KAD Case Study
How we helped revolutionise a business’s approach to wellbeing in one year
Bringing the HR and Health and Safety leads at a train company, we helped them go beyond standard wellbeing programmes to address the root causes of stress and mental health challenges.
The Organisation
Keolis Amey Dockland runs the franchise from Docklands Light Railways transporting over 124 million people a year. They wanted to develop a measurable and proactive wellbeing strategy and development programme that would help transform KAD’s organisational culture.
What was the challenge?
Wellbeing in organisations has become a business priority.
We know that many people are struggling – with mental health issues at an all time high, but knowing how to tackle this is a different matter. It can be tempting to put a tick in a box and it is all too human to do the easy things.
KAD were determined to make a measurable difference – in spite of this being a more difficult route than the traditional one – often based on a series of training and benefits interventions.
Fundamentally, wellbeing is cultural – whether good or bad, so this implies that a cultural programme is needed which starts with senior leaders and managers and ongoingly looks at how work “works”.
What was our solution?
We worked with KAD to identify three goals based on the problem statements generated from our first Organisational Stress Risk Assessment:
- Managers to balance performance with care
- People to be supported to manage their energy effectively
- Access to support to be clearly available without stigma
Using our holistic approach to wellbeing, we ran training targeting three different levels within the organisation, Organisational, managerial and individual.
Organisation
The senior leadership team received training in organisational wellbeing and played a part in developing the stress risk assessment and strategy in a facilitated environment.
Our next steps with them is to look at their organisational approach to managing overwhelm and stress. This is not just about training individuals but also providing work design support through LEAN problem-solving techniques.
Managers
KAD bought HWC’s flagship Manager Wellbeing Conversations training, rather than an off-the-shelf course. This allowed us to tailor the course to their industry and challenges and it was made engaging through the use of Forum theatre – with a script designed for them.
Individuals
KAD carefully considered the role and governance for those points of next support often called Mental Health First Aiders in organisations and chose to create a proactive role called Wellbeing Ambassador. For their training they utilised HWC’s First Aid for Mental Health exam-based qualification through Highfield, which again can be tailored.
KAD embarked on physical health roadshows with content specifically for their male demographic, also menopause training and menopause training for managers. The programme was kicked off through the Virgin Pulse step challenge.
What was the outcome?
Breaking down silos
This initiative necessarily had to work across HR and Health and Safety, fostering collaboration across departments to address wellbeing comprehensively and absolutely necessary for the performance of a Stress Risk Assessment.
Defined objectives with measurable outcomes
We defined clear objectives for wellbeing at KAD, ensuring that success could be quantified and tracked effectively.
Senior leadership involvement
The senior leadership team was actively engaged and invested in every step of the strategy formulation and implementation process.
Targeted approach
Our strategy targeted key stress risks and demographic factors affecting employee wellbeing, ensuring a focused and impactful intervention.
Integration with related strategies
We integrated the wellbeing strategy with other organisational initiatives such as Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) and Safety (e.g. Restorative Just Culture) ensuring a holistic approach to employee welbeing.
“I have recommended working with Heather to numerous people for several reasons. I believe she is the best out there when it comes to supporting organisations with wellbeing strategy and training.
Heather comes from a business background so understands the challenges and pressures we all face on a daily basis. She understands the HR pressures – on managers – as she has been one herself.
She understands the health and safety aspects of wellbeing as she has been an integral part of the profession for many years.
She combines intellect and academic understanding with pragmatism and accessible language. She can build relationships and communicate really effectively from the shop floor to the Senior Team. My Health and Safety manager, Derek Day, says working with Heather is his favourite part of the job.
Always, with Heather, you get a dose of inspiration, together with empathy, listening skills and a playful sense of humour. John (HR) and I, really enjoy working with her and we are delighted with the results she is bringing us at KAD.”
Simon Bown, HSE Director, Keolis Amey Docklands