze the actions needed across continents, sectors, and communities to realize this possibility.