This is class 3 in the MOOC specialization, Become a Sustainable Business Change Agent. This class looks at the big issues companies are fixing - climate change, water, worker satisfaction and supply chain issues. You will learn tools to help your company address these issues intelligently. The class ends with an assignment to set a science-based carbon reduction target for a small company. Tis is absolutely cutting edge material. Only about 300 companies in the whole world are doing this as of July 2017. You could put your company in the elite group! With the knowledge and tools you have acquired from the 3 classes in this specialization you are well on your way to making a difference in your company, and making the future brighter for everyone. Thank you for being part of this program!
Liliana Tenney - Workplace Health and Sustainability
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Из курса от партнера University of Colorado System
Sustainable Business: Big Issues, Big Changes
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University of Colorado System
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Курс 3 из 4 — Specialization Become a Sustainable Business Change Agent
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Workplace and Community Issues
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John ByrdSenior Instructor
Managing for Sustainable & Finance
Kenneth BettenhausenProfessor
Management
Well, I'm going to let you introduce yourself.
Okay.
This program that we're working on is, right now,
tilted towards the environment;
from climate, water and materials,
waste and so on.
But there's this huge part of sustainability that's about people.
Right.
And this is exactly what you folks at
the medical school - School of
Public Health at the University of Colorado are focusing on.
Can you tell us a little bit about the value of
Total Work Health Program and the way that impacts companies,
both in their local offices or facilities and through the supply chain.
Absolutely. Thank you for having me, John.
My name's Lili Tenney.
I'm the deputy director for Center for Health Work and Environment,
based at the Colorado School of Public Health.
So what our approach - we take
a total worker health approach to everything we
do in terms of research and training and education.
And what that means is that we're
working with businesses to look at what they're doing for their policies,
their programs and their best practices
around improving and promoting worker health and safety.
The reason that's so important as part of
the sustainability equation is that in order for businesses to be operating sustainably,
that they need to have workers that come to work every day happy,
healthy, productive; they are showing up.
So there are certain tangible measurable benefits,
such as - that you mentioned.
So such as recruitment and retention
around reducing absenteeism and improving productivity.
A lot of employers are looking at how having
healthier employees can really impact health insurance claims and costs,
workers' comp, injuries on the job.
And as rising rates of chronic disease are so prevalent,
especially in the US,
this is becoming more and more important for companies to take interest and address.
Now internationally, interestingly enough,
in industries like the agriculture industry,
there is a direct intersection between sustainability,
climate change and health.
And we're working on projects with sugar cane workers where
we're looking at what rising temperatures can do to a workforce.
And in terms of supply chain as well as sustainability,
these can have measurable impacts on different - on what's happening with
vulnerable populations that are - are producing commodity goods every day.
So if you have higher - rising rates of temperature,
whether they're acute or over time,
we're looking at higher rates of heat stress,
we're looking at higher rates of chronic kidney disease,
which comes back on the prevention side for companies to be looking
at what they can be doing for injury on these prevention programs.
So do you - do you think there's more interest in - especially in
the supply chain impacts -
because information is so available via social media and what-not?
Do you see, sort of, a growing trend of companies that want to be enduring
and have high-reputational values as being
much more concerned deeper into their supply chain?
Is that how you got involved into this?
Yeah. I think it's - it's two-part.
One is that consumers are definitely aware about where their products are coming from.
They're asking more questions,
they're demanding brands, are more transparent about that information.
And I also think from the worker side and the company side,
companies are looking for recruiting
workers and employers are asking questions about these types of benefits.
There's a lot around what millennials and their lifestyles now demand from an employer.
And that relates a lot to
these employee health and wellness programs in terms of flex time,
family - what they offer for parental leave and family-friendly types of policies.
On the supply chain side of things,
I think it's - the pressure is definitely on from
the international business community, from policy makers,
especially in governments where it's unregulated,
that you have retailers that are going and
conducting audits onsite to really see what the best practice is,
what the producers are doing.
And so it's been - it's been exciting to see,
sort of, that demand come and,
you know, trickle down the supply chain to - to really
increase awareness and also best practice.
That's great. You - you have all these wonderful skills that you can
apply to these - these really tough problems. That's wonderful.
It's challenging.
The MOOC that we're working on,
we envisioned people at the beginning of their careers maybe,
or thinking about careers.
We want to get into the sustainability field as taking it.
And so we're really pushing or emphasizing first projects, or early projects.
If you were going into a company and you - I know you went to a business school,
so you know about companies - if you were going
into a company and you were going to try to
make one or two changes in this health workplace,
safety, employee arena, what do you think you'd look at first?
Well, my standard answer for that question is that no
matter what industry you're working in or you're working with,
it doesn't matter the size of the company;
it starts at the top.
And so the first win that you can have to any success around, I believe,
sustainability, which is your expertise,
or with worker health and wellness is in getting leadership support and buy-in.
And if you don't have that,
it's going to be really hard to
understand or have the support to do - to do anything effectively.
Now the second most important thing is actually having the information you
need to understand the biggest health risk factors in your employees.
So - and that is industry-specific,
depending on who you're employed - or you're
employing - they have different needs and interests.
If you're a high-risk industry,
you're working in construction,
it's probably a bigger priority for you to focus on
people not falling off ladders than eating healthy fruit,
versus an office setting.
So leadership commitment and support as well as having the data
to look at what the employees really need
and what they're interested in are the two most important things.
So putting together that package of evidence to take to leadership to say...
Absolutely.
...this is going to help our company and it's going to
help the reputation in our community...
Exactly.
...is the way to put the package together?
And - and understanding where it fits into
their - their company's mission and values so that you're not coming
in telling them what they need to do
based on what benefits you think it will have for them,
but understanding what their goals are,
what they're trying to do in terms of performance.
And then understanding how that will fit
with employee - improving employee health and wellness.
What do you see as aspirational goals for the ideal kind of workplace set of policies?
What are - what are the three or four things that you would dream about?
And maybe you have at the medical school or the School of Public Health.
I wish.
Where - where should we be going?
What direction should we be taking and what should we - we be hoping for?
Well, I think in any ideal work environment,
to be really fostering a culture of health and well-being for their employees,
you're going to be looking at a company that has policies and
programs around disease prevention and control.
So even though it seems like something that - that has
been addressed already in the public health world,
tobacco use is a huge issue still.
So having a tobacco control policy,
having fair wages and programs that extend to all workers,
including low-wage workers, contracted workers,
temp workers, is also something that I think would be gold standard.
And then having a company policy or - or program that really sets
performance reviews for their managers and supervisors
so that they're not just modeling the way in terms of best practices.
I've met a lot of executives out there that
say they support health and wellness and they're
stressed to the max and they don't take
time for themselves and their families are suffering.
So also having that,
coming back up to the top,
having that leadership accountability in order to
really make sure that this is something that is a sustainable program over time,
regardless of whether or not the CEO leaves or the board changes;
it really needs to be baked into what the company is doing on a day-to-day basis.
We've talked about physical health.
What about mental health?
And I want to couch it in a very certain way.
Yeah.
We know that the forecast are for people to move jobs and whatnot.
Right.
But in order to do that,
your skills have to keep growing.
What about the psychological benefits of
having ongoing training opportunities to grow and whatnot?
Absolutely.
Can you speak to that for just a moment?
Yeah. I'm glad you brought that up because it's one of the things
that - it isn't traditionally thought of as a worksite wellness program,
but professional development and career growth to a person's mental and,
you know, behavioral health over time,
as well as work-life balance,
is something that's so essential.
And so it's something that we - we look at,
we work on with organizations.
We know that employers say that stress is
the number one health-risk factor that they want to be addressing that's not nutrition,
it's not physical activity.
And they're so interrelated as well,
that anything from having a supportive manager
to not facing violence or abuse in the workplace;
all of those things can impact
both our physical and mental health on a daily basis in our jobs.
I guess I did have another question.
Okay.
There's - there's lots of ways to do sustainability.
And I think your combination of
a business degree and a master's in public health is a really unique one.
Can you speak to maybe those sort of avenues
into the whole sustainability field in terms of,
you know, your choice of public health as a way to do that?
Yeah.
I think it's pretty unique.
Well, I think you should start a new joint degree program.
I think - so I got my bachelor's in business - in marketing - and I started working
with a lot of social enterprises where I became very
passionate about having or helping businesses that wanted to do good.
And so I was very intrigued by the one-for-one model,
whether it was, you know,
TOMS Shoes or Warby Parker that could be
making changes around community health or global health.
And so that's when I decided to go back to school,
get my Master's of Public Health to
understand how companies could truly - and marriage the two,
to understand how companies can truly be change agents and still
make a profit and still do good and still have impact,
both at the community - community level as well as within the organizations.
I had no idea what occupational health
was when I went to - to get my degree in public health.
But I see that - that role,
practicing health in the workplace.
You know, we spend more time at work than we do with our families,
than we do sleeping, eating, anything else.
And so I think that the workplace
is probably the most significant place we can have change.
That's great. You guys are doing
wonderful work over there. I hope we can continue this conversation.
Thank you, John.
And I'm sure that we're going to
build on what - what you've told us today. Thanks so much.
I look forward to it.
Thank you so much. Appreciate it. Thank you.
Me, too. Thanks.
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